Characterization of Energized Transmission Line Towers Grounding: an approach in time and frequency domains

This paper presents an experimental and theoretical study to characterize the grounding system of transmission line towers. The effects of frequency-dependent ground parameters and interconnection with neighboring transmission line towers are considered. The measured data are evaluated in the time and frequency domains. A criterion is proposed for the robust characterization of the local grounding system (i.e., the grounding of the tower under measurement) and the interconnection system. Measurements were performed on a real grounding system to validate the proposed criterion.