A comparative study between HVDC and EHV AC Transmission

Systems

Aniket Bhattacharya Animesh Gupta

B. Tech Power Systems Engineering B. Tech Power Systems Engineering
University of Petroleum and Energy Studies University of Petroleum and Energy Studies
Dehradun, India Dehradun, India

Abstract-- This paper consists of a comparative study of various electrical, mechanical and
environmental parameters that exists in HVDC as well as EHV AC transmission systems and how
these parameters affect both the transmission modes at various conditions is represented here. The
paper may prove to be a good basic answer under the cases where there is a question of choice
between HVDC and EHV AC transmission systems.

Keywords—construction; electrical parameters; environmental impacts, power transmission

capacity.

I. INTRODUCTION

In the past few years, under power transmission systems we have observed that HVDC has
increased its importance by proving itself a better mode of power delivery than various EHV AC
systems. In this paper we have shown a mild study upon various parameters that exists in both the
systems and concluding with a comparative result obtained after the study at various distances.
Basically we are focusing upon the cumulative loss that takes place in both the modes at various
locations. The areas where we are going to focus the comparison are as follows

 Construction
 Electrical parameters
 Environmental impacts

II. CONSTRUCTION

As far as construction work is concerned,

Transmission line establishment cost = n × cost per tower + s × cost per substation

Where,

n= no. of towers,
s= no. of substations

From the above formula we can say that the transmission line project cost depends upon the
following two factors:

 Substation cost
 Line cost (tower- conductor-insulation)

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High voltage direct current (HVDC) power transmission is a suitable power transmission project for
very long distance i.e. distances > 800km

Below the distance of 800km the transmission is not suitable because of its high costs as compared to
EHV AC.

Substation cost:

In EHV AC power transmission, on an average every 300 km distance span of transmission lines
requires a substation to be established for the compensation of reactive power whereas in HVDC we
need to have only terminal to terminal substation. [5]

Hence,

For a line < 800km,

No. of substations required in EHV AC =
(integral value)

i.e. = 2

Now,

For HVDC transmission,

No. of substations required = 2 (always)……… independent of distance

Here we observe that for a distance < 800kms both the modes of transmission require 2 substations.

Now if we observe the installing costs of the substations, we conclude that HVDC substations are
costlier than the EHV AC one since HVDC requires converters and thyristor valves as an additional
accessory. [4]

Therefore we can prove from this that HVDC is not a suitable mode of power transmission for
distances less than 800 km.

Whereas for distances >800 km the no. of substations in EHV AC will increase and in HVDC will
remain same hence EHV will go on to be costlier ahead.

The cost effectiveness of both modes can be observed in the graph given below,

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Line cost:

 Conductor

If we consider the conductor cost per km the HVDC is more cost effective since the number
conductors required for the power transmission in bi polar HVDC mode is only two whereas in EHV
AC the same power transmission requires about 6 to 24 conductors.
conductors This makes the ROW of DC less
than AC resulting in low tower cost and environmental impact in HVDC.

 Altitude and weather

In case of EHVAC, corona losses are important to the design of conductor bundle. With only a
few kW/km of loss in fair weather, the level
le may increase 10-100
100 times during conditions of rain
or hoarfrost and may reach several hundred kW/km. [1]

The effect of altitude on corona loss is quite dramatic: at 1800 meters above sea level, the losses
at any given weather condition are four times higher than at sea level for EHVAC.
EHVAC

For HVDC lines, the selection of conductor cross section with regard to the resistive losses is
done in the same way as with EHVAC.

DC corona losses are, however, of less concern to the design of conductor bundles, since the
increase during rain or hoarfrost is much smaller than with AC, only about 2-3
2 times.

[1]The
The effect of altitude on the DC corona loss is similar as with AC.

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  Insulation
The insulation performance of transmission lines depend on several factors which are
somewhat different for EHVAC and HVDC. The air clearance requirement is a very
important factor for the mechanical design of the tower.

III. ELECTRICAL PARAMETERS

These are the parameters that have variable effects in both the transmission modes and influence
the power transmission capacity in various ways.

 Surge impedance:

Surge impedance is the natural

tural impedance that exists in power transmission without any external
compensation source. It is given by,

Z = L/C

We know that,
1
f=
2π√LC

For DC,
f=0

Hence from
rom this we can conclude that surge impedance does not arise in HVDC transmission.

