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THE USE OF INSULATED WIRES MILLIKEN CONDUCTORS IN HIGH

VOLTAGE POWER TRANSMISSION UNDERGROUND AC LINES

David DUBOIS, NEXANS, (France), [email protected]

Pierre MIREBEAU, NEXANS, (France), [email protected]

ABSTRACT
AC RESISTANCE OF LARGE CONDUCTORS
These last years have pointed out a significant increase of
CIGRE WG B1-03 chose a pragmatic approach that is
the power that needs to be transported by underground
based on measurements. It built the following table:
power cables. As a consequence, large cross section
conductors, up to 2500mm² are now customarily used.
Type of conductor ks kp Value
The CIGRE group B1-03 has completed in 2005 a work that Value
analyses the actual AC resistance of these large cross For copper enamelled wires and 0.25 0.15
section conductors as a function of their design. aluminium wires
For copper oxidised wires 0.35 0.20
The authors discuss about the implication of this work on the (value based on study for uni-
design of typical high power transmission lines, from the directional only)
cable production, accessories, unit length, transportation, For inter layer insulated copper. 0.50 0.37
civil works, and operation. For uni-directional stranding of 0.62 0.37
They sketch the limits of use of each conductor design as a copper bare wires
function of the projects key parameters. For bi-directional stranding of 0.80 0.37
copper bare wires
They give the AC resistance measurement results on some
conductors of different designs. The AC to DC resistance of a conductor is given by the
formula :
KEYWORDS R=R'(1+ys+yp)

HIGH VOLTAGE, CONDUCTOR, POWER LINK x4 ωμ

ys = with x² = .k
192 + 0.8 x 4 π .Rdc s
INTRODUCTION
These last years have pointed out a significant increase of 4 2
the power that needs to be transported by underground
xp ⎛ dc ⎞
y p = 2.9 4 ⎜ ⎟
power cables. As a consequence, large cross section 192+ 0.8 xp ⎝ s ⎠
conductors, up to 2500mm² are now currently used.
ωμ
These conductors have diameters in the range of 60mm, with xp ² = .k
which is not small as compared to the skin effect depth.
π.Rdc p
CIGRE set up in 2002 a working group B1-03 to assess the dc is the conductor diameter
AC resistance of large conductors. Its final report was and s is the axial distance between conductors.
released in 2005 in the Technical Brochure 272 [1]. It
showed the interest of Milliken conductors with insulated Let's concentrate on the skin effect, as in practical
th
wires. conditions; the proximity effect is smaller than 1/10 of the
skin effect.
We will recall the conclusions of this work and give practical
examples of the use of the recommended conductors. The authors have manufactured cables of 1600mm²,
2000mm² and 2500mm² cross section, which are in
accordance with the last release of IEC 60228.
The resistance of these cables has been measured using
the previously reported method [2, 3]
The samples length is 12m. All conductor wires are
connected together at each end, the distance between
voltage probes is 8m.
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The following table gives our measurements, at 90°C, as compared to IEC and CIGRE formulas.

(AC 90 resistance )
(DC 90 resistance ) CONDUCTOR TYPE

Round Standard Milliken Enamelled milliken

Bi-directional stranding
IEC CIGRE* Authors IEC CIGRE authors IEC CIGRE Authors**

1600mm² 1.30 na 1.31 1.07 1.20 1.25 1.07 1.025 1.04

2000mm² 1.40 na 1.45 1.11 1.30 1.35 1.11 1.04 1.04
2500mm² 1.53 na 1.61 1.16 1.41 1.45 1.16 1.06 1.065
*out of the scope of WG B1-03
** authors precision of results is ± 0.05 (the main cause of error is the conductor temperature precision and homogeneity).

The table shows the quality of the CIGRE WG work. Calculated skin effect is very close to measurement. The IEC formula when
applied to the large cross section gives optimistic results. IEC 60287-1-1 specifies that the given parameters are valid for cross
sections less than 1600mm².

cross section cables.

COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT The conductors are supposed to be with a Milliken
construction, bi-directional stranding, with 6 segments.
SPECIFICATIONS
The calculation of the a.c. resistance of conductor have
To evaluate the benefit of improved conductor construction; been based on the skin effect and proximity effect
it is necessary to compare the performance of standard coefficients ks and kp as recommended in the CIGRE
design (bare copper wire) and insulated wire design Technical Brochure n° 272 [1] i.e.:
(enamelled wire in this study) cables. o ks = 0.8 and kp = 0.37 for bare copper conductor
The cables are 400kV cables, XLPE insulated, butt to butt o ks = 0.25 and kp = 0.15 for copper enamelled wires
welded aluminium laminate screen, HDPE oversheath.
Such a comparison will serve as a guideline throughout this The laying arrangement is the same for every cable type:
paper and for each feature the main conclusions shall be o Two parallel circuits
drawn. o Flat formation, cable spacing: 350 mm
o Burial depth: 1300 mm
Table for comparison o Soil thermal resistivity: 1.0 K.m/W
In the following table are given the main characteristics and o Ground temperature: 20°C
performance in the same laying arrangement of different

Table 1: Raw data

In the following table the “e” suffix stands for enamelled wire i.e. a conductor having in its construction a sufficient number of
insulated wires to prevent any electrical contact between adjacent wires. Losses are given at rated current for one circuit.

