INSULATORS

INSULATOR STRINGA string of insulators discs

INSULATORS
Function
Provide Electrical insulation between live
conductor
and earthed
structure
under
operating and overvoltage conditions
To act as a reliable mechanical link between the
structure and the conductor and keep the
mechanical integrity under normal operating
and overload conditions.

INSULATOR- Definitions
Electromechanical Failing Load (E&M): The
maximum mechanical load reached when the
insulator unit is tested under prescribed voltage
conditions of test.
Puncture voltage: The voltage which causes
puncture of a string insulator unit under
prescribed conditions of test.
Creepage Distance: The shortest distance or the
sum of the shortest distances along the ceramic
or glass insulating parts of the insulator between
those parts which normally have the operating
voltage between them.

INSULATOR CLASSES
Class A
An insulator or insulator unit in which length
of the shortest puncture path through solid
insulating material is atleast equal to half the
arcing distance e.g long rod insulator

Class B
An insulator or insulator unit in which length
of the shortest puncture path through solid
insulating material is less than half the arcing
distance e.g cap and pin disc rod insulator

DISC INSULATOR

PORCELAIN LONG ROD INSULATOR STRING

POLYMER LONG ROD INSULATOR &

HYDROPHOBICITY

INSULATING MATERIALS
Ceramic or porcelain
Glass

Annealed Glass: Mechanical stresses relieved by

thermal treatment
Toughened Glass: Controlled mechanical stresses
induced by thermal treatment

Polymer

EPDM
Silicone rubber
Silicone-EPDM Alloy

Pollution deposits on insulator

strings due to industrial emissions

Dust pollution

Bird defecation on
insulators

INSULATOR AND INSULATOR STRING DESIGN

Electrical design considerations
Insulation design depends on
- Pollution withstand Capability
Min. nominal creepage dist. = Min nominal
specific creepage dist X highest system voltage
phase to phase of the system
Creepage Distance of insulator string required for different

pollution levels
Pollution
Level

Equiv. Salt Deposit Density

(mg/cm2)

Minm nominal specific

creepage dist (mm/Kv)

Light

0.03 to 0.06

16

Medium

0.10 to 0.20

20

Heavy

0.20 to 0.60

25

Very Heavy

>0.60

31

- Switching/ Lightning Over voltage

POLYMER INSULATORS

Injection Moulding

 Handling

 Handling

(INMR 1999 Nov/Dec)

Composite insulators are handled easily due to their light weight.

On the contrary, composite insulators may be subjected to
damage by rough handling.

Types Of Insulators Normally Used

AC lines: Standard disc or standard long rod

DC lines : Antifog disc type

Areas of High Pollution (AC/DC): Disc with high
creepage or Porcelain longrod with high creepage or
Polymer longrod insulators

CONDUCTOR

Conductors
Carries the Load Current
Very Costly : Comprises 30% - 40% of
line cost
Another 30% - 40% is the cost of Tower,
Foundations etc depends on conductor
Wind Load
Tension Load
Height of Tower : Max sag dependant on Conductor

Hence, selection of Conductor is very

important

History of Conductors
Copper was the first metal used to transmit electricity during
the development of the electrical industry in the early 1880's
Criteria for determining the size of Conductor was the
Mechanical Strength and Not Electrical Conductivity (Cu has a
very high conductivity)
Conductors were, therefore, generally larger than required from
the standpoint of efficient electrical conductivity
Because of the weight, span lengths were short, thus increasing
the overall cost of the transmission line.

Hence, Aluminium began to replace Copper

The first transmission line using aluminum
conductors was constructed in California in 1895,
quickly followed by a second line in 1898
The first transmission line using a stranded (7strand) aluminum cable was constructed by the
Connecticut Electric Light Company in 1899

Aluminum possesses a conductivity-to-weight

ratio twice that of copper and its strength-toweight ratio is 30% greater than copper.

ACSR Conductor
With the widespread use of Aluminium, need
was felt to increase the Strength of Al
Conductor
Thus, in 1907 a new aluminum-steel composite
cable was introduced
This new conductor combined the light weight
and high current carrying capacity of aluminum
with the high strength of a galvanized steel core
Known to world as : ACSR : Aluminum conductor
Steel reinforced.

AAAC Conductor
In 1939 a new all aluminum-magnesiumsilicon alloy cable was introduced
The new all-aluminum alloy cable
(AAAC) was developed to retain the
mechanical and electrical properties of
ACSR while improving weight and
corrosion resistance characteristics
This provided new alternatives to ACSR

New Trends
More recently, many innovative
conductor designs have been
developed to address the changing
needs of the electrical utility industry
New alloys have been developed to
provide High temperature low sag,
increased conductivity, vibration
resistance and other specific
characteristics.

AAC: All Aluminum Conductor

High Conductivity but poor strength-to-weight
ratio
Limited use in transmission lines and rural
distribution because of the long spans utilized
AAC has seen extensive use in urban areas
where spans are usually short but high
conductivity is required.
Used in Coastal region as it is corrosion
resistance

ACSR - Aluminum Conductor Steel

Reinforced
This conductor has combined the light weight
and high current carrying capacity of
aluminum with the high strength of a
galvanized steel core
To meet varying requirement the quantity of
Steel and Aluminium can be varied.
ACSR such as 6/1, 30/7, 30/19, 54/19 and 54/7 strandings
feature high steel content, 26% to 40%
18/1, 45/7, 72/7, and 84/19, comprising a range of steel
content from 11% to 18%.