[6]The
The power transmission capacity of long EHVAC lines is limited by the reactive power
consumption of the line inductance, which exceeds the reactive power generatio
generation of the line
capacitance at load levels above surge impedance loading (which is solely determined by the

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geometrical configuration of the line). Extensive use of series capacitors may, however, increase the
transmission capacity of a line to about 150
150-200% of surge impedance loading [1].

 Skin effect:

The current carrying conductors are driven by an electric field due to the source of electrical
energy. An alternating current in a conductor produces an alternating magnetic field in and around
the conductor. When the intensity of current in a conductor changes, the magnetic field also changes.
The change in the magnetic field, in turn, creates an electric field which opposes the change in
current intensity. This opposing electric field is called “counter-electromotive
“ electromotive force
force” (back EMF).
The back EMF is strongest at the center of the conductor, and forces the conducting electrons to the
outside of the
he conductor resulting in skin effect.

However in DC the rate of change of magnetic flux is zero therefore

therefore this effect does not exist
and no conductor measures have to be taken here for it.

 Thermal effect:

Thermal effect refers to the heating effect due to resistance in a conductor. Basically
according to machine theory it is the copper loss that takes place due to the conversion of electrical
energy into unused heat energy because of the heating effect of electron flow.

Here we can see that,

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 J= current density at point d

Js= surface current density

The skin depth can be given as,

as

Where
ρ = resistivity of the conductor
ω = angular frequency of current = 2π × frequency
μ = relative magnetic permeability of the conductor
μ = the permeability of free space

Resistance in terms of skin depth,

Whereas in DC transmission skin depth is not applicable as we have seen above under Skin Effect.

Hence,

The DC resistance will be,

R= (Considering conductor length, material and area to be same in both modes)

This proves that R > R

Therefore,

We can conclude that

at HVDC Transmission has lesser heating effect loss than EHV AC Transmission
Tr
since EHV AC has high resistance than HVDC.

 Corona loss

Corona losses in the AC transmission are greater than the DC transmission.

This is because,

Corona Loss (P ) α f+25

In AC f= 50 Hz

Whereas in DC f=0

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Hence DC corona losses are much less than the AC one.

IV. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS

The following discussion largely summarizes a report by L. A. Koshcheev (2003) on the

potential environmental impacts of HVDC lines in comparison to HVAC lines. In the report,
Koshcheev points out that an HVDC transmission system provides environmental benefits over
conventional AC technology. [2] The land coverage and the associated ROW are less for a DC
transmission line. DC transmission lines require two conductors versus three for comparable AC
lines. This feature reduces the visual impact and allows greater power to flow over the same ROW,
thus maximizing resources. In addition, the EMF effects associated with HVAC transmission lines
are not present in HVDC lines. The possible influences on the environment caused by high-power
electricity transmission systems, either AC or DC, include:

• The effects of electric fields:

Researches and investigations regarding the electric fields associated with HVDC transmission lines
done in Canada and Russia have shown that the discomfort that is felt under HVAC lines is
negligible in case of HVDC. The discomfort felt in case of HVAC is due to the spark discharges
from humans to animals and vegetation around. Another study in Canada has revealed that large
machines with rubber tires are not electrically charged when standing under HVDC lines. However,
in case of HVAC overhead lines, induced capacitive currents on large machines may reach to
dangerous levels. Further tests have shown that the ionic current passing through a person standing
beneath HVDC line of 1000KV is 2 to 3μA whereas, the capacitive current entering a person beneath
HVAC line of 1150 KV is 0.2mA.

• The effects of magnetic fields:

The effect of magnetic field due to the transmission lines directly affects living beings. Various
estimations have shown that the maximum magnetic field strength in HVAC system ranges from 10
to 50μT (micro Tesla) near the line. Whereas in case of HVDC, a 450KV line has a magnetic field
strength of about 20μT associated with it, which is less than the existing limits to magnetic field
exposure. And unlike HVAC, the HVDC magnetic fields are of constant strength, orientation and
polarity.

• Radio, T.V and Telephone interference:

Due to the fast switching process of Thyristor valves, i.e., the HVDC converters, harmonics are
produced in kHz and MHz zone. These affect the electric lines. AC lines increase up to 10 dB
(Decibel) in radio interference during the rainy season. On the other hand, DC line radio interference
decrease during the rain. Radio interference level in case of HVDC is generally 6 to 8 dB lower than
HVAC system of almost same capacity. Electromagnetic shielding of Thyristor valves is widely
used to reduce the Radio interference.

