Conseil international des grands rseaux lectriquesInternational council

on large electric systems

STUDY COMMITTEE D2: Information Systems and Telecommunication
2015 Colloquium Lima PERU

OPTICAL FIBER TRANSMISSION MEDIA (OPGW) FOR A

RELIABLE OPERATION OF THE TELECOMMUNICATION
AND PROTECTION SYSTEM ON HVAC SYSTEM
Guillermo Galarza
ggalarza@hotmail.com

Carlos Di Palma
cdipalma@tranelsa.com

Luis Daniel Bellomo

ldbellom@frlp.utn.edu.ar

OPTICAL CABLE AS SUPPORT FOR THE FUNCTIONS OF

HVAC NETWORK
>> Main link for the mission critical functions:
Main digital communication system
Differential protection system (main protection function)
Digital teleprotection system (back up protection function)
SCADA and Control System
Stabilizer resources system for Extra High Voltage Network (DAG/DAC)
>> Main link for the non-mission critical functions:
VoIP telephony system (trunk links; remote suscribers; hibrid system PABX +
+ IP/PABX)
LAN/Ethernet networks
Monitoring of electrical equipment located in the switchyard
Video surveillance for SS control building, for isolated repeater stations, etc
Remote management system (NMS) for:
*communication system
*protection system
*telephony system
*teleprotection system
*optical cable
*others
2

REALIBILITY AND AVAILABILITY (part #1)

CRITERIA FOR SYSTEMS

Projecting Communication Systems with high Availability (Ai) values

Using schemes with redundancy for the critical modules that are part of the
equipment
Implementing duplicated way for the digital communication systems through
separated optical fibres
Implementing redundancy schemes through different paths:
*main communication system through different optical cables (OPGW#1; OPGW#2)
*backup communication system through SHF digital radiolink
*backup communication system through dPLC system
Implementing the protection system by:
*differential protection system (as the main system)
*impedance protection system (as the backup protection system)
Using modules with elements with certified low rate of failure () and its consequent
high values of MTBF in the module
Assuring very low time to repair (MTTR) that will be effectively possible to get (set or
spare parts; set of instruments; people for maintenance tasks close to the installation
area; etc)

RELIABILITY AND AVAILABILITY (part #2)

CRITERIA REFERRED TO THE OPTICAL CABLE
To assure the optimal functioning of the communication system, as well as the whole
information that is transported by it
The optimal functioning must be assured along the useful period of time of the optical
cable and not only in the commissioning period
To be sure the optical cable does not imply a non-availability node in the whole chain
of the transmission of information
The OPGW must not considered as a conventional guard wire of the HV Line.
It implies to take maximum precautions from the mechanical, electrical and optical
features in comparison with a guard wire
It is necessary to take particular criteria that are specific and particular for optical
cables. It is necesary to pay attention in all stages:
*during the design and detailed project (requeriments, specifications, etc)
*during the selection of the manufacturer, model of cable, etc, in order to assure
compliance with the specifications
*assuring the manufacturer has history of previous provisions (in operation)
*assuring an integral solution optical cable + accesories (never as
independent and separate providers)
*assuring to have Type Test to an equal model of optical cable (not similar)
*doing an exaustive factory tests (FAT) to the 100% of the provision
*detailling the mounting and installation procedures in all stages of processes
(mounting, splicing, etc)
*doing a permanent supervision of the mounting process, with adequated tools,
made by certified people, etc
*doing an intensive set of tests on site (SAT)
4

MAIN FEATURES TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT

AA) Metallic Area
* Evacuate and reduce the overheating due to the short circuit current of the
HV Line (Icc/Ik)
* Endure the atmospheric discharges that are required without cutting wires
of the armour, in order to assure a residual strentgh non-less than 75% of the
RTS of the cable (after tests)
BB) Cable conformation
* Arrangement of one or two metallic armour
* Analysis of the characteristics of wires of each armour (ACS; Aluminium Alloy;
galvanized wires; etc)
* Arrangement of cable with a unique tube including all the optical fibres
* Arrangement of cable with multitube that locates the optical fibres in several
loose tubes around the central element (GFRP)
CC) Implementation of a whole solution: OPGW + elements for mounting and installation
DD) Not alterability of functioning
* from the point of view as guard wire of the HV Line (mechanical and electrical
aspects)
* from the point of view of optical features and performance of the optical fibres
(atenuation coeficient; PMD coeficient; chromatic dispersion; etc)

>>It must be a design that will be done between the area of the
communication systems and the area of high voltage lines<<
5

