Appendix A: Technology Cards on Advanced Transmission Technologies
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Appendix A: Technology Cards on Advanced Transmission Technologies S. Galant, A. Vafe´as, T. Pagano, and E. Peirano A.1. High-Temperature Superconducting (HTS) Cables Definition Superconductivity can be defined as the phenomenon that occurs when materials exhibit zero electrical resistance to the flow of current [61]. High-temperature super- conducting (HTS) cables are cables that utilise high-temperature superconductors, which are based on a class of superconducting materials that achieve the superconducting state at temperatures higher than 20 K (À253C) [50]. However, some manufacturers (see [58]) define HTS cables as cables which have critical temperatures above approximately À233C (40 K). Typically, HTS materials are used in superconducting power applications that can be cooled by liquid nitrogen (a low-cost, environmentally friendly coolant material) at a temperature of 77K (À196C). Key Technologies The main aspects and system components to be considered for HTS cables include cable configurations, HTS tapes, cryostat (i.e. an apparatus designed to contain and thermally insulate a cryogenic environment), terminations and cryogenic refrigera- tion systems. The HTS cable configuration depends on the dielectric type and geometry. The dielectric type can be either a cold dielectric (CD), also known as cryogenic dielectric, or a warm dielectric (WD), also called room temperature dielectric [58]. S. Galant (*) • A. Vafe´as • T. Pagano • E. Peirano Technofi, Sophia Antipolis Cedex, France e-mail: Technofi[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected] G. Migliavacca (ed.), Advanced Technologies for Future Transmission Grids, 285 Power Systems, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4471-4549-3, # Springer-Verlag London 2013 286 Appendix A: Technology Cards on Advanced Transmission Technologies While in a CD superconducting cable the dielectric material operates within the cryogenic environment, in a WD superconducting cable, the dielectric operates at ambient temperature and is not subjected to cryogenic conditions. The geometric configurations of HTS cables can be three-phase coaxial (three coaxial cores operate in individual cryostats), triad (three phases in a single cryostat) or triaxial (three concentric phases). The two types of HTS tapes currently used for HTS cable applications are 1st-generation HTS tapes (also referred to as 1G) and 2nd-generation HTS tapes (also referred to as 2G). • 1G HTS tapes are typically constructed based on the ceramic compound BSCCO (composed of bismuth strontium calcium copper oxide): they have relatively high strength and can be manufactured for long cables, with good performance characteristics. Their major drawback is the cost, which may limit their use in commercial cable applications when the 2G tapes become a more viable alterna- tive [50]. • 2G HTS tapes are constructed based on coating layers of buffer material and HTS conductor (YBCO, composed of yttrium barium copper oxide) on a substrate material using advanced deposition methods. Recent advances in the development and manufacturing process of 2G conductors have resulted in the production of tape with lengths comparable to those ones of 1G type and with relatively better performance characteristics. The reduced production cost is the main driving force for 2G tape development. As 2G wire manufacturing does not require the amount of labour or precious silver and material required for 1G, 2G tape manufacturing cost is expected to be significantly less than that the one of 1G in the near future [50]. The cryostat has several functions including the ones to thermally insulate the HTS cable from outside ambient temperatures and to protect it from mechanical stresses as well as to contain pressure for LN2 (liquid nitrogen). The cryogenic refrigeration system (CRS) is used to cool down and remove the cable system heat loads. Before an HTS cable can be energised, it must be cooled down to its cryogenic operating temperature. Once the cable is cold, the cryogenic refrigeration system removes heat loads from the cable system to maintain a stable operating temperature so that the cable operates in its super- conductive state [50]. Although the capital cost of the refrigeration system is an issue, it is expected that its unit cost will drop down as demand increases. Nevertheless, R&D efforts are needed to increase its efficiency [47]. For instance, at the EU level, an EC co-funded research project (SUPER3C) is focused on developing the 2G HTS tapes: its aim is to establish the feasibility of a low-loss HTS AC cable using YBCO-coated conductor tapes as current-carrying elements [49]. All HTS cable system components are critical elements, which should be redundant in order to guarantee a reasonable level of availability of HTS cables. As the experience in service is very limited, a reliability analysis cannot be carried out with the same level of confidence used for conventional cables [58]. Appendix A: Technology Cards on Advanced Transmission Technologies 287 Key Functions • Transmission