Distributed Temperature Sensing: Optimum Utilization of Energy Transmission Backbone in Eastern Europe

LIOS Technology successfully provided an integrated thermal monitoring solution for a strategically important interconnection aerial line in Eastern Europe.

The LIOS DTS system was supplied to provide distributed temperature measurement by means of a fibre integrated into a replaced optical phase conductor (OPPC). The picture above shows a straight joint of the OPPC.
The DTS covers the entire 17 km range of the three-core bundle 400kV transmission line. The applied Optical Frequency Domain Reflectometry (OFDR) principle ensures a temperature survey even over long distances at the decisive spatial resolution of 1 m.
It provides an invariant spatial resolution along the entire sensor length and a satisfactory temperature resolution of less than 1°C, which ensures early identification and clearly measurement of atypical hotspots (e.g. tower shadows). In addition to the phase conductor temperature, the electrical and metrological data are integral parameters for the established dynamic rating system (RTTR). All data are made online available through the SCADA system of the utility.
The integrated monitoring solution generates:

• Safety - Avoid and respond appropriately to critical load situations
• Optimization  - Utilize the existing grid capacity to an optimum
• Dynamic and Flexibility - With dynamic rating to a flexible energy backbone

Cigre Session 2012: Join 6000 Executives and Experts from the Worldwide Power Industry in Paris

LIOS Technology is pleased to cordially invite you to attend the CIGRE Technical Exhibition in Paris:

International Council on Large Electric Systems Technical Exhibition LIOS booth 232

27 - 31 AUGUST 2012, Palais des Congres de Paris, Paris, France 

 
LIOS Technology introduces its new EN.SURE DTS generation for Distributed Temperature Monitoring of Energy Transmission and Distribution Systems.
LIOS EN.SURE offers exact dynamic cable rating based on the real time temperature measurements along the entire cable circuit.
One single EN.SURE evaluation unit provides fast temperature sensing profiles with high spatial resolution along the optical fibre routes with monitoring ranges up to 40km per channel. It is the first maintenance free DTS which comes without any moving parts like fans or shutters.
 
» Register online for CIGRE Session 44 (technical exhibition included)
» Register online for CIGRE Technical Exhibition 

 

Real Time Condition Monitoring for Samsung Mobile Display’s New Production Line

Samsung Mobile Display Co., a venture between Samsung Electronics Co. and its sister unit Samsung SDI Co., are building a new plant that produces displays used in phone handsets and small televisions.
The plant in Asan city, 42 kilometres southwest of Seoul, South Korea, will be completed by July next year. Samsung Mobile Display plans to spend 2.5 trillion won (US$2.11 billion) on the plant.
The joint venture will produce active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AM OLED) displays, which are used in portable devices such as mobile phones and small TVs.
LIOS Technology recently completed the installation of its real time condition monitoring system supervising three 154kV high voltage cable systems on site. Condition monitoring is based on LIOS’ Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS) System OTS20P with a 16 channel fibre switch.
The distributed temperature profiles of the energy transmission systems made by Prysmian Cables & Systems are measured in real time by embedded fibre optics using FIMT . The DTS readings are visualised at the central control and dispatch centre ensuring save operation and allowing exploitation of the high voltage cable routes at full capacity potential.
(with material of Yonhap )

On-line registrations for CIGRE 2010 Session are open

International Council on Large Electric Systems

Over 80 years back, and every two years since, CIGRE has brought together electrical engineers from all over the World for a unique event - the CIGRE Session. The reason for the ever growing audience of CIGRE has always been and continues to be the high quality of papers presented and the topical interest of the subjects discussed, of direct concern for the Power Industry. In 2008 the number of attendees increased beyond expectations to reach the record figure of 3000 Delegates.

On-line registrations for CIGRE 2010 Session are open

Session 2010 Paris, France. 22 - 27 August 2010




Should you wish to attend the CIGRE Conference and benefit from early bird rates, you should register before 30/04/2010.

From 01/05 to 31/07/2010 - Registrations: fee 2

From 01/08/2010 - Registrations: fee 3

See for the General Programme, the Technical Programme and Accommodation information CIGRE website.

