-
Design And Construct A Power Line Vandalism Monitoring System Using Electronic System
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 3]
Page 1 of 3
-
-
-
CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
This project gives the insight on the design and construction of a transmission power line vandalism detector system. Vandalism means destructive action. It is a hateful and deliberate defacement/destruction of somebody else’s property or national assets like thehigh-voltage transmission power lines, transmission towers and distribution transformers, etc.The high-voltage transmission power lines strung from support towers form the backbone of the nation's electric power grid. Many of those 158,000 miles of lines, supported by nearly 800,000 towers, run through isolated areas as they deliver electricity from generating plants to cities. These high-voltage transmission power lines around the world are vulnerable to terrorism, vandalism, physical deterioration and extreme weather. Every year in Nigeria bad citizens vandalize the power line, towers, transformers, generators and other power transmission/distribution facilities. This causes frequent power failure and power surge that seriously affects over 50 million business firms and manufacturing industries in the country. These companies depend on electricity power supply from the power line for their productions. If the power line is vandalized, some of their machines cannot be powered on a generator then income, investments and commodities worth billions of Naira will be lost. If electricity is available during the power line vandalism incident, the lives and properties of the people within the area can be affected as a result of electric shocks, power surge and fire outbreak, etc. Vandalism is now largely driven by the soaring values of copper and aluminum in the international metals market due to increased world market demand fuelled by China and India’s growth in industrialization. Consequently, the vandals now operate in well organized syndicates complete with offices and hierarchy and accumulate large volumes of stolen materials which they eventually consign for export as scrap. Transformer oil, copper and aluminum are the main targets of these vandals. The uses of the stolen transformer oil are:
· Mixed with diesel and sold as fuel,
· Used as fuel for industrial furnaces and as cooling for welding sets,
· Mixed with vegetable oil and sold as cooking oil.
· Used as a cosmetic and treatment for wounds.
· On the other hand, copper and aluminum have been in the past been used on a minimum scale by the informal sector for welding sets but are now mainly exported as scrap. It is this later use that is behind the recent escalation of vandalism.
Vandalism of an electrical transmission line is considered as a deadly national security threat.
The diagram below shows the picture of a vandalized transmission tower.
Figure 1.1: Transmission Towers Vandalism
Power line vandalism affects the economy badly this is due to the burglar gadgets been made every year for the supervision and protection on the power lines. Millions of dollars are used every year to replace, maintain and improve the electricity network, yetthe power delivery system is being threatened by acts of vandalism. Today NEPA and PHCN have been privatized, since in 2013, there were more than 12 incidences of vandalism recorded on the Alaoji-Owerri 132kV line, Jebba-Shirioro 330kV lines, Osogbo-Ayede 330kV line, Oshogbo-Benin 330kV line, Oshogbo Ikeja 330kV line, Jebba-Shirioro 330kV line, Benin-Ikeja West 330kV line, Sapele-Benin 330kV line, Delta-Sapele-Benin 330kV line, Sapele-Benin 330kV line, Benin-Ajaokuta 330kV lines and the Abuja-Keffi 132kV line. Some of these transmission lines were vandalized more than three times.
Vandalism of power installations though inexcusable and unjustified has seen the vandals carting away equipments worth billions of naira. Recently, a series of vandalism of transmission installations in the Southern part of the country were reported because there are no electronic gadgets secretly installed to monitor these lines. This project, the design and construction of a power line vandalism alarm system present a solution to these problems
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 3]
Page 1 of 3
-
