On Mon, 28 Jan 2008 00:14:04 -0000, "mark"
wrote:



http://www.glumbert.com/media/highpower

mark


Nothing new there. The UK has been doing something similar for many
years. A proof of concept exercise was done by the CEGB in the 1970's
and was eventually revived and became normal practice in the early
1990's. They do it from a wheeled trolley though rather than crawling
along the line. The discharge you see in the video is completely
normal and it's just a case of equalising the charge. The line is
fully in service - which is precisely why it is done live, to save the
costs of constraining generation, and in the case of operations in the
UK could be carrying around 2000A per phase - or 500-1000A per
individual conductor

Spacer replacement (the H or X shaped bars between individual
conductors) on 2 and 4 conductor overhead 400 and 275kV lines is
routinely done live in the UK. Last time I saw them in person was
two or three years ago on the 400kV line that passes over the A55 near
Bangor in North Wales.




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