What you must know about the CIGRE Session?

An event designed to meet the expectations of each and everyone

• Monday dedicated to 2 Panels on broad topics: “The Need for increased Intelligence in Power Systems”; “Large disturbances”.
• Tuesday to Friday: 16 “Discussion Meetings” – 4 parallel sessions each day.
• Tuesday to Thursday: 6 “Poster Sessions” are scheduled for Delegates to meet with paper authors.
• A Technical Exhibition in the same location.
• A unique opportunity to interact with more than 4400 delegates and visitors from all over the world, managers and experts from all sectors of the Power Industry.

Discussion Meetings run on a “Special Reporter” System

• The CD-Rom of Session Papers (approx. 400) is forwarded to the Delegates. For fruitful discussions Delegates are strongly encouraged to read the Papers before the Session as these
• Papers are not presented by their authors, but discussed in Discussion Meetings.
• Discussion Meetings are organized on the basis of a “Special Report” which incorporates the gist of the Session Papers and raises a number of questions for discussion.
• Intended speakers prepare their contributions on the basis of the questions raised (to be sent in a few days in advance or handed in the day before discussion).
• Contributors are required to meet with Chairmen of Discussion Meetings the day before Discussion.
• For each Discussion Meeting a “Daily Summary of Discussions” is issued and available the next day.

To make the most of the Session

• Take a look at the Technical Programme posted on www.cigre.org, links “Events”, “Sessions”
• Register early so as to have time to read the Papers well ahead of the event
• See the Special Reports on the web
• If you plan to present a contribution, prepare it as explained in the “Guide for Discussion Contributors” posted on the web.

What is CIGRE?

CIGRE (International Council on Large Electric Systems) is one of the leading worldwide Organizations on Electric Power Systems, covering their technical, economic, environmental, organisational and regulatory aspects.

A permanent, non-governmental and non-profit International Association, based in France, CIGRE was founded in 1921 and aims to:

• Facilitate and develop the exchange of engineering knowledge and information, between engineering personnel and technical specialists in all countries as regards generation and high voltage transmission of electricity.
• Add value to the knowledge and information exchanged by synthesizing state-of-the-art and world practices.
• Make managers, decision-makers and regulators aware of the synthesis of CIGRE's work, in the area of electric power.

More specifically, issues related to planning and operation of power systems, as well as design, construction, maintenance and disposal of HV equipment and plants are at the core of CIGRE's mission. Problems related to protection of power systems, telecontrol, telecommunication equipment and information systems are also part of CIGRE's area of concern.

TO BE NOTED:

• The general rule is for participants to register with their National Committee (the list of the 22 National Committees handling registrations is available on the CIGRE website, link "What you must know about the registration process").
• As from 1st January 2010 CIGRE is no longer liable to VAT; hence a 0% VAT rate applies for CIGRE services, i.e. Session registrations, publications purchased, membership fees: all tariffs are VAT free, for all countries.
  It is recalled that according to European Union regulations the VAT reference number (when there is one) must be supplied as it is mandatory for it to appear on all invoices.

Thank you in advance for your participation in the CIGRE 2010 Session and we look forward to meeting you in Paris (22 > 27 August).

Please forward this note to your colleagues and all persons who may be interested in the conference subjects.

Integrated Condition Monitoring for High Voltage Cables: Direct link to SCADA / substation automation

The intrinsic temperature measuring system DTS based on LIOS Technology’s design, with fibre optic sensors either installed within the power cable’s cross section (FIMT - Fibre in metal tube ) or attached to the exterior of the cable, makes it possible to record the temperature profile along an entire cable route continuously, and to pinpoint the exact location of hot spots within a metre.

Most commonly the measured temperature profile data is transmitted via standard interfaces from systems of the DTS as required, and be either displayed or further processed by PC, PLC or SCADA systems. As a result of the increasing demands placed on the ability to network and integrate measuring systems into management systems, LIOS offers network components that summarise DTS data from several DTS units and transport or convert it to the required network standards and protocols like Modbus, DNP3, IEC60870-5 or XML based data interfaces (e.g. POSC).

