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Wildfire Mitigation
Wildfire Concerns
HENDRIX SPACER COULD SAVE APPROX. 240 ACRES AND 48,000 TREES ON A 50-MILE LINE PROJECT
Hendrix covered conductor effectively eliminates sparks and flashover, thereby significantly reducing the risk of fire.
- For every mile of 100-foot ROW through a forest, approximately 12 acres of trees are lost.
- In the Midwest region where the average number of trees in an acre is 200, a new 50-mile transmission line would result in the loss of approximately 120,000 trees.
The 2022 U.S. wildfire season saw more than 7.5 million acres of land burn in wildfires. Devastating wildfires ravage the dry climate in western North America every year and cost billions of dollars every year across the United States. Power lines are one potential risk when it comes to wildfire ignition and Hendrix provides the solution to mitigating that risk through innovative product and system design.
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Wildfire Mitigation Effectiveness
In 2019, Southern California Edison (SCE) evaluated three powerline construction methods: re-conductoring with bare wire, re-conductoring with covered conductor, and converting to underground. They compared costs per mile, mitigation effectiveness, and mitigation-to-cost ratios.
Fire Retardant Insulators
Polyethylene has an ignition temperature of about 650°F, and while wildfires can reach temperatures far above that threshold in the ranges of 1,100°F – 2,000°F, FR Insulators will still be less prone to ignition.
HENDRIX FR INSULATORS are tested according to UL 94, in which the material passes vertical burning V-0, which is the most stringent rating for UL 94.
- In addition to being tested according to UL-94, a “field” burning test was conducted using a Hendrix FR Insulator. The test consisted of directly applying the flame of a utility torch to the thinnest section (~1/8”) of the insulator’s fin for a duration of 30 continuous seconds.
- The flame was self-extinguished within 5 seconds of the torch being removed.
Covered conductor provides a range of benefits when in relation to wildfire mitigation. The protective HDPE cover is not subject to flashovers as bare wire is, mitigating a potential ignition source. In 30% of cases when a power line falls to the ground, there isn’t enough current to activate a protective device. Covered conductor can prevent the ignition even if a high impedance fault occurs and minimizes the risk of a wildfire.
High Temperature Insulators
Hendrix provides distriubution and TRANSMISSION aerial cable solutions for 15kV, 25kV, 35kV, 46kV, 69kV, 115kV, and 138kV.
Hendrix insulators are molded from a proprietary track and UV resistant gray high-density polyethylene (HDPE) blend. High Temperature (HT) Insulators are made from a specialized HDPE blend that makes them capable of operating at 200°C Maximum Continuous Conductor Temperature when factored with the amount of mechanical loading applied.
*The curve shows the point where temperature and mechanical load combinations result in <1/8” neck indentation – after 8 hours of continuous operation. (Tests conducted with 795 KC-mil, compressed, bare, aluminum conductor)
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