INL posts 50+ conductor evaluations

Idaho National Laboratory published a public website on May 14 with results from more than 50 evaluations of next-generation advanced conductors, opening a test library aimed at utilities, manufacturers and other grid industry users. The Idaho Falls, Idaho-based lab said the site provides standards-based performance data on conductors designed to carry more electricity on existing transmission corridors. The release said the data covers how the conductors perform under wildfire temperatures, ice loading and mechanical fatigue. The site and release position the library as a tool for utilities weighing whether to upgrade existing lines instead of rebuilding corridors. ### What exactly did INL put online? The May 14 release said INL posted results from more than 50 evaluations on a new public website, calling it the first open-access collection of credible, standards-based performance data on advanced conductors for utilities, manufacturers and industry partners. The companion testing page says users can review reports generated by the project and see both newly released data and legacy test results. (inl.gov) The INL testing page lists multiple conductor products and test types in a table format, including DC resistance, creep testing, wildfire testing, installation testing, stress-strain work and connector-related evaluations. The page also says the conductors in the current table were provided by five separate utilities, including Tennessee Valley Authority. (inl.gov) ### Why are utilities looking at advanced conductors instead of full rebuilds? The U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Conductor Scan Report says the purpose of the work is to inform regulators, utilities, conductor manufacturers and other stakeholders about technologies that can help expand transmission and distribution capacity in the near term. INL’s release says advanced conductors are one option for addressing surging energy demand, aging power infrastructure, rapid load growth and increasingly extreme weather. (inl.gov) INL said the website is meant to help utilities reduce technical risk and make investment decisions as they choose conductors that can maintain operations during high-demand events. In the release, senior technical manager Jake Gentle said the lab is testing donated conductors because “upgrading power lines requires credible, verifiable results.” (energy.gov) ### What kinds of tests are in the library? INL said the program includes four categories of tests carried out with the Department of Energy’s Office of Electricity, the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security and Emergency Response, the National Electric Energy Testing Research and Application Center, and the Electric Power Research Institute. The release says those categories include wildfire simulation, ice-load and cold-climate testing, mechanical testing and fully instrumented installation testing. (inl.gov) The lab said its wildfire simulation chamber uses propane to reach as high as 1,900 degrees Celsius, above the 1,200 degrees Celsius that wildfires can reach. The release also said cold-climate chambers can reach minus 70 degrees Celsius, while mechanical work covers tensile strength, fatigue, stretching and aging assessments. (inl.gov) ### Which conductor types and vendors show up on the site? The INL testing page names conductors and suppliers including Prysmian Plover + E3X, 3M ACCR “Drake,” CTC Global ACCC and Southwire ACCS/TW/C7 in the current testing table. The same page lists older results for products from Southwire, Tokyo Rope, Nexans, ZTT Group, General Cable, LS Cable & System and TS Conductor, among others. (inl.gov) The DOE scan report says the broader effort is not framed as an exhaustive academic study of every technology. Instead, DOE says the report is intended to characterize modern advanced conductor technology in the North American power system and support near-term policy and deployment decisions. ### What does this change for a utility planning a brownfield uprate? INL’s release says the new site gives utilities independent testing results on how conductors behave under thermal, mechanical and environmental stress, which are the kinds of factors utilities have to account for when replacing line hardware on existing rights of way. (inl.gov) The testing page says the program includes installation testing in standard and extreme environments, along with long-term thermal-mechanical aging, corrosion resistance, creep behavior and field trials. (energy.gov) The practical decisions tied to those results include outage planning, conductor handling and installation methods, crew practices and follow-on inspection requirements, according to the test categories and project description published by INL. That is an inference from the types of tests INL says it performed and the stated use of the data for utility investment and upgrade decisions. (inl.gov) ### Where can utilities and manufacturers go next? INL’s advanced conductor testing page is live now and links the newly released evaluations alongside legacy results. The named partners on the project are the Department of Energy, NEETRAC and EPRI, and INL said recent work includes new methods to address challenges unique to advanced conductors. (inl.gov)