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On Thu, Jun 19, 2008 at 11:47:33PM -0400, Sean Breheny wrote:
> Hi Adam,
> 
> Thanks - I will be looking over those sites. I am amazed that people
> sell 50MVA transformers on the used market!! I guess it makes sense
> (after all, they sell airliners used).
> 
> Sean
> 
> 
> On Wed, Jun 18, 2008 at 10:42 PM, M. Adam Davis <stienman@gmail.com> wrote:
> > My first attempt would be to look for power distribution manufacturers:
> >
> > http://www.google.com/search?q=power%20distribution%20equipment
> >
> > In this case the first link is to
> > http://www.tucsontransformer.com/
> >
> > They have pictures for a variety of (used?) equipment, which is useful
> > in and of itself.
> >
> > Looking further, though, they list the manufacturer of each piece,
> > some of which are:
> > http://www.uscopower.com/
> > http://www.royalswitchgear.com/
> > http://www.southernstatesllc.com/
> > http://www.morpac.com/ (Also equipment for stringing lines)
> > http://www.sandc.com/
> > http://www.powellind.com/products_page2.asp?MenuCategory=2&MenuPosition=1
> > http://w1.siemens.com
> > http://www.abb.com/
> > http://www.ge.com/products_services/electrical_distribution.html
> > http://www.gelearningcentral.com/lms/login/index.php  <-- Learning center...?
> > http://www.hubbellpowersystems.com/
> >
> > I imagine if you do that with a few distributers (or just looked at
> > the nameplates of equipment you pass) then you'll gain a much larger
> > inventory of links to manufacturers, most of whom post whitepapers,
> > app notes, etc.
> >
> > -Adam
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > On Wed, Jun 18, 2008 at 9:40 PM, Sean Breheny <shb7@cornell.edu> wrote:
> >> Hi all,
> >>
> >> Can anyone point me to a web site which describes details about the
> >> power distribution network (preferably in the US)? Specifically, I'd
> >> like to be able to identify some of the equipment commonly seen on
> >> utility polls and in substations. I'm not looking for a map of the
> >> actual network (i.e. something which is likely not published for
> >> security reasons) but just detailed descriptions about the different
> >> components, what they look like, how they work, etc.
> >>
> >> I am familiar with the basics but recently I came across some
> >> equipment which had been left (unenergized) at the base of a poll. One
> >> of the items was what I now know is called a fuse cutout. I had often
> >> seen them at a distance and assumed they were circuit breakers. Upon
> >> looking at it closely, I couldn't identify any circuit-breaker
> >> mechanism - it looked like a simple switch. Searches for "switch" and
> >> "circuit breaker" didn't yield any relevant results. I finally
> >> stumbled upon the correct term and then found drawings and
> >> explanations. I'd like to do the same for some other items I've seen
> >> but have not known what they are.

My understanding of those is that the blades holding the free end of the
switch arm are designed to expand via a bi-metalic strip-type system
allowing the arm to drop free. They are then sized to heat up
appropriately at the correct breaking current, which considering the
fairly robust construction gives you an idea of how many amps they are
rated for, a lot. :)

Linemen then use a long fiberglass pole with a little hook on the end to
physically move the arm back into place via the round eye at the end of
the arm to reset the breaker.

- -- 
http://petertodd.org 'peter'[:-1]@petertodd.org 
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