Electricity Substation Monitoring portfolio

On the 1st of March 2015, Bausch Datacom became an official European KIC InnoEnergy partner and will commercialize during 2015-2016 project results, including innovative sensors and a ‘SuperRTU' for processing and communicating LV & MV parameters of electrical distribution substations!

KIC InnoEnergy

KIC Innoenergy is the European company dedicated to promoting innovation, entrepreneurship and education in the sustainable energy field by bringing together academics, businesses and research institutes. Their goal is to make a positive impact on sustainable energy in Europe. KIC InnoEnergy is one of the first Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs) fostered by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). KIC is a commercial company with 27 shareholders that include top ranking industries, research centres and universities, all of which are key players in the energy field. More than 150 additional partners contribute to the activities to form a first class and dynamic network with offices located in Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Poland and Sweden.

KIC Innoenergy is the European company dedicated to promoting innovation, entrepreneurship and education in the sustainable energy field by bringing together academics, businesses and research institutes.

Global Substation Monitoring strategy

Ageing, load limits , and transient events, such as short-circuits, affect asset reliability. With the trend toward extending the service life of these assets, and the operational challenges of increased penetration of distributed generation, heat pumps, and electric vehicles, it becomes necessary to (tele)monitor medium-voltage substations, also on the distribution level. The WAN communication of these parameters is in many cases through GPRS/3G/... TCP/IP communication to a SCADA or DMS set-up. The ‘Active Substation' concept is generating more and more support and investments. The idea of a ‘Smart Substation' monitoring , amongst others, Power Quality, directional fault passage detection, partial discharges of transformers information, , buss-bars, and switch-gear and communicating this information online (GPRS or 3G) to a SCADA/DMS backoffice is clearly gaining more and more terrain. Also, the usage of generally-accepted communication protocols (IEC 61850 , IEC 60870-5-104) is becoming a proven strategy.

Renovation of a medium-voltage cabinet

The usage of cost-effective measurement techniques is a basic requirement to realize the SMART GRID and to meet the '20-20-20' goals concerning energy efficiency. The challenges for the DSO's are critical: just in Flanders there are some 40.000 electricity cabinets deployed by Eandis and Infrax. The lifetime of the installations is some 40 years. Investments need to be done on a large scale and over large time frames. This brings important restrictions to retro-fit and new roll-out of installations. According to the system operators, the current state of technology is insufficient to their vision of an economically-responsible approach.
Specifically, this means that, for instance, at present, there is no single voltage measurement method in the market that, in terms of costs, accuracy and size, fits the picture. For example, voltage transformers and resistive divisors are sufficiently precise, but are too large to be built in existing cabins. There is also the evolution of cabines getting more and more compact, in order to improve the social acceptance of the systems. So, there is clearly a ‘downshift' of Power Quality measuring equipment going on down to the 15KV - 6 KV infrastructure due to the SMART GRID issue. The aim of the cooperation of KIC Innoenergy with Bausch Datacom is, therefore, to develop measuring and communication devices or systems that incorporate 3 critical features: retrofit possibilities, a small formfactor to fit in medium-voltage substations and costeffectiveness!

The aim of the cooperation of KIC Innoenergy with Bausch Datacom is, therefore, to develop measuring and communication devices or systems that incorporate 3 critical features: retrofit possibilities, a small formfactor to fit in medium-voltage substations and costeffectiveness!

The big challenge is to integrate devices that are capable of measuring the needed parameters and can be fit in small cabinets, to be able to allow DSO's in Europe (and worldwide) to finance an adequate Power Quality strategy for the medium-voltage and low-voltage infrastructure. Bausch Datacom aims at a tailor-made portfolio of hardware and software that exactly provides these features. During 2015-2016, Bausch Datacom will be checking specifications for several products with the European guidelines and collect ‘wish lists' from important DSO's (Distibution System Operators) in Europe. A new ‘SuperRTU', medium-voltage sensor, acoustic partial discharge detection sensor and fault passage indicator are the first products on the roadmap.

SuperRTU
In several proof of concepts of ‘Smart substations', typical set-ups are described: Substations will be monitored, and the information will be sent to the SCADA Master system using, for instance, the IEC 60-870-5-104 protocol over GPRS, CDMA 450 MHz or 3G. A ‘SuperRTU' capable of collecting, and processing, both the data of the LV and MV parameters and sending this to the SCADA. could be used. This ‘SuperRTU' is already in the prototype phase and could be a very effective tool for the monitoring of substations.

Substations will be monitored, and the information will be sent to the SCADA Master system using, for instance, the IEC 60-870-5-104 protocol over GPRS, CDMA 450 MHz or 3G.

Directional fault passage indicators, acoustic partial discharge detection for switch-gear, buss-bars, and transformers and a Medium-voltage sensor for electricity substations.
Bausch Datacom as one of the key partners of KIC InnoEnergy, Eandis and KU Leuven/Energyville will be investing in the industrialization of a ‘SuperRTU' but also in the further industrialisation of directional fault passage indicators, an acoustic partial discharge detection system for switch-gear, buss-bars and transformers and a patented ‘medium-voltage sensor' technology.

Lab set-up of an innovative directional fault passage indicator

The latter technology (medium-voltage sensors) will be capable of measuring and monitoring, voltage parameters at medium-voltage level, using the XLPE cable itself as the sensor, and without the need  to expose the the able's core. The technology will result in compact and low-cost sensor solutions that will be easily retrofitted in the field. The aim is to offer products in 2016/2017, worldwide.

The patented medium-voltage sensor is capable of measuring and monitoring voltage parameters at medium voltage (15KV) without the need to expose the XPLE cable core.

Rik Verheyen
Business Development Mgr. Bausch Datacom