Year 1 - January 2003 to December 2003
The objectives of the HVDC are to
Provide a methodology to assess the technical, economic and environmental benefits of
mixed HVAC/HVDC electrical power transmission and distribution systems as part of the
European transmission network including the benefits of using more environmentally
acceptable HVDC power cable systems. This will assist the strategic development of the
European transmission system. It is our expectation that significant benefits will be shown
particularly for system optimisation, reduced environmental impacts and greater flexibility
to geographically expand the physical and trading network - this will require a large
number of reliable HVDC cables connections.
Obtain an enhanced understanding of the factors that control the design and performance
of HVDC cable systems to produce design principles and tools, to obtain a model for cable
reliability prediction for use in transmission system evaluation.
The work will include:
Definition of transmission system scenarios at trans-European, country and regional levels
for which HVDC in HVAC systems could produce medium to long-term benefits.
System studies (e.g. load flow, stability, reliability, security assessment) to establish HVDC
benefits for cases such as: geographical interconnection of AC systems, system
reinforcement, in-feed to urban areas and high power users and the operation of flexible
ac transmission systems (F.A.C.T.S).
Establish a set of environmental impact assessment (EIA) parameter to include the EC EIA
Directive and produce a framework and associated software tools for enviro-economic lifecycle evaluation for transmission systems (for both HVAC and HCDC components).
Evaluate and rank the technical, environmental and economic advantages of partial DC
versus complete AC for a set of defined case studies and scenarios.
Develop physical models to calculate the electric field distribution in cables and multi-layer
systems as used in cable accessories for HVDC application.
Evaluate damage accumulation and failure processes in cables including account of
polarity reversal and impulse field effects found in HVDC systems and establish a number
of ageing diagnostics indicators.
Devise a predictive failure model for HVDC cable systems to be used in transmission
system reliability studies and to assess insulation system requirements for cable designs
having particular failure probabilities to arrive at optimal cable technical and economic
characteristics.
Disseminate and obtain feedback progressively from European transmission system
operators through specialist workshops and through interfaces with UCTE and CIGRE
committees.
Items 1, 2 and 3 are nearing completion.