ENGINEERING DESIGN: SUPER POWERED SUBSTATIONS

WHAT DOES A SUBSTATION DESIGN ENGINEER DO?

The role of an electrical design engineer is that they will design and develop new electrical systems for various applications. These engineers will research the system ideas and follow this up by drawing some more plans for the system which normally requires the use of a particular specialised computer program. A substation engineering design is a plan which an engineer will develop which will contain all the system specifications and the layouts. They will also design the relevant documentation and technical specifications and drawings for the new substation projects. This will include the electrical plans and schematics, the expenses of all the materials involved, and all the specifications and details of the equipment which is required. Although the engineers are responsible for designing the plans, they will also collaborate with the project team and relevant technicians as well as any other stakeholders in order to finalise all the schematics for all the project information and documents for the extension or the modifications for all the electricity networks.

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SUBSTATION DESIGN?

There are several different types of substations which include: the step - up substation, the step - down substation, and the underground distribution substation. The power substation is a vital resource especially as the demand for electrical power is always growing and increasing. Substations provide a crucial role in accommodating this greater demand by ensuring a continuous supply of electricity to customers with the primary objective of being able to provide energy and a reliable power supply from the transmission networks to the population. The set - up substation directly connects to a producing station because the power generation occurs at lower voltages. This station steps up the voltages to an economical electricity energy transmission over a longer distance. The step-down substation is responsible for lowering the high voltage electricity transmitted through transmission lines to the sub transmission levels. Distribution substations serve as the terminal ends of transmission lines which originate in switchyards as well as being an electrical source of energy, so they are critical for maintaining the consistency of power.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A POWER STATION AND A SUBSTATION?

In general, a power station is a station where all the power is generated, and a substation is when the power is either being transformed to a higher or lower voltage for either a transmission or distribution, and which will usually not involve an actual power station. Substations themselves do not have a generator, even though a power plant might have a substation nearby. In terms of alternative devices such as the capacitors, voltage regulators or the reactors, these could also be located within a substation. A substation can either be found on the surface or in a fenced in enclosed area or underground, or within a specially purposed designed building or facility.

WHAT ARE THE MAIN THREE LEVELS OF SUBSTATION AUTOMATION SYSTEM?

The substation automation is a system where a collection is found of both the hardware and the software components that are used to monitor and control the electrical systems both remotely and locally. Some of these core components are the elements which are the ones grouped into a substation automation system. This automation system enables the substation to be integrated into the smart grid which consists of three levels, which are the station, the process, and the bay levels. This process level introduces the input and the output devices, intelligent sensors, and actuators. The bay unit level includes all the protection and control devices, and the substation level includes all the engineering workstations, the human machine interface (HMI) and the communications equipment.

CONCLUSION

An effective power substation design can offer numerous benefits and advantages which include enhanced grid reliability and stability, minimising any downtime or disruptions, optimal power transfer, performance, and distribution, reduce any losses, and improving the general performance and efficiency. The careful arrangement of all the specialised equipment will ensure an efficient power flow and will also minimise any electrical loss as well as facilitating any maintenance activities. The electrical substation will serve for the production, conversion and transformation, regulation, and the distribution of energy. Due to this type of infrastructure, electricity can be distributed and reached to a variety of geographical regions, cities, and areas.