Interphase Spacer Applications by Steve Bell

Conductors are flexible structures with almost no self-damping and are therefore susceptible to aeroelastic instabilities. For example, wind passing over an overhead power line with either single or bundled conductors can cause Aeolian vibration or galloping. Bundled conductors are also susceptible to wake-induced oscillation, caused by aerodynamic shielding of leeward-lying conductors by the windward conductors. Flashovers can result if galloping phase conductors are momentarily too close to one another or to overhead ground wires while conductors, insulators and structures are also at risk of damage. This presentation explains how composite interphase spacers are an effective countermeasure to galloping while Stockbridge dampers mitigate Aeolian vibration.