Bioelectric Considerations in the Design of High-Voltage Power Lines

Abstract

Public-health considerations require that all practical steps be taken to minimize the environmental electric and magnetic fields of high-voltage power lines. These fields are influenced not only by the line's operating voltage, but also by various design features including line configuration, phase-spacing, line height, and cable diameter. The largest effect is associated with line configuration. Beyond about 50 meters, the fields of a horizontal line are less than that of the equivalent vertical line; they become progressively more so with increasing distance. As a consequence, for a line having a given energy-carrying capacity, the horizontal configuration minimizes the ground-level fields at points beyond the right-of-way. None of the other design features considered had a significant effect on the fields.