Application of Fiber Optic Sensor Systems for Acoustic And Optical Monitoring Of Transmission Systems And Switchgear

The ongoing energy transition away from conventional energy generation to renewable energies demands for long distance connections with transmission lines and high energy cables. To reduce the risk of failures and outages the use of modern sensor and monitoring systems forces the implementation of fiber optic sensor systems. Fiber optic sensor systems are presented for the detection of acoustic partial discharges at cable connectors, switchgear and high energy transmission systems. Similar technology is used to assess the condition of circuit breaker. An additional application for photonic detection of partial discharges is shown too by the use of a photon sensitive fiber. Signal processing is applied for automated identification of defined patterns to separate partial discharges from noise for online monitoring as well as condition monitoring of circuit breaker based on acoustical analysis. All these modern techniques are presented for the use at energy transmission and distribution equipment.