High-Performance Transmission Conductor is Improving Grid Efficiency

1. CTC High Performance Transmission Conductors Are Improving Grid Efficiency www.ctcglobal.com Oct  2020

2. Introduction CTC Global is an ACCC conductor manufacturing company that was founded to develop, certify and deploy advanced technologies to improve the efficiency, capacity, reliability and resiliency of the electric power grid. Our primary product is high-capacity, low-sag CTC Global ACCC Conductor solutions. www.ctcglobal.com

3. CTC the electric power transmission business www.ctcglobal.com Most of us associate the word “efficiency” with improvements in generation equipment, transformers and demand side appliances. While new more efficient components in many cases are more expensive than the less efficient units they replace, their higher prices have generally been easy to justify due to their reduced operating and lifecycle costs. 

4. ‘Smart Grid’ Strategy  ‘Smart Grid’ strategy was developed to help decrease peak load demand by shifting certain tasks to off peak hours. Recharging electric vehicles, being one example. What’s surprising is how little any of us actually think about the efficiency of the grid itself that connects our appliances, homes and electric cars to generation. Most of the wire used for this currently consists of aluminum strands wrapped around a steel core. This wire is called “ACSR” (Aluminum Conductor Steel Reinforced) and the technology is more than 100 years old. www.ctcglobal.com

5. Anew conductor design was created It was named “ACSS” (Aluminum Conductor Steel Supported). It’s very similar to ACSR, but the aluminum strands were pre-annealed in the factory. This allowed ACSS to operate at higher temperatures to accommodate increased loads. The problem with ACSS is that at higher operating temperatures, line losses climb exponentially. The other problem is that as the wire heats up due to electrical resistance, its high coefficient of thermal expansion causes it to sag which can lead to sag-trip outages. The major east coast blackout of 2003, for instance, was caused by excessive conductor sag. www.ctcglobal.com

6. To Mitigate Conductor Sag In the wake of the major east coast blackout – a number of companies including 3M and Composite Technology Corporation (now CTC Global) introduced “HCLS” (High-Capacity, Low-Sag) conductors. The ACCR core is actually a fiber reinforced aluminum, so its electrical resistance (and efficiency) is greatly improved over conventional steel core that offers very poor conductivity. The CTC Global product “ACCC” (Aluminum Conductor Composite Core) uses a non-conductive carbon and glass fiber core. Because CTC Global’s ACCC core is so much lighter than steel, the design incorporates an additional 28 percent more aluminum without a weight or diameter penalty. The added aluminum content (and improved quality) serves to lower electrical resistance and therefore effectively reduces line losses by 25 to 40 percent or more compared to steel reinforced alternatives. www.ctcglobal.com

7. While many leading executives have stated: “It’s cheaper to save a Nega Watt than it is to produce a Mega Watt,” in the case of delivering power, this is also very true. To put this in even greater perspective, a CO2 reduction of 80,000 Metric Tons is the equivalent of removing nearly 17,000 cars from the road.  If you clip this down into a one-mile section, that will equate to a CO2 reduction of 667 Metric Tons or a reduction of 140 cars per mile. Assuming a reconductoring cost of $300,000 per mile, this would equate to a one-time cost of $450 per Metric Ton using a high-performance conductor. Though things are changing quickly, the feds currently offer a $7,500 rebate for purchasers of electric cars. That equates to a government investment of $1,579 to save one Metric Ton of CO2 not including the cost of the car on top of it. www.ctcglobal.com

8. Contact Us  Website: www.ctcglobal.com Phone: +1 949 428 8500 Fax: +1 949 428 8515 Email: info@ctcglobal.com Thank You