Some Common Conductors used in

India at Transmission Voltages
ACSR MOOSE
54/3.53mm Aluminium + 7/3.53mm Steel

ACSR Panther
30/3.00mm Aluminium + 7/3.00mm Steel

ACSR Zebra
54/3.18mm Aluminium + 7/3.18mm Steel

ACSR Bersimis.
42/4.57mm Aluminium +7/2.54 mm steel

AAAC
Alloy : Aluminum-Magnesium-Silicon
High Strength
Excellent Sag Tension Characteristics as
improved Strength/Wt ratio.
ACSR MOOSE : UTS-161.2 kN, Wt- 2004 kg/km
AAAC MOOSE : UTS-159.8 kN, Wt- 1666 kg/km

Superior corrosion resistance to that of ACSR

Earthwire
Function

To protect conductor against lightning flashovers

To provide a path for fault current

HARDWARE FITTINGS AND

ACCESSORIES FOR CONDUCTOR &
EARTHWIRE

HARDWARE FITTINGS
For attachment of insulator string to tower
D-Shackles,Ball clevis, Yoke plate, Chain link

For attachment of insulator string to the conductor

Suspension & tension assembly
Fittings like D-Shackles, Socket clevis, chain link

For protection of insulator string from power follow

current
Arcing Horn

For making electric field uniform and to limit the

electric field at the live end
Corona Control Ring/ Grading Ring

For fine adjustment of conductor sag

Sag Adjustment Plate, Turn Buckle

HARDWARE FITTINGS-Design
Arcing Horn
The air gap is maintained for satisfactory
performance under actual field conditions.
For power follow current

Yoke Plate
To withstand mechanical loads- Thickness & shear
edge maintained
To maintain sub conductor spacing

Corona Control Ring/ Grading Ring

To cover atleast one live end insulator disc
To cover hardware fittings susceptible for Corona/RIV

HARDWARE FITTINGS-Design
Suspension Assembly
Shaped to prevent hammering between clamp &
conductor
To minimize static & dynamic stress in conductor under
various loading conditions
Minimum level of corona/RIV performance
For slipping of conductor under prescribed unbalanced
conditions between adjacent conductor spans
Tension Assembly
To withstand loads of atleast 95% of conductor UTS
To have conductivity more than that of conductor
Sag Adjustment Plate/ Turn Buckle
To adjust sag upto 150mm in steps of 6mm

Armour Grip Suspension Clamp

ACCESSORIES FOR CONDUCTOR &

EARTHWIRE
For joining two lengths of conductor/earthwire
Mid Span Compression joint for Conductor/ earthwire
For repairing damaged conductor
Repair Sleeve
For damping out Aeolian vibrations
Vibration Damper for conductor & earthwire
For maintaining sub conductor spacing along the span
Spacers
For damping out Aeolian vibrations, sub span oscillation
and to maintain sub conductor spacing
Spacer Damper

ACCESSORIES FOR CONDUCTOR &

EARTHWIRE- Design
Mid Span Compression joint for Conductor/
Earthwire & Repair Sleeve
To withstand at least loads equivalent to 95%
of the conductor UTS
To have conductivity better than equivalent
length of conductor (99.5% Aluminium)

VIBRATION PROBLEMS IN TRANSMISSION LINES

MAIN CAUSE OF VIBRATIONS
WIND ACTING ON CONDUCTORS & EARTHWIRE
EFFECTS
FAILURE OF CONDUCTORS, INSULATORS,
CLAMPS & HARDWARE

TYPE OF WIND INDUCED VIBRATIONS

AEOLIAN VIBRATIONS
High frequency, low amplitude vibrations induced by
low, steady & laminar wind

WAKE INDUCED VIBRATIONS

Low frequency, medium amplitude vibrations
induced by high velocity steady winds on bundle
conductors

GALLOPING
Very low frequency, high amplitude vibrations
induced by high velocity steady winds on conductors
with asymmetrical ice deposit

FACTORS INFLUENCING VIBRATION

PERFORMANCE
TYPE , STRANDING & DIA OF CONDUCTOR,
EARTHWIRE
CONDUCTOR/EARTHWIRE TENSION
SUB-CONDUCTOR SPACING IN BUNDLE
CONDUCTORS
BUNDLE CONFIGURATION

VIBRATION CONTROL DEVICES

VIBRATION DAMPERS
Commonly used for vibration control of single
conductor systems as well as bundle conductors
alongwith spacers
SPACER DAMPERS
Used for vibration control of bundle conductors
(instead of combination of vibration dampers &
spacers)
DETUNING PENDULUMS
Used for control of galloping

VIBRATION ANALYSIS
BASIC PRINCIPLE

ENERGY BALANCE BETWEEN WIND INDUCED

ENERGY AND DISSIPATED ENERGY BY CABLE
SELF
DAMPING & VIBRATION / SPACER
DAMPERS

LIMITING FACTORS

VIBRATION AMPLITUDES
BENDING STRESS/STRAIN AT CLAMPS

VIBRATION DAMPER

VIBRATION DAMPER DESIGNS

BASIC COMPONENTS

DAMPER WEIGHTS
CLAMPS (For attachment to the subconductors)
MESSENGER CABLE

SPACER-DAMPER

SPACER-DAMPER DESIGN
BASIC COMPONENTS

CENTRAL FRAME / BODY / MASS

CLAMPS (For attachment to the sub-conductors)
ARMS / ARTICULATION (connecting clamps to
central frame)
RESILIENT / DAMPING ELEMENTS
CLAMPING FUNCTION OF SPACER-DAMPER IS MOST
CRITICAL SINCE THE CONSEQUENCES OF POOR
INSTALLATION CAN LEAD TO SERIOUS PROBLEMS