Equipped with the Embedded Communication Module (ECM) the Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS) evaluation unit is accessible by Ethernet/ LAN, holds its own IP address and is compatible with DHCP.
The on-board storage facility of measurement data provides automatic buffering of network break downs. It can handle multiple protocols, so the DTS can be directly linked to PLC or SCADA systems and communicates in various industrial protocol standards providing measured data and customised alarm information.
Hereby, the evaluation unit communicates as a TCP /IP server with several clients.

Features of the embedded communication module of the LIOS DTS controller:

• Configuration and operation of the DTS via two independent channels:
  
  
  • RS232
  • Ethernet TCP/IP
  
  
• Onboard storage of measurement data
  
  
  • Buffers up to 72 hours of measurement data and initiates data transfer automatically after communication link was re-established
  • Individual file access to measurement data through CHARON_02 (onboard data storage 1 GB)
  
  
• Allows to operate individual Plug-In-Interfaces for customer specific protocol solutions
  
  
  • The DTS can communicate in parallel with its proprietary protocol and one or more customer specific protocols like DNP3, IEC60870-5-104, IEC61850, POSC WITSML, Modbus (Master/Slave) etc.
  • Individual assignments for protocols and client addresses (IP) possible
  
  
• Ethernet communication to and from clients with high bandwidth
• Module comes with built-in user configurable Firewall and enables reliable operation even in WAN’s
• Secure data transmission and individual authorisation according TLS- Standard (RFC 2246)

The most common industrial protocols used in electrical systems worldwide are introduced in the following section. However, also other protocol standards are available or can be implemented for the ECM. Please contact us in case of questions.

MODBUS
The MODBUS protocol was published by Modicon in 1979. It is a quite simple single master – multiple slave protocol widely used in general purpose SCADA applications. It provides binary (bit) and 16-bit integer data, but no floating point values, polled by the master, i.e. the slave cannot send data spontaneously. The protocol specification is openly published and royalty-free. In the DTS ECM, TCP/IP is used as transport layer.

IEC 60870-5
IEC 60870-5 provides a communication profile for sending basic Telecontrol messages between systems. It was developed by the IEC Technical Committee 57 (Working Group 03) as a protocol standard for Telecontrol, Teleprotection, and associated telecommunications for electric power systems. The result of this work is IEC 60870-5. The protocol provides inter alia bit, integer and floating point data with or without time stamps. Data is transmitted from controlled stations (slaves) either by polling or spontaneously. In the ECM the IEC 60870-5-104 companion standard, defining standard TCP/IP connections as transport layer, is used.

DNP3
DNP3 (Distributed Networking Protocol) is an open standard managed by the DNP User Group. Initially; the DNP3 protocol was developed by Westronic (now GE-Harris) in 1993. It is widely used in electrical systems worldwide, including North and South America, the UK, Southeast Asia, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. It has gained wider use beyond electrical utilities, e.g. for water supply as well. The DNP3 protocol is also referenced in IEEE Std. 1379-2000, which recommends a set of best practices for implementing modern SCADA Master-RTU/IED communication links.
The protocol provides bit, integer and floating point data and time stamps. Data is transmitted from the outstation (slave) either by polling or spontaneously. The ECM uses TCP/IP as transport layer, but even in this mode the DNP3 protocol additionally uses its own protocol stack for synchronisation and error checking. This provides extra security.

Condition Monitoring of high voltage cables: Turning information into extra capacity

Increasing demand for power is forcing power utilities to load power cables to their physical limit, and safety and efficiency concerns are making it more and more critical for operators to understand what is happening thermally both inside the cables themselves, and along the cable route.
Real Time Determination of Thermal Conditions along HV Power Cable Systems
During high-load conditions and under emergency circumstances (such as when a failure occurs in a segment of the grid and power must be shifted to other sections to compensate) it often becomes necessary to load cables right up to the limits permitted by the relevant regulations. In these operational situations, it must be ensured that maximum temperature limits are not exceeded. Due to the increasing complexity of the thermal relationships along cable routes, the ability to continuously measure the temperatures along the cable has proven invaluable, providing critical operational data to engineers, especially in the case of a system faults such as a hot spots that could result in cable failure if they are not corrected.
The intrinsic temperature measuring system DTS based on LIOS Technology’s design, with fibre optic sensors either installed within the power cable’s cross section (FIMT – Fibre in metal tube ) or attached to the exterior of the cable, makes it possible to record the temperature profile along an entire cable route continuously, and to pinpoint the exact location of hot spots within a metre. Since the measuring principle employed is purely optical, the presence of electromagnetic influences, which can result in false sensor signals in other technologies, does not affect the DTS unit.
Distributed temperature sensing is a powerful tool that allows the accurate rating of high voltage power cables in real time, and provides the following operating benefits:

• Reduce power outages or blackouts
• Ensure continuity of supply
• Activate hidden capacity reserves of existing assets
• React quickly to overload conditions
• Conduct precisely and in real-time load predictions as new sources of energy are added to the grid

The temperature profile data, in any desired form or format, can be transmitted via standard interfaces from systems of the OTS product series as required, and be either displayed or further processed by PC, PLC or SCADA systems. As a result of the increasing demands placed on the ability to network and integrate measuring systems into management systems, LIOS offers network components that summarise DTS data from several DTS units and transport or convert it to the required network standards and protocols like Modbus, DNP3, IEC60870-5 or XML based data interfaces.
Dynamic Cable Rating
LIOS also provides an integrated Real Time Thermal Rating (RTTR) package via a well defined interface between its DTS data visualisation software and a commercialised – the industry’s de facto standard – cable ampacity program based on IEC standardised methods (mainly IEC 60287 and IEC 60853). Dynamic rating software couples the accurate temperature data provided by the DTS unit to predictive functions of cable ratings, providing engineers with even more information upon which they can base distribution and load decisions. The result is dramatically more efficient transmission of power, fewer “brown-outs”, and decreased operating costs.

The ideal sensor embedded in power cables: Fibre In Metal Tube (FIMT)

The optical fibre serves as the distributed temperature sensor for LIOS DTS systems and is typically surrounded by a protective layer. It is preferably encased in a stainless steel tube which significantly increases the mechanical stability of the sensor. Fibre encapsulated in stainless steel tube or short “Fibre In Metal Tube (FIMT)” is a hermetically sealed rugged construction for very long lengths of optical fibres. Furthermore, it is particularly effective in protecting against the hydrostatic pressures, high temperature effects and corrosive environments.
The inside of the FIMT metallic tube may lined with gel to ensure that the sensor cable remains permanently water-proof. This viscous gel protects the fibres from many environmental concerns, prevents damage from microbending conditions and helps to minimize the forces applied during spooling and deployment.
An important parameter to consider with FIMT is the Excess Fibre Length. It is defined by the percentage of excess fibre loaded into the metal tube during processing to relieve induced stresses directly related to the differing thermal coefficient of expansions of each material contained in the construction. FIMT is exposed to drastic and often rapid changes in temperature and pressure, so the Excess Fibre Length must be considered to ensure continuous, robust performance across all operational conditions.
FIMT constructions contain individual or multiple fibres (single mode or multi mode) and are available in sizes ranging from 1 mm to 3 mm outer diameter, variations in effective wall thickness are possible as well. FIMT serves as the core for various fibre optic sensor cable constructions or may be integrated into high voltage cable designs directly.
The FIMT is manufactured from a special stainless steel strip. During the manufacturing process this strip is formed to a tube and welded along its length. The stainless steel tubes must be hermetically sealed for all applications. For this reason the complete weld seam is subjected to a leak proof test by means of eddy current. By means of a drawing process the desired final diameter is attained on the one hand and an increase in strength through cold conversion on the other. During the manufacturing process the optical fibres are inserted into the tube. They are clearly differentiated by means of a specific colour code. At the end of the production process the tubes are subjected to a complete optical attenuation measurement and then documented for back-tracing. Additionally, each length produced is subjected to a weld penetration test, each weld seam undergoes a leak test, and the Excess Fibre Length is checked.
LIOS offers a variety of FIMT constructions perfectly suitable for distributed temperature sensing applications along power cable transmission systems.