Capacity Enhancement As reported in [47], HTS cables can carry more power than conventional cables: compared to the latter ones, HTS cables allow delivering 3–5 times the power for AC systems and up to ten times the power for DC systems at equivalent voltage (or equivalent power at reduced voltage). • Power Loss Reduction As the resistance in HTS cables is very low, they promise to revolutionise power delivery by providing lossless transmission of electrical power [64]. According to [55], if HTS equipment becomes pervasive, up to 50% of the energy now lost in transmission and distribution might become available for customer’s use. According to [47], although the conduction losses in HTS cables are much lower than those ones in conventional cables, the energy required to maintain HTS cables at their operating temperature must be taken into account when compar- ing HTS cables with conventional cables. At a certain cable length, the total losses of HTS are equal to the conduction losses of conventional cables. For longer cables, HTS has a lower operating cost. Source [47] proposes a life-cycle cost estimation. Source [56] compares HTS losses with the losses of conventional cables. At a low level of use, the losses of HTS cables are higher than those of conventional cables. This implies that a minimum use of HTS is requested to reach the break- even, which is estimated at 33% load of the cable system for the cases studied in [56]. • Power Flow Controllability According to [46], HTS cables have significantly lower impedance than conven- tional cables; they can be strategically placed in the grid to draw flow away from overloaded conventional cables or overhead lines, thereby relieving network congestions. Low-impedance cables can also provide solutions to grid problems and enable new grid configurations. HTS cables, coupled with conventional, proven tech- nology (e.g. series reactors, phase angle regulators), offer the ability to control power flows. Key Applications According to [50, 55], HTS cables are expected to have an advantage over conven- tional underground systems with regard to installation, corrosion and rights of way. For instance, while conventional oil–paper-insulated cables require corrosion pro- tection schemes, HTS cables do not require such corrosion protection being installed in stainless steel jackets typically protected with polyethylene coatings. 288 Appendix A: Technology Cards on Advanced Transmission Technologies • Transmitting Power into Densely Populated Urban Centres (City Infeed) The most likely first application for HTS cables is in crowded urban centres, where an increasing power demand stresses an obsolete power grid composed of overloaded conventional underground cables. Applying superconducting cables by using the same right of way or duct of existing cables, but carrying a three to five times higher power capacity, could be a cost-effective solution [47, 50, 58]. • Connection of Generation Units to the Electrical System According to [50], HTS cables may also be used to deliver electrical power directly to a load source from on-site generators. For instance, a strategically placed wind farm may be able to supply power to an urban centre located tens of kilometres away via an HTS cable without the transmission and transformer losses that occur in conventional power transmission. • DC Applications A possible future application of HTS cables could include DC transmission, which would provide an even higher power capacity and longer transmission distances [50]. Implemented Solutions According to [47, 58], today HTS cables are still very far from a mature commercial application, to be used for the extension of a power transmission grid. The costs are still high to justify their use, and further research is needed. In the near future, HTS cable systems are expected to be used for niche applications. Several superconducting cable demonstration projects around the world focus on the validation of the technology and on the monitoring of its performance. Today, most projects are in the low-/medium-voltage range. Even though they evolve in terms of lengths, higher power applications at higher voltages in the transmission system (400 kV) are still in a prototype stage [47, 58]. In the United States, the public–private Superconductivity Partnership Initiative, sponsored by DOE (Department of Energy), aims at developing superconducting cables as a viable option for the electric utility. One such cable demonstration project is in operation at the Southwire Company manufacturing plant in Georgia. The 30-m cable system has about 30,000 h of operation as of 2006, without any major operational issues since its installation in 2000. HTS cable demonstration projects underway in the USA are described in [50]. The Long Island HTS cable went in operation in 2008 and was the world’s first HTS power transmission cable system in a commercial power grid. When operated at full capacity, the new HTS cable system (138-kV system, 600 m long) can transmit up to 574 MW of electricity [61]. The Albany (34.5 kV, 800 A, 48 MVA, 350 m long) and the Columbus cable (13.2 kV, 3,000 A, 69 MVA, 200 m long) were energised in summer 2006.