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Substation connectors come in various types. There are substation connectors that allow connection and switching of high voltage electricity from other components with transformers, busbars or circuit breakers, and any substation equipment. Such appropriate connectors should be chosen to a substation as this would increase the efficiency of operations and thus reduce wastage of electrical energy in rated power levels.
What Are Substation Connectors?
Substation connectors are, therefore, mechanical means for joining together electrical conductors in a manner that the flow of electricity is made through various components of a substation. They are designed to be low resistance to appropriate current for a duration of time providing security to the contacts. Primarily, the two categories of integration can be identified for electrical connectors, the integration to survive the substation’s detrimental conditions, and the integration responsible for the performance of the mechanisms.
Types of Substation Connectors
There are different types of substation connectors which are used for their designated purposes in a station. Some of these are:
Clamp Connectors: Clamp connectors are primarily used in providing mechanical fastening of adjacent conductors to ensure a reliable electrical connection. They are also bolted and can be used for the bus-to-bus or bus-to-equipment connections.
Clamp connectors can be divided into:
- T-clamps: These were applied to connect a main busbar to a tap bus or equipment
- Parallel clamps: These are used to connect busbars and conductors in parallel
Compression Connectors: Compression connectors create a rigid connection between two conductors through the application of compressive force. These connectors are normally offered for crimping, usually with hydraulic equipment which guarantees that contact points would be tight and the dangers of resistance as well as power loss would be minimized. It is predominantly adopted because of trustworthiness and low maintenance constraints
Bolted Connectors: Bolted connectors are also the type of mechanical connectors that employ bolts and nut to maintain the connection of the conductors together. These cannot be fixed therefore will permit for easy fitting and removal which makes them very useable in substations where ease of maintenance and flexibility is a requirement.
Splice Connectors:
Splice connectors allow for the end-to-end connection of two conductors. In particular, these connectors are of great importance in transmission lines and in substations where two ends of a cable or busbar need to be connected together with minimal electrical attenuation.
Terminal Connectors:
Terminal connectors serve to link electrical conductors to the apparatus of a substation such as transformers and circuit breakers. They serve as terminal connections to various elements in order to provide a strong connection point, however, these elements allow various components to be connected for example a busbar and the equipment and so on.
Bus Support Connectors:
During construction of substations, bus support connectors are used to fix the busbars to the insulator supports. In situations where busbars are deep and or long, these connectors provide mechanical support and electrical continuity making use of the busbars without safety or performance concerns.
Flexible Connectors
Also known as expansion connectors, flexible connectors are placed in substations for the purpose of standing the thermal expansion and contraction of the conductors and busbars. They prevent mechanical stress, which leads to damage when temperature and mechanical movement changes with respect to time. This is more important where high voltage is involved because the materials expand and contract as frequently as often.
Important Considerations in the Process of Selecting Substation Connectors
Choosing substation connectors is an exercise that warrants many considerations to ensure that they are suitable for the requirements of the application:
Electrical Loading and Voltage Reticulation:
The connectors should ensure that there is electrical conduction of the load without overheating or burning out inside the connectors. The other relevant factor is the level of voltage in the system and it is equally important that, voltage control connectors should be insulated or designed to avoid arcing and corona discharges at higher voltages.
Choice of Materials:
The majority of the substation connectors are made out of aluminum or copper because they are good conductors and do not corrode easily. Because of the weight aspects of aluminum connectors they are fitted in high voltage applications while the later is used for low to moderate voltage systems because of its high conductivity feature.
Climatic Conditions:
Environmental conditions such as extreme temperatures, humidity, or even the chances of corrosion from other materials may be encountered by substation connectors. Connectors especially in harsh environments may be enhanced by various special coatings for instance tin plating or anodizing rendering them durable.
Mechanical Strength and Flexibility:
In substations, connectors are expected to be able to withstand mechanical stresses such as that due to thermal expansion, vibration, and wind load among others. There are some connectors such as expansion connectors which incorporates desired flexibility to protect the joint from stress and fatigue.
Ease of Installation and maintenance:
Some substation connectors such bolted or clamp connectors are easier to install and remove. This makes them useful in scope where the system requires regular maintenance or adjustments. Compression connectors on the other hand even though hard to fix, demand minimum maintenance because of the efficiency of the joint.
Significance of Accessory of Substations
Connectors are the main concern of reliability and performance of any existing substation.
Substation connectors are applied to multiple applications such as:
- Transmission and Distribution Lines: Suitable for interconnecting high voltages transmission line with substation transformers and circuit breakers.
- Busbar Connections: Employing bus bars and bus bar fittings to interconnect bus bars or equipment in the substation to facilitate power distribution within the substation.
- Transformer Connections: Establishing a firm low resistant connection between transformers and the electrical grid.