Reliable Energy Supply for the city of Graz, Austria

In order to improve the energy supply for the city of Graz, CCC GmbH Berlin installed new cable connections across the town between the transformer stations of Graz-South and Graz-West. The entire underground engineering, i.e. the joint base installation mand complete trenching construction was built by STEWEAG-STEG GmbH. The new cable installation is one of the city’s main transmission lines and is heavily loaded. In order to optimize the transmission performance and to guarantee its secure reliability, the cable installation has been equipped with large scale cross-bonding systems at its sheath. In addition, by the help of the LIOS Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS) system, the level of backup capacity can be assessed. These optical fibres can monitor the cable temperature along the trench and have been integrated into the sheath area of the cable.

Highlights

• 110 kV high-voltage power cables between transformer stations Graz-South and Graz-West
• 3 cable lines with a length of 3,2 km each (total 9,6 km cable),one of which is equipped for the entire distance of 3,2 km with integrated optical fibres in a steel tube integrated in the copper screen of the HV-cable for temperature monitoring (DTS)
• 18 sets of accessories
• Cross-bonding system in order to maximize transmission performance
• During the planning period numerous calculations for currentcarrying capacity were carried out in order to judge the influenceof crossing long-distance heating lines.
• Direct DTS data interface for temperature and operational data into the overall SCADA system of STEWEAG-STEG (Fernwirkanlage STEWEAG-STEG) using protocol IEC 60870-5-104

Electricity for all, the smart way – visit LIOS at Power Indonesia 2009

LIOS Technology GmbH- Linear Optical Sensors is pleased to invite you to attend Power Indonesia 2009 - the 14th International Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution Exhibition, taking place 14-17 October at the Jakarta International Expo, Kemayoran.

Booth number: A340

In cooperation with our partner Anugrah Mitra International & Anugrah Mira Nusantara we proudly present continuous and cost-effective monitoring solutions for the electric transmission and distribution grid, which are the essential success factors of Smart Grid implementations.

The LIOS DTS product line comprises a range of real-time fibre optic based linear temperature measuring devices (Distributed Temperature Sensing, DTS). LIOS offers Real Time Thermal Rating/ Dynamic Cable Rating (RTTR/ DCR) solutions for ampacity predictions of the power cable and overhead transmission line installation transparently integrated with its field proven DTS systems.

The Electric Indonesia Series 2009 provides a one stop shop for the major elements in the development of the country's electrical sector. For power generation, transmission and distribution Power Indonesia is South East Asia‘s most comprehensive exhibition.
This year over 600 companies from 34 countries will participate showing the huge potential in Indonesia’s Power and Electric Industries. Regional & National Pavilions from Taiwan, Korea, Germany, Czech Republic, Spain, Italy, Singapore, UK, and China will showcase the latest technology and equipment to help meet the countries huge demand for additional power.
Under its vision "Electricity for all", the Government is currently planning to increase power generation by 35,000MW by 2015 at an investment of over US$40Billion.

We look forward to seeing you in Jakarta!

Read more:

	For more information on Power Indonesia 2009 click here
	Distributed temperature monitoring of power cables

Investments in Smartgrid Technologies encourage LIOS to open US office

LIOS Technology, leading provider of state of the art frequency domain based distributed temperature monitoring solutions (DTS), announced today that it has opened an office in Morganville, New Jersey to service the growing demand for distributed temperature solutions in the United States. The New Jersey office expands LIOS’ ability to offer local sales and support services to its fast growing base of customers and prospects in the North-American market.

Corporations in the United States have been strong adopters of DTS solutions particularly in the power industry where the security, reliability and performance of temperature monitoring systems are critical.

"Especially with the SGIG (Smart Grid Investment Grant Program) we are experiencing growth in market demand and level of interest in our products and solutions," said Konrad Linckh, director of the LIOS New Jersey office. „Our customers are expanding their commitment to ensuring the reliability and performance of the transmission and distribution systems they operate. The continuous and cost-effective grid monitoring solution offered by LIOS supports that commitment and is the essential success factor of Smart Grid implementations.”

The new office is located at:

LIOS Technology Inc.
1400 Campus Drive West
Morganville, NJ 07751, USA

Tel: +1 (732) 970-8062
Fax: +1 (732) 972-4410