Lenox T&D Lab

• Arc Flash
• Burndown of bare and covered conductors
• Flammability of equipment under fault condition
• Damage to crossarms and insulators under fault conditions
• Performance of sensors during faults
• Grounding and stray voltages; step and touch voltages during faults
• Evaluation of vegetation faults
• Fuse cutout and single-phase recloser performance
• Conductor slap

The test fixture applies a three-point bending test to composite crossarms. This test includes the capability to enclose the crossarm and elevate the temperature to investigate load-deflection characteristics in extreme heat.

Outdoor DA test area for long term testing of automation components, to understand the performance overtime.

Lightning and grounding testing up to 800kV to improve distribution automation equipment reliability.

Three phase accuracy test set is used for testing distribution sensors and can be energized at 19.2kV with current from 0A to 600A.

This facility is an MV and LV test area and an outdoor aging yard for distribution assets.

EPRI can configure this multi-purpose test area to perform cantilever pole strength testing. This testing is helping utilities learn more about the quality of pole inspection by comparing field assessment with actual remaining pole strength as determined through laboratory testing.

The energized-downed-conductor area has been used to record signatures of live, downed conductors. Several relay and recloser technologies for detecting these high-impedance faults have been tested. Multiple scenarios are available, including multiple voltages and different surfaces.

This capability has also been used to evaluate vehicle grounding and what happens when a vehicle becomes energized. This includes step and touch voltages around energized vehicles.

Three phase reconfigurable transmission line more than 500 meters long.

Three impulse generators are located in the EPRI Lenox laboratory, the largest of which is the 5.6MV tower which simulates lighting and switching surges for performing component testing and insulation coordination mapping.

Resiliency & reliability testing of full scale distribution structures using simulated tree-strikes and falling branches.

Click here for more info

Research substation to investigate component, monitoring, and diagnostic performance.

Drone test site to understand aircraft and payload performance in electric environments.

Long-term test fixture to understand degradation and inspection methods for low voltage connectors.

Accelerated environmental aging is performed on full scale composite (fiberglass) poles and crossarms as well as small scale samples to determine changes in their mechanical and electrical properties.

Test Facility designed to replicate user defined human and animal perceptible shock scenarios. This includes ability to simulate concerns associated with urban shock hazards, overhead distribution stray voltages and swimming pool electric shock concerns.

EPRI has the capability of performing tests on transmission line insulators with guidance from ANSI C29.2B Section 8.3.4 –“Combined mechanical and electrical strength tests”

The accelerated aging chamber is 40 ft wide × 60 ft long × 20 ft high. A computer-controlled environmental system simulates a defined climate inside the aging chamber by varying temperature, clean fog, salt fog, clean rain, UV radiation, and humidity.