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CHAPTER I
Respecting
the environment
Low power losses and a lesser visual impact on the landscape make Gas-Insulated Lines (GIL) a
very environmentally friendly transmission solution compared to overhead lines. Alstom Grids
eco-design makes them even more so. Power electronics also have great environmental
credentials as distributed energy sources become more widespread. Meanwhile, ester oils have
proved their value in distribution transformers; research is now focusing on overcoming the
challenges to their potential for power transformers.
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Electric pipelines
Encapsulated in a 400 to 600 mm diameter metallic case, Gas-Insulated Lines bear
a resemblance to pipelines. Originally developed for GIS connections, GIL have similar
bus sections and busbar arrangements. The
electric pipeline consists mainly
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MAIN FEATURE
CHAPTER I
of a pair of tubular aluminum coaxial conductors, the inner one being at the
high voltage level and the outer one being
earthed. To ensure insulation, the space
between the enclosure and the conductor
6) or a
pressurized gas mixture of nitrogen and
SF6. With their very high conductor crosssection, GIL are designed for high transmission capacities with rated currents typically
reaching 4,000 A at 550 kV, and a shortcircuit current capability up to 63 kA,
explains Mathieu Bernard, GIL Project Manager. This offers multiple advantages: GIL
combine low capacitance (and therefore
very low transmission losses), high reliability, and operational safety thanks to a
robust casing and the fact that they are
long lifetimeup to 50 yearswith virtually
no material ageing. Moreover, thanks to
route capabilities, GIL are adapted to solve
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GIL combine
low capacitance,
high reliability
and operational
safety.
M O R E
Alain Girodet
TECHNICAL BENEFITS
OF GIL COMPARED WITH
CABLES AT HAMS HALL
The 420 kV Hams Hall substation in
the West Midlands, England, required
a new connection to reinforce the
network. However, existing overhead
lines and buried cables and pipes
demanded that the connection be in
trenches at the one end and above
ground at the other end. Both GIL and
cables offered suitable solutions.
However, for both technical and
economic reasons, the British utility
National Grid adopted the Alstom Grid
GIL solution. A continuous current
rating of 3,190 A would have required
two cables with two outdoor
terminations per phase compared with
one GIL, says Alain Girodet, Senior
Expert, Alstom Grid High Voltage
Technology and Materials Manager.
Cable junctions would also have been
more of an issue from a dielectric
perspective, he adds. To minimize
environmental risks with GIL, an
insulating gas mixture made of 20
percent SF6 and 80 percent N2 was
chosen, as well as a totally welded
pipe design (which required special
care in the assembly process to avoid
weld slags seeping inside the GIL).
Another advantage is that the N2/SF6
mixture can be easily separated and
recycled after use.
}
Opting for a GIL solution brings major envi
to a very low capacitance, the electrical resistance and power losses of GIL are extremely
reducedup to 70 percent lower than
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MAIN FEATURE
CHAPTER I
and a GIS, thus preventing the fire from
spreading and allowing the rest of the system
explosion-proof characteristics, GIL can be
installed in shared infrastructure like road
and rail tunnels, open public areas, etc. An
illustration of an in-public area installation
of a GIL is the Hams Hall project in the U.K.,
which was energized in 2004 (see sidebar).
radiation emission. Cross-bonding of singlephase enclosures allows the return current
to pass through the enclosures. This creates
a screen effect that provides the GIL with a
lower magnetic field radiation compared
with alternative solutions such as cables and
OHL. Computer calculations show that mag
phase GIL system (operating at 550 kV and
4,000 A) are lower than 250 T, half the
exposure limit for workers set by the European Union directive. At a distance of 1 meter
to the enclosure, the value drops to 10 T,
less than one-tenth the emission of buried
XLPE cables 1 meter above ground level,
and less than a quarter of overhead lines
(below the lines at 1 meter above ground
level). In fact, GIL enclosures can even be
safely touched.
M O R E
Gerhard Seyrling
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INTERVIEW WITH
GERHARD SEYRLING,
SENIOR
VICE-PRESIDENT
INNOVATION
& STRATEGY
~~
or welded connections and
various insulating gas
mixtures to optimize cost,
performance, reliability and
environmental protection.
Alstom Grid has installed (or received orders for) more than
50 kilometers of 3-phase GIL systems since the beginning of GIS
success are the Jebel Ali power plant in the United Arab Emirates,
Shuqaiq in Saudi Arabia, and the Hams Hall substation in
the West Midlands, U.K.
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