Evaluation of Three Designs for a 35-kV Class Superconducting Reactor

With the expansion of the grid, continuous reactive power compensation is vital for efficient operation of long transmission power lines or cables. Yunnan Electric Power Grid Company is planning to develop superconducting controllable reactors for 500-kV long-distance ac transmission lines. As the second stage of the development plan, a 35-kV class superconducting reactor will be designed and verified by experiments. In this paper, three design proposals, including the racetrack-core type, the three-limb-core type, and the D-core type, for the 35-kV class superconducting reactor are given. Then, their technical and economic feasibility is evaluated. This paper shows that the racetrack-core saturable reactor is a good choice from a technical and economic point of view.