ENERGETIC SOLICITATION OF THE OPGW

FAILURE
ENERGETIC SOLICITATION
FACTORS OF INFLUENCE
MODELING AND SIMULATION
RESULTS
MAIN FACTORS
COMPARING CASES

FAILURE

The situation presented to the lightning strike on one of the ground wires, resulting
finally in a single-phase fault between a phase and structure of the tower.
7

FAILURE
Tower model

It shows the fault current (It) and its

components, the current through the
parallel circuit of guard wires (If1+If2), the
current through the companion ground wire
(Ipr21 o Ipr22), the current conducted by
the OPGW (Ipr11 o Ior12)

ENERGETIC SOLICITATION (SE)

Icc(t)

is the RMS of the monophasic current of failure (kA)

is the duration of the failure up to the clearance of the failure (seg)

SE

is indicated in (kA2s).

FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE IN THE SE OF OPGW CABLE

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

The short circuit power of the design

The damping of the failure current
The location of the failure in the HV Line
The time of clearance of the failure
The resistance of the failure
The earthing of the substations
The earthing of the HV Towers
The impedance of the guard wire that are companion of the OPGW

10

1. The short circuit power of the design

The Argentina HV System has addopted a power of design of 25 GVA for the SSEE
that are connected to 500kV System. Consequently, the maximum energetic
solicitation are linked with that design value

2. The damping of the failure current up to its clearence

Similarly as the three phase failure current, the amplitud of the one phase failure
current will be damped according the time passed
During the failure time transitory, it will be distinguise three periods:
*the subtransitory period
*the transitory
*finally, the permanent regimen of failure
The damping during the subtransitory period is detemined by the instant when the
breaker of failure close on the voltage wave. Meanwhile during the transitory period,
the damping is determined by the machines that are closed to the failure point, and
contribute to the current of failure during the transitory period of them
11

2. The damping of the failure current up to its clearence (following)

Taken into account the difficulties that means to determine the electric proximity of each
machine, it is addopted the hypotesis of non-existance of closed generation
By that way, it is possible to narrow the temporal variation of the RMS value of the
failure current, and consequently its associated It.
In that way it is considered a time constant of 45 msec for the damping of the DC
component of the failure current during the subtransitory period, and does not
considere any damping along the transitory period
3. The location of the failure on the HV Line
For looking for the maximum value or It it is necessary to take into account the failures
close to the side of the Generator of the HV Line. They are associated to brief times of
clearance and maximum value of current. Simultaneouly, it is rejected the failures far
away to the side of the Generator of the HV Line, that are associated to long times of
clearance but with low values of failure current. It is the predominant effect allowing
lower values of It than in the previous case

12

4. The time of clearance of the failure

For looking for the maximum value of It must be considered the close failures to the
side of HV Line Generator. They are associated to brief times of clearance.
To this minimum clearance time it is necessary to add an additional time of
50 msec that correspond to the time due to failure of opening of the breakers
5. The resistance of the failure
The resistance of failure will be adopted as null.
The value of resistance of failure has a non-determined character, and consequently it
will be despite its possible limitation effect on the one phase failure current

13

6. The earthing of the substations

It is considered the earthing of SSEE and towers. They offer a drain path for the
failure current, reducing the whole current that will flow through the circuit formed
by the impedance of the guard wire and the impedance of the OPGW cable.
For the resistance of earthing of SSEE will be adopted a vaue much lower than those
ones of the towers (one ohm)Para la resistencia de puesta a tierra de las EETT se ha
adoptado un valor mucho menor al de las torres, 1
7. The earthing of HV Towers
It is considered a resistance of earthing of uniform value in all towers, as it is required
by projects, specifying an uniform value of 20 . This situation does not deviate
significantly from the real situation (at least during the first years of operation)
8. The impedance of the guard wire that are companion of the OPGW
The study has been done with a guard wire (AG). But it could reduce much more the
thermal solicitation of the OPGW incorporating a guard wire of the same section that
the conventional one but the Alumonweld material. It reduces the resistance (in DC)
of the guard wire companion and consequently reducing the current flowing through
the OPGW. This companion guard wire would be necessary only along the first
kilometres from the SE
14

MODELING AND SIMULATION

Benchmark
The benchmark corresponds to the situation presented to the lightning strike on one of the
ground wires, resulting finally in a single-phase fault between a phase and structure of
the tower. The assumption applied in this failure is that being applied phase fault near
the tower there is direct contact with the ground line.
In each simulation case are determined the total current single phase fault, the current
through the parallel circuit of guard wires, the current through the companion ground
wire, the current conducted by the OPGW and finally the calculated I2t value. I2t value
obtained by simulation with the provided by the manufacturer of OPGW cable is then
15
compared; accepting the OPGW cable if the simulated value is below the manufacturer's
specification limit