• Audible noise:

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The noise from DC transmission lines is a broadband noise evenly spread over 300 to 3000 Hz. Also
due to converter transformer the sum of load noises is approximately 10 dB higher than the no load
noises. A common HVDC system has noise intensity less than 10 dB at a distance around 350
meters. Bad weather decreases the noise levels in case of HVDC, unlike the HVAC system, where
the noise increases during bad weather.

• Ground currents and corrosion effects:

Overhead HVDC transmission lines are bipolar usually and under emergency conditions operate in
monopole mode. All DC lines, except those with an additional conductor, produce some ground
current due to unavoidable dissymmetry when operating in bipolar mode. Due to difference in the
current flow between the two poles, a prolonged current passes through the ground. This value is
usually estimated as 1 to 3% of nominal current value.

• The use of land for transmission line and substation facilities:

The area of total land use and ROW needs in case of HVDC transmission is about two-third (1.5
times less) of that required in case of HVAC system.

• Visual impacts:

In case of long length of buried cable, HVDC cables do not require compensation for surplus charge
capacity of the buried cable, as do HVAC cables. In cases where lines may need to be buried to
avoid obstacles, the simpler HVDC lines offer advantage over HVAC lines. For example, it is
possible to lay HVDC cable in railroad tunnel crossing mountains which might not be compatible
with HVAC lines.

V. POWER TRANSMISSION CAPACITY

The trend of power electronic components, for use in the main circuit of an HVDC
transmission, being developed means that the relative cost of HVDC transmissions is reduced as the
components become cheaper as a result of continuing innovative technological developments. Thus a
large converter station with a cost of 50 USD/kW is today cheaper in current dollars compared with
the situation 20 years ago. [3] The dc line is less costly compared with an 800 kV ac line. On the
other hand, the converter station cost offsets the gain in reduced cost of the transmission line. Thus a
short line is cheaper with ac transmission, while a longer line is cheaper with dc.

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 Comparison of power capacity

Total conductor load on tower in ken/m

VI. CONCLUSION

In a general comparison of HVDC vs. EHVAC power transmission, the design of the
transmission lines and the related investment costs are of great importance. The aim of this paper has
been to focus on the differences in the design of line insulation and conductor configuration, and its
influence on the mechanical loads. For the line insulation, air clearance requirements are more
critical with EHVAC due to the nonlinear behavior of the switching overvoltage withstand. The
corona effects are more pronounced at AC voltage; therefore, larger conductor bundles are needed at
higher system voltages. The altitude effects are more important to HVDC lines, since the lightning
overvoltage withstand is the most sensitive insulation parameter with regard to air density. The

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mechanical load on the tower is considerably lower with HVDC due to less number of sub
conductors required to fulfill the corona noise limits. The high transmission capacity of the HVDC
lines, combined with lower requirements on conductor bundles and air clearances at the higher
voltage levels, makes the HVDC lines very cost efficient compared to EHVAC lines over large
distances. The cost advantage is even more pronounced at the highest voltage levels.

VII. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This project of mine was not possible without the guidance and support of our faculty,

Mr. Agam Tyagi

Assistant Professor,
Department of Electrical Engineering,
University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun.

He was our coordinator throughout our project and guided us with his knowledge regarding this
field of work. We are really thankful for his worthy support.

VIII. REFERENCES

[1] Bulk power transmission at extra high voltages, a comparison between transmission lines for
HVDC at voltages above 600 kV DC and 800 kV AC, Lars Weimar, ABB, Sweden.

[2] Steven W. Blume, Electric Power system basics, IEEE, pp4, 5.

[3] The design operations of long distance high voltage transmission lines, Argonne National
Laboratory, Chicago, USA.

[4] HVDC Transmission Systems Technology Review Paper, Roberto Rudervall, J.P. Charpentier,
Raghuveer Sharma, ABB power Systems, Sweden.

[5] Electricity Transmission, Public Service Commission of Wisconsin, Madison, WI.

[6] Anthony J. Panisini, Power Transmission and Distribution, Second edition, The Fairmont Press,
Lilburn, GA 30047.

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