Most of the electricity generated by power plants is transmitted and distributed overhead lines. The transmission and distribution of power through overhead lines uses conductors supported on towers or poles with appropriate spacing between them. This spacing is provided to avoid discharges between conductors by increasing insulation. Compared to underground transmission and distribution lines, overhead lines are much cheaper.

For transmitting electricity at higher voltages over long distances, overhead lines are the best choice. For the same power transmission, underground cables require more insulation costs and conductor sizes. Overhead costs are much lower and overhead lines are easy to maintain.

However, there are some disadvantages to using overhead lines, for example, they are subject to uncertain weather conditions that reduce overall efficiency, conductors can be damaged by high winds or fallen trees, causing external interference, faulty short circuits due to lightning or faults, etc. However, these drawbacks can be overcome by using appropriate safety factors. Let's look at the various components of overhead lines in a power system.

Components of overhead lines

Conductors

Conductors play an important role in overhead transmission and distribution lines, which carry electricity from the generating station to the receiving end and then to the consumer. A major part of the total capital is invested in the conductors. Therefore, the choice of conductor material and the size of the conductor should be selected appropriately. Depending on the current to be carried and the span of the line, the composition of materials such as copper, aluminum or ACSR is selected.

Protective wire

Protective lines are provided above or below the transmission line when crossing communication lines and are firmly connected to earth.

Lightning arrester

It is a device used to provide protection against traveling waves or high voltage caused by lightning by discharging excessive voltage from the line to ground.

Insulators

The insulator is set on a support (pole or tower) to support the conductor, thus providing the necessary insulation for the support with the conductor. This further prevents leakage currents from the conductor to earth through the support. Insulators also prevent short circuits between conductors and metalwork. The most commonly used insulating materials are porcelain, glass and Stealite. the various types of insulators are, the

Pin insulators

Suspension insulators

Strain insulators

Unbuckled insulators

Retention insulators.

Supports 

The function of a line support is to support the conductor and keep the conductor at a proper level from the ground. Generally, poles or towers are chosen as supports. These are used depending on the operating voltage and the area of use. There are various types of electric poles or towers, such as.

Wooden electric poles

Steel poles

RCC poles and

Lattice steel towers.

Cross arms and clamps

These are provided on the pole structure to support insulators and conductors. These are composed of wood or steel angles.

Poles and brackets

Used to resist lateral forces on terminal or angular poles by securing brackets or cables to the pole.

Fuses and disconnect switches

These are used to isolate different parts of the transmission system.

Grounding lines

Grounding wires are run at the top of the tower to protect the line from lightning strikes.

Vee-Guards

For public safety, these are provided underneath the base overhead lines along the street.

Miscellaneous components

Phase plates, bird protection plates, hazard plates, barbed wire, shock absorbers, top dampers, beads for jumpers, etc. The phase plates provide information on the various phases used, barbed wire, which is wrapped around a 2.5 meter high pole to prevent unauthorized climbing. However, there are also hazard plates at a height of 2.5 meters above the ground.

Various types of conductor materials used for overhead lines

Copper

Copper is the most common material used to construct overhead line conductors. It conducts current easily and is readily available. There are three types of copper wire, hard drawn copper, medium hard drawn copper and soft drawn copper. Of these, hard-drawn copper is mostly used to construct conductors because of its low elasticity and high mechanical strength.

Copper has a high current density and therefore requires less cross-sectional area than the others. Other advantages include durability, higher scrap value and homogeneity. Because of its advantages, all small conductors and heavy power cables are composed of copper. However, due to its high capital cost, it is not the preferred choice for overhead transmission and distribution lines.

Aluminum

Aluminum is the most common material used in power systems for transmission and distribution lines. It is cheaper and lighter in weight than copper. Because of its light weight, the tower structures used do not need to be as strong as copper. It is mainly used to carry heavy currents.

In this application, a special configuration called ACSR conductor (aluminum conductor steel reinforcement) is used. In this configuration, small strands of aluminum are wrapped around a steel core. This not only increases the current carrying capacity, but also increases flexibility and mechanical strength.

The main disadvantages of aluminum are its poor electrical conductivity (60% of copper), low tensile strength (45% of copper), low melting point, and difficulty in making joints. Despite its disadvantages, aluminum is commonly used as a transmission and distribution conductor.

Galvanized steel

Galvanized steel is the cheapest of all materials and is therefore used in areas where economy is a major factor. However, it has some drawbacks such as low conductivity, high resistance and therefore it is used only for low power and short distance applications. It is also used in applications where longer spans are required.

Cadmium copper

Cadmium copper is used for applications that require long spans and small cross-sectional areas. Cadmium is used together with copper to increase the tensile strength. It is used for some specific applications due to its higher cost.

Copper-welded steel

Copper welded steel conductors are nothing more than steel wires with a copper coating. This configuration is used to get the advantages of copper and steel, i.e. higher conductivity, greater strength and lower cost. It is basically used for rural lines, overhead wires and overhead grounding wires. The main advantage of this conductor is that its conductivity can be increased to any percentage by providing the necessary thickness of copper coating.