RESULTS
30
Icc
Ig
Iopgw
Igw

25

I (kArms)

20

15

10

0.05

0.1

0.05

0.1

0.15

Tiempo (s)

0.2

0.25

0.3

80
70
60

I t (kA s)

50

40
30
20
10
0

0.15

Tiempo (s)

0.2

0.25

0.3

16

RESULTS
Case OPGW + GW of AG

Distance Time of
Icc
Ig
Igw
Iopgw
(km)
failure (s) (kArms) (kArms) (kArms) (kArms)
0.4
0.25
21.939 (1) 20.286 (1) 4.926 (1) 16.482 (1)
3.2
0.25
19.721
15.482
3.625
12.751

I2t
(kA2s)
77.0 (2)
43.0

Case OPGW + GW Alumoweld

Distance Time of
Icc
(km)
failure (s) (kArms)
0.4
0.25
22.013
3.2
0.25
19.995

Ig
(kArms)
20.450
16.077

Igw
(kArms)
8.283
6.471

Iopgw
(kArms)
12.810
10.165

The following Table I shows the case of one phase failure, with conventional guard wire..
(1) Valores ilustrados en Figura 2
(2) Valor ilustrado en Figura 3
In the following Table 2 is showed the case of one phase failure, with guard wire of Alumoweld

I2t
(kA2s)
47.0
28.0

17

DETERMINANTS AND COMPARISON OF CASES

Under the hypotesis that were assumed in this study, is important to mention the
influence of the following factors, in the determination of the energectic solicitation of
the OPGW cable:
>Damping of the failure current
>Earthing in SSEE and Towers
>Guard wire companion of the OPGW
It is evidenced the difference with the quick calculation
Related to 500 kV Lines
Under tha hypotesis that are assumed in this study (short circuit power of 25 GVA;
action of protection system of 250 msec) the guard wire companion (70 mm2 of AG) in
the failure more severe, it is not necessary to increase the energetic capacity of the
OGW (i2t) beyond of 120 kA2s.
The companion guard wires of Alumoweld show re-insurance that can permit reduce the
Portion of failure current thar flows through the OPGE with no-modification of the
section of the companion cable of AG, and can resist the impact of lightning
This type of companion cable would be justificable in face an increase of short circuit
power of design greater than 25 GVA
18

QUESTION AND ANSWERS (special reporter)

Questions about Paper D2-01_03

Q1-5. According to your experience, what are the best practices
to monitor and maintain the quality of the existing OPGW?

ANSWER:
*THE BEST WAY TO ENSURE AND MAINTAIN THE QUALITY OF THE OPGW CABLES IS
BY THE INSTALLATION OF A SYSTEM FOR THE REMOTE MANAGEMENT OF THE
OPTICAL CABLES (ON REAL TIME) , ACCORDING TO ITU-T RECOMMENDATION
L.40, L.41
*THE CIGRE SCD2-COLLOQUIUM DEVELOPED IN 2011 HAS A DETAILED TECHNICAL
PAPER ABOUT THIS TOPIC (D2-01-A07)

QUESTION AND ANSWERS (special reporter)

Q1-6. Impact of electrical and mechanical constrains are often underestimated.

How can this possibly impact the continuity of the telecommunication services?

ANSWERS:
*TO UNDERESTIMATE THE ELECTRICAL ASPECTS AS WELL AS THE MECHANICAL
ONES, CAN AFFECT SERIOUSLY THE USEFUL LIFE PERIOD OF THE OPTICAL CABLE
(FROM EXPECTED 25 YEARS, TO AN EFFECTIVE 10 YEARS)
*CONSEQUENTLY, THE TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES CAN BE AFFECTED IN AN
IMPORTANT MANNER (MAINLY FOR FUNCTIONS OF MISSION CRITICAL)
*THIS IS A REASON WHY IS SO IMPORTANT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT ALL ASPECTS IN
ALL THE STAGES OF THE PROJECT OF AN OPTICAL CABLE SYSTEM: DESIGN
CRITERIA, DETAILED ENGINEERING, FACTORY TESTS, INSTALLATION PROCEDURES,
FIELD TESTS, COMMISSIONING TASKS
*IT IS FUNDAMENTAL THAT THE SOLUTION TO BE IMPLEMENTED SHOULD BE
CONSIDERED AS "A WHOLE" (OPTICAL CABLE + MOUNTING ACCESSORIES)

FIBRE OPTIC ASPECTS (part #1)

