Insights into the Thermal Performance of Underground High Voltage Electricity Transmission Lines through Thermo-Hydraulic Modelling
In this paper, a flexible numerical framework to provide thermal performance assessment for the underground buried cables, considering different geological and meteorological conditions, has been presented. Underground cables tend to retain the heat produced in the conductor, so complex coupled ther...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-11-01
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| Series: | Energies |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/15/23/8897 |
| _version_ | 1797463344783818752 |
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| author | Kui Liu Renato Zagorščak Richard J. Sandford Oliver N. Cwikowski Alexander Yanushkevich Hywel R. Thomas |
| author_facet | Kui Liu Renato Zagorščak Richard J. Sandford Oliver N. Cwikowski Alexander Yanushkevich Hywel R. Thomas |
| author_sort | Kui Liu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In this paper, a flexible numerical framework to provide thermal performance assessment for the underground buried cables, considering different geological and meteorological conditions, has been presented. Underground cables tend to retain the heat produced in the conductor, so complex coupled thermo-hydraulic response of the porous medium surrounding the cables needs to be assessed to prevent cable overheating and the associated reduction in cable capacity for carrying current. Applying a coupled thermo-hydraulic model within the developed numerical framework to conduct a health assessment on a subset of National Grid Electricity Transmission’s underground cables, this study provides novel insights into the thermal behaviour of buried circuits. The results indicate that backfill and surrounding native soil have the dominant effect on the thermal behaviour of cables, while the amount of precipitation and ambient temperature were found to have less impact on cable’s thermal behaviour. The findings strongly infer that the nature of the overloading which is undertaken in practice would have no ongoing negative impact, suggesting that more frequent or longer duration overloading regimes could be tolerated. Overall, this study demonstrates how the developed numerical framework could be harnessed to allow safe rating adjustments of buried transmission circuits. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T17:49:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5e7f0731e4ca4b58b95569ebdf5ac898 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1996-1073 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T17:49:19Z |
| publishDate | 2022-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Energies |
| spelling | doaj.art-5e7f0731e4ca4b58b95569ebdf5ac8982023-11-24T10:52:04ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732022-11-011523889710.3390/en15238897Insights into the Thermal Performance of Underground High Voltage Electricity Transmission Lines through Thermo-Hydraulic ModellingKui Liu0Renato Zagorščak1Richard J. Sandford2Oliver N. Cwikowski3Alexander Yanushkevich4Hywel R. Thomas5Geoenvironmental Research Centre, Cardiff School of Engineering, Cardiff University, The Queen’s Buildings, The Parade, Cardiff CF24 3AA, UKGeoenvironmental Research Centre, Cardiff School of Engineering, Cardiff University, The Queen’s Buildings, The Parade, Cardiff CF24 3AA, UKSchool of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Cardiff University, Main Building, Park Place, Cardiff CF10 3AT, UKNational Grid Electricity Transmission plc, Warwick Technology Park, Gallows Hill, Warwick CV34 6DA, UKNational Grid Electricity Transmission plc, Warwick Technology Park, Gallows Hill, Warwick CV34 6DA, UKGeoenvironmental Research Centre, Cardiff School of Engineering, Cardiff University, The Queen’s Buildings, The Parade, Cardiff CF24 3AA, UKIn this paper, a flexible numerical framework to provide thermal performance assessment for the underground buried cables, considering different geological and meteorological conditions, has been presented. Underground cables tend to retain the heat produced in the conductor, so complex coupled thermo-hydraulic response of the porous medium surrounding the cables needs to be assessed to prevent cable overheating and the associated reduction in cable capacity for carrying current. Applying a coupled thermo-hydraulic model within the developed numerical framework to conduct a health assessment on a subset of National Grid Electricity Transmission’s underground cables, this study provides novel insights into the thermal behaviour of buried circuits. The results indicate that backfill and surrounding native soil have the dominant effect on the thermal behaviour of cables, while the amount of precipitation and ambient temperature were found to have less impact on cable’s thermal behaviour. The findings strongly infer that the nature of the overloading which is undertaken in practice would have no ongoing negative impact, suggesting that more frequent or longer duration overloading regimes could be tolerated. Overall, this study demonstrates how the developed numerical framework could be harnessed to allow safe rating adjustments of buried transmission circuits.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/15/23/8897flexible numerical frameworkunderground buried cablesporous mediumcoupled thermo-hydraulic modelthermal behaviour |
| spellingShingle | Kui Liu Renato Zagorščak Richard J. Sandford Oliver N. Cwikowski Alexander Yanushkevich Hywel R. Thomas Insights into the Thermal Performance of Underground High Voltage Electricity Transmission Lines through Thermo-Hydraulic Modelling Energies flexible numerical framework underground buried cables porous medium coupled thermo-hydraulic model thermal behaviour |
| title | Insights into the Thermal Performance of Underground High Voltage Electricity Transmission Lines through Thermo-Hydraulic Modelling |
| title_full | Insights into the Thermal Performance of Underground High Voltage Electricity Transmission Lines through Thermo-Hydraulic Modelling |
| title_fullStr | Insights into the Thermal Performance of Underground High Voltage Electricity Transmission Lines through Thermo-Hydraulic Modelling |
| title_full_unstemmed | Insights into the Thermal Performance of Underground High Voltage Electricity Transmission Lines through Thermo-Hydraulic Modelling |
| title_short | Insights into the Thermal Performance of Underground High Voltage Electricity Transmission Lines through Thermo-Hydraulic Modelling |
| title_sort | insights into the thermal performance of underground high voltage electricity transmission lines through thermo hydraulic modelling |
| topic | flexible numerical framework underground buried cables porous medium coupled thermo-hydraulic model thermal behaviour |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/15/23/8897 |
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