Conducor area and type mm² 1200 1200e 1600 1600e 2000 2000e 2500 2500e 3000 3000e

Overall Diameter mm 117 117 125 125 131 131 140 143 147 147
Weight kg/m 20,3 20,3 24,85 24,85 29,27 29,28 35,8 36,38 39,7 39,7
Current carrying capacity A 1208,0 1271,9 1351,0 1463,0 1460,9 1626,5 1558,5 1780,0 1630,0 1907,5
Transmitted power MVA 836,9 881,2 935,9 1013,0 1012,1 1126,9 1079,7 1233,4 1129,6 1321,5
Losses at maximum current kW/km 106,9 107,0 109,9 110,2 113,3 113,7 116,0 117,1 118,1 119,1
AC resistance at 90°C µΩ/m 21,743 19,524 17,501 14,469 15,055 11,928 13,116 9,742 11,916 8,315
Rac/Rdc - 1,129 1,014 1,215 1,025 1,312 1,039 1,434 1,061 1,554 1,087
length over one drum m 1150 1150 1094 1094 876 876 550 552 523 523
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CABLE OVERALL DIAMETER

CURRENT CARRYING CAPACITY
Except for the 2500 mm² the construction of which is
different for the insulated wire type introducing enamelled This is the most interesting feature of cable with insulated
wires in the conductor does not change the conductor wire conductor.
diameter (small thickness of the enamel layer). Due to the lower skin and proximity effect factors the
This is shown on the following bar graph. ampacity of the cable with insulated wires is often higher
than the one of the bare copper cable with one cross-
Cable Overall Diameter section higher.
E.g. a 1600 mm² copper with insulated wires cable exhibits
a higher current carrying capacity than a 2000 mm²
3000e
standard cable.
3000 For cross-section lower than 1600 mm² this rule does not
2500e apply.
But for all section including 1600 mm² and above the
Conductor type

2500 enamelled construction is always better than the bare

Enamelled
2000e copper construction with one cross-section upper.
wires
2000 Bare copper Current carrying capacity
1600e
3000e
1600
3000
1200e Conductor area (mm²)
2500e
1200
2500
0 50 100 150 200
2000e
Diameter (mm)
2000
1600e
1600 Enamelled
CABLE WEIGHT wires
1200e
For the same reason there is little change in cable weight Bare copper
between the two designs (small weight of the enamel later). 1200
Cable Weight 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
Current (A)
3000e
3000
2500e LENGTH OVER ONE DRUM
Conductor type

2500 In order to evaluate the benefit of having a smaller cable for

the same current carrying capacity we have compared the
2000e
cable length that can be accommodated on a typical drum
2000 Enamelled whose dimensions are:
1600e wires o Flange diameter: 4.5 m
Bare Copper o Overall width: 2.5 m
1600 The barrel diameter “DB” of that drum has been adapted to
1200e each cable according to the following rule:
o DB ≥ 20 x cable OD
1200

0 10 20 30 40 50
Weight (kg/m)
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almost in the same proportion as the a.c. resistance.

Length per individual drum
A.C. resistance at 90°C
3000e
3000e
3000 Enamelled
wires
3000
2500e
2500e

Conductor type
Bare copper
2500
Conductor type

2500
2000e 2000e Enamelled
wires
2000 2000 Bare copper
1600e 1600e
1600 1600
1200e 1200e
1200 1200

0 500 1000 1500 0 5 10 15 20 25

Length on one drum (m) A.C. resistance µohm/m
Again there the great advantage of insulated wires is using
a smaller cable for the same ampacity.
It allows lengths between joint to be increased by up to
40%. OVERLOAD CAPACITY
One might wonder whether the overload capacity of a cable
with insulated wires is as high as the one of a standard
CABLE LOSSES cable of same current carrying capacity. Indeed cables with
In table 1 all the losses are calculated for the maximum insulated wires being smaller and lighter their thermal
permissible current that is to say for the current that lead to capacitance is smaller. However their losses being lower
a conductor temperature of 90°C. It is remarkable that the than those of a cable with a standard conductor (with one
conductor losses at 90°C do not vary very much neither cross-section bigger) their overload capacity is very close
with the cable size nor with the current. All cables have very and even better for the very large cross-sections.
similar thermal internal resistances and the quantity of heat This is ilustrated in the two following graphs.
they can dissipate in a given environment is almost
constant. In fact it only varies with the cable external
diameter. Overload capacity
Cable losses vs cable diameter at
90°C conductor temperature 3000e
120,0
3000
Cable losses for 3 phases