Single mode optical fibres with zero water peak (SM-ZWP) according with ITU-T
G.652D so as to get the maximum use of the wavelength spectrum
Paying special attention about:
*variation of the attenuation coeficient with the temperature (lower than zero C)
*variation of the attenuation coeficient with the mechanical tensile (during the
mounting process as well as during the permanent installation)
Quality of fibres so as to assure a low attenuation coeficient (order of 0,19dB/km
@ 1550nm during the factory tests)
Quality of fibres by ensuring a good bend insensitive performance:
*low sensitivity for bending, according to G.657.A2 and G.657.B2 (that are
compatibles with G.652D)
*bending radius up to 7,5 mm (in comparison with the 30mm bending radius of
the G.652 standard)
*very low losses (from 0,75 to 0,03 dB) for bending situations in : 1550nm
*very low losses due to splices (order of 0,05 dB/splice)
Previsions for extrinsic factors that can affect the refractive index as well as the
critical angle of the light beam. That can produce the diffraction of the light into the
area of the fibre and goes it through the covering.
The main factors are:
*macrobending: precautions to be taken during the mounting and installation
process
*microbending: precautions to be taken about the pressure on the optical fibres
21

FIBRE OPTIC ASPECTS (part #2)

Previsions must be taken during the splicing process along the installation of the
OPGW, according the following criteria (minimum):
*fussion splices must be done with high quality instrumentation and automatic
centering of the nucleuos of the fibres
*tasks execution must be protected environmentally (free of humidity,
pollution, dust, etc)
*tasks must be done by people who are certified by the manufacturer of the
optical cable
*using the guide of procedures that must be provided by the manufacturer of
the optical cable and/or the manufacturer of the box splices
*doing a sistematic measures of the optical cables along the splicing steps
(step by step measurements)
*using splicing boxes including silica gel bags (high absorption of humidity)
*using splicing boxes with multiple cassettes in order to separate the fibres in
several working areas, as well as to add a separate buffer cassette (in order
to avoid the stretch of fibres)
*using a correct and precise method for fastening the optical cable and their
fibres in the splicing boxes, in order to avoid movements of fibres during
galloping effects, streching process, winds, ice release, etc

22

OPERATION AND MAINTANCE OF OPGW (part #1)

AA) The failure process in a conventional guard wire (AG) will be evidenced by the cut
and fall of the guard wire: >> that implies a critical failure <<
Meanwhile the failure process in a OPGW cable will begin to be evidenced gradually
by factors as:
*increasing the losses in the optical fibres
*deformation and stretching of the fibres
*moisture ingress in the splicing boxes and/or in the optical cable
BB) It is possible to do an early diagnosis by detecting:
*deterioration of the bit error rate (BER) in the data transmission
*remote monitoring of the optical cable and/or their fibres
*measurements periodically made in order to contrast with the original
results that were obtained (commissioning tasks)
CC) Failures in the optical fibres should be a consequence of:
*Excessive strain effort
*Bending radius that will be exceded (in the optical cables and/or their fibres)
*Torsin of cable
*Defecting splicing boxes (moisture ingress)
*Defective splices, artificial microbending, etc
*Excesive pressure on the optical cable
*Others

23

OPERATION AND MAINTANCE OF OPGW (part #2)

DD) To get a reliable maintenance implies the following processes:
*permanent supervision through the Communication System, checking the
early degradation of the performance of the BER values:
>> detection of the anomaly
*permanent measurements of the optical cables and/or their fibres, in order to
verify the parameters originally measured during the start up period
(inalterability):
>> ratification of the measurement of the BER
*along the failure process:
>>conmutation to other fibres of the OPGW (in case of failure of
fibres exclusively)
>>conmutation to the communication backup system (i.e. dPLC, SHF
radiowave, etc) in case of failure of the optical cable
*restoration of the normal operation after the repairment with new full
characterization of the optical fibres
*analysis of the FAILURE for preventive and corrective actions
EE) Increase of the Quality of Service (QoA) by getting:
*reduction of the catastrofic failures and minimization of replacement of optical
cable
*reduction of the time of out of service (and consequently minimizing the
values of Non-Availability (NAi) of the Systems)
*incresing the useful time of the optical cable
*reduction of the maintenance costs by doing minimum repairment tasks
24
>> lower OPex <<

International council on large electric systems

STUDY COMMITTEE D2: Information Systems and Telecommunication
2015 Colloquium
October 08 to 09, 2015
Lima PERU

OPTICAL FIBER TRANSMISSION MEDIA (OPGW) FOR A

RELIABLE OPERATION OF THE TELECOMMUNICATION
AND PROTECTION SYSTEM ON HVAC SYSTEM
Guillermo Galarza
ggalarza@hotmail.com

Carlos Di Palma
cdipalma@tranelsa.com

Luis Daniel Bellomo

lbellomo@frlp.utn.edu.ar