3 ms·

I am wondering: if the large power transformers are the most critical asset, wouldn't it make sense to try to protect them in Faraday cages capable of sustainin

by ogrisel 12y ago

I am wondering: if the large power transformers are the most critical asset, wouldn't it make sense to try to protect them in Faraday cages capable of sustaining high levels of current without melting down? The cost of such cages are likely to be much much smaller than the cost of power outage lasting months or years for millions of people.

ddeck 12y ago
A user (growupkids) from the industry posted on this below: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8078076 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8078076 >I work in commercial electrical power. No they don't. Because they aren't required to. It's all about costs. So unless it's about known risks (read PRA), no they don't protect against it. You need to spend money where the risks happen.
ars 12y ago
That would not help. It's the wires attached to the transformer that get the current surge, not the transformer itself. Plus a Faraday cage would not do anything anyway, the frequency is too low.
- ogrisel 12y ago
  > That would not help. It's the wires attached to the transformer that get the current surge, not the transformer itself. Wouldn't it possible to add automated circuit breakers in case of high current surge then? > Plus a Faraday cage would not do anything anyway, the frequency is too low. Low frequency means long wave length, no? I thought that the Faraday cage holes needed to be smaller than the wave length for it to work.
  - ars 12y ago
    > Wouldn't it possible to add automated circuit breakers in case of high current surge then? Yes, but a circuit breaker at the voltages and/or power levels involved is not a simple device. They don't have them (due to cost and complexity), and there is a lot of criticism that they don't. > Low frequency means long wave length, no? I thought that the Faraday cage holes needed to be smaller than the wave length for it to work. It's both. If the holes are too large then small waves can go right in, but if the wavelength is very large the wave doesn't even notice the cage is there. A Faraday cage works by picking up and distributing the EMF on all sides of the cage, so the field inside is canceled out. But if the wavelength is too large the cage can not pick up the EMF, and the EMF is present inside the cage. (However with a wave that large is not clear it would do anything to devices inside. The nice long wires of the power grid are perfect for it though.)
    - ogrisel 12y ago
      Thanks for the clarifications.

by ogrisel 12y ago

ddeck 12y ago

A user (growupkids) from the industry posted on this below: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8078076 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8078076 >I work in commercial electrical power. No they don't. Because they aren't required to. It's all about costs. So unless it's about known risks (read PRA), no they don't protect against it. You need to spend money where the risks happen.

ars 12y ago

That would not help. It's the wires attached to the transformer that get the current surge, not the transformer itself. Plus a Faraday cage would not do anything anyway, the frequency is too low.

ogrisel 12y ago
> That would not help. It's the wires attached to the transformer that get the current surge, not the transformer itself. Wouldn't it possible to add automated circuit breakers in case of high current surge then? > Plus a Faraday cage would not do anything anyway, the frequency is too low. Low frequency means long wave length, no? I thought that the Faraday cage holes needed to be smaller than the wave length for it to work.
- ars 12y ago
  > Wouldn't it possible to add automated circuit breakers in case of high current surge then? Yes, but a circuit breaker at the voltages and/or power levels involved is not a simple device. They don't have them (due to cost and complexity), and there is a lot of criticism that they don't. > Low frequency means long wave length, no? I thought that the Faraday cage holes needed to be smaller than the wave length for it to work. It's both. If the holes are too large then small waves can go right in, but if the wavelength is very large the wave doesn't even notice the cage is there. A Faraday cage works by picking up and distributing the EMF on all sides of the cage, so the field inside is canceled out. But if the wavelength is too large the cage can not pick up the EMF, and the EMF is present inside the cage. (However with a wave that large is not clear it would do anything to devices inside. The nice long wires of the power grid are perfect for it though.)
  - ogrisel 12y ago
    Thanks for the clarifications.