The Effect of Conductive Bridge Shape on the Electrothermal Simulation Results of Ground Wire-Suspension Clamp Assembly

The ground wire is the first line of transmission lines defense. However, the ground wire itself is subject to damage or even fracture when lighting strikes. To eliminate this safety hazard, finite element simulations are often used to analyze the electrothermal damage mechanism of the Ground Wire-Suspension Clamp assembly (hereinafter the GW-SC assembly). However, studies have not paid attention to the impact of contact points morphology on the simulation results. In order to simulate the actual contact points morphology, this paper establishes an elliptical conductive bridge model and compares the simulation results with those of the traditional circular conductive bridge model. The results show that the elliptical conductive bridge can more accurately simulate the current distribution and temperature field distribution characteristics within the GW-SC assembly, and the simulation results obtained match the pictures of the accident samples.