Soil thermal resistivity and thermal stability measuring instrument. Volume 2: Manual for operation and use of the thermal property analyzer and statistical weather analysis program to determine thermal design parameters

Numerous considerations influence the thermal design of an underground power cable, including the soil thermal resistivity, thermal diffusivity and thermal stability. Each of these properties is a function of soil moisture which is in turn a function of past weather, soil composition, and biological burden. The Neher-McGrath formalism has been widely used for thermal cable design. However, this formalism assumes knowledge of soil thermal properties (resistivity and diffusivity). For design purposes, these parameters should be treated statistically, since weather varies greatly from year to year. As well, soil thermal property surveys are normally required along the route to assess the thermal quality of the native soil. This project is intended to fill the gap between the need to carry out thermal design and the use of the Neher-McGrath formalism which is normally employed. This goal has been addressed through: development of instrumentation and methods of measuring soil thermal properties in situ and in the laboratory; recommendation of methods for conducting soil surveys along a proposed cable route and of assessing the thermal quality of soils; and development of a computerized method to treat soil thermal design parameters on a statistical basis using computerized weather records as supplied by the US Environmental Data Service. The use of the methods and instrumentation developed as a result of this contract should permit less conservative thermal design thereby improving the economics of underground transmission. As well, these techniques and instrumentation facilitate weather-dependent prediction of cable ampacity for installed cables, monitoring of backfill thermal stability, and many other new practices.