Power system planning using optimally designed transmission lines
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Over the past several decades, transmission lines, the primary infrastructure for transporting electric energy across power systems, have largely maintained their traditional designs, despite significant shifts in supply and demand dynamics. The inherent operational limitations of these conventional designs continue to be a major constraint on grid loadability and are expected to remain so in the foreseeable future. To address this challenge, we propose the use of unconventional transmission lines optimally designed with enhanced power transfer capabilities, known as high-surge-impedance loading (HSIL) lines. The proposed HSIL configuration achieves a surge impedance loading of 1354.72 MW, representing a 41.04 % increase over that of conventional 500 kV lines with equivalent conductor weight and cross-sectional area. The impact of these lines on the planning of large-scale power systems is assessed through detailed transmission expansion planning (TEP) studies. Using a 17-bus 500 kV test system in three different loading scenarios, each analyzed under normal and N-1 contingency conditions, we compare the performance of conventional versus HSIL lines to connect a new load to a new location. Comprehensive economic analysis reveals that the implementation of HSIL lines results in substantial cost savings, thus presenting a technically robust and economically attractive solution for future power system planning.
Source: Energy Reports
Authors: Bhuban Dhamala, Mona Ghassemi
Institution: The University of Texas at Dallas
Language: English
Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,040
Funder: National Science Foundation
OpenAlex ID: W4413375206