118,0 2500e
2500
Conductor type

116,0
2000e
114,0
(W/m)

2000

112,0 1600e
1600 Insulated wires
110,0 1200e Bare copper

108,0 1200

106,0 0 1000 2000 3000 4000

110 120 130 140 150 160 Overload for one hour (A)

Cable diameter (mm)

For a given current, the total losses can be reduced by

much when using an enamelled wire conductor, in fact
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wires conductor need special techniques, however this is by

Overload capacity far compensated by the lower price of cable and by the
reduced number of accessories with is a direct
consequence of longer unitary drum length.
3000e
3000 The cable relative cost per transmitted MVA show a clear
advantage for the insulated wire Milliken conductor design.
2500e
If the economics of the complete link had been taken into
2500 account, including transportation, civil and installation
Conductor type

works, the benefit would have been even higher.

2000e
2000
Relative cost per transmitted MVA
1600e
1600 Insulated wires
1200e Bare copper 240,0 bare copper

relative cost (1200mm² = 100)

1200 Milliken
220,0
insulated w ires
0 1000 2000 3000 Milliken
200,0
Overload for five hours (A)
180,0
The following hypotheses were taken:
160,0
Start from maximum load (90°C at conductor).
Maximum overload conductor temperature: 100°C.
140,0
The calculations were carried out according to IEC 60853-2
120,0
CABLE COST
Cable cost is very sensitive to copper cost and also to the
100,0
other materials cost. The benefit of the insulated wire 800,0 1000,0 1200,0 1400,0
technology increases when the raw materials are
expensive. This is the case at present time. MVA

Cable cost

3000e
3000
2500e
Conductor type

2500
2000e
2000
1600e Enamelled
1600 wires

1200e Bare Copper

1200

0 100 200 300

%

In the above diagram it is shown that conductor from

1600mm² to 2500 mm² with enamelled wire are less
expensive than one cross-section above cables.
Installation cost per accessory are slightly higher for
enamelled conductor because the connection of enamelled
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ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
REFERENCES
The Environmental Impact has been computed using the
EIME software. Its presentation can be found in ref. [4]. We [1] CIGRE Working Group B1.03, TB 272, June 2005,
considered only the making phase. "Large Cross-sections and Composite Screens
We compared the 3000mm² bare copper cable with the Design".
2500mm² enamelled one.
manufacturing environmental impact
[2] 400 kV underground links for bulk power
transmission. New developments in the field of cross-
linked polyethylene insulated cables.
Hazardous Waste Production
E. DORISON - Y. MAUGAIN - P. ARGAUT - P.M.
Water Eutrophication DEJEAN - P. MIREBEAU
Report 21-105 - CIGRE 2000.
Water Toxicity

Air Acidification [3] A new method for the measurement of power cables
AC resistance.
Photochemical Ozone Creation
BOURGEAT X. - SANTANA J. - FUSTIER A. -
2500e DEJEAN P.M.
Air Toxicity
3000 B 8.1. Report - JICABLE 1999
Ozone Depletion

Global Warming [4] Use of an ecoconception software to design a hv

cable connection.
Water Depletion Pierre MIREBEAU, Martine.DUVIVIER, Laurent
Energy Depletion
BENARD, François LE BOURDON, Francis
POILLEAUX, Bernard.POISSON,
Raw Material Depletion JICABLE 2007
0,8 0,85 0,9 0,95 1 1,05 1,1

relative impact (1=3000mm² cable)

GLOSSARY
The making of the enamelled cable has globally a lower
impact on the environment than the bare copper one. This Ampacity: Neologism for current carrying capacity.
effect is even more pronounced when taking into account UG: Under ground
the installation and civil works (smaller cable diameter,
longer delivery length). The only drawback at the
manufacturing stage regards the hazardous waste
production. Although this waste production is very limited.
Studies are in progress to reduce it even further.

CONCLUSION
By using improved Milliken conductors with insulated wires
gains are achieved in almost all technical and economical
aspects of power UG cable transmission:
For a given requirement in terms of current carrying
capacity (i.e. transmitted power), we obtain:
o Smaller cable
o Lighter cable
o Higher current carrying capacity
o Lower losses
o Same or better overload capacity
o Lower cost
o Reduced Environmental Impact
Enamelled conductor connection need special techniques
but this is widely compensated by the saving in cable price
and number of joints.
This new technology has been long term tested, type tested
and implemented for a 2500 mm² XLPE 400 kV cable
project in Abu Dhabi including 12.7 km of circuit.
Because of a high power demand (1000MVA per 3-phase
circuit) and a very tough environment (40°C soil
temperature) this project would not have been possible
without this new technology.