3 ms·
Its not great. Even before solar the advantage of a cross continental TL were there (namely ironing out the demand curve, hydro storage, ect). To limit resisti
by sfsafsaf 8y ago
Its not great. Even before solar the advantage of a cross continental TL were there (namely ironing out the demand curve, hydro storage, ect).
To limit resistive losses you have to go to really high V -> massive pylons (there were some built behind the iron curtain).
But you still have capacitive coupling (and reflections after the TL is larger than $\lambda$/10 -> You need to go to very low f or even DC
But high V. DC is hard! and low f AC is massive.
Ultimately it hasn't been done because it hasn't been worthwhile.
- lutorm 8y agoHVDC is harder than AC transmission, but isn't it a solved problem? "In July 2016, ABB Group received a contract in China to build an ultrahigh-voltage direct-current (UHVDC) land link with a 1100 kV voltage, a 3,000 km (1,900 mi) length and 12 GW of power, setting world records for highest voltage, longest distance, and largest transmission capacity." (From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-voltage_direct_current https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-voltage_direct_current)
- asafira 8y agoCan you expend on some of these, or give a reference? Specifically, why does going to high voltage limit resistive losses? Why does really high V mean massive pylons? Why is low frequency AC massive?
- magicalhippo 8y agoP = V * I [1], and V = I * R [2], so P = I^2 * R. So to minimize power loss in the cables, you want to minimize the current. In order to transfer the same amount of power, you need to increase the voltage. Not sure about the pylon sizes. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_power https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_power [2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohm%27s_law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohm%27s_law