Alternative Insulation System for Switchgears

Nuventura develops environmentally-friendly medium voltage (MV) gas insulated switchgear (GIS) – key hardware components found throughout electrical grids and energy infrastructure. Existing GIS technologies use Sulphur Hexafluoride (SF6) – the most potent greenhouse gas (GHG) humanity knows – as their insulating medium. Nuventura replaces SF6 with dry air, thereby helping to tackle global greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to the yearly CO2 emissions produced by 100 million cars.
 

Highlights

• Redesign of switchgears allows for use of air as insulation material instead of traditionally used SF6, the most potent greenhouse gas.
  
  
• Dry-air GIS maintains benefits normally associated with SF6-GIS i.e., compact physical dimensions.
  
  
• When adopted, the technology will significantly reduce carbon footprint of grids worldwide
  
  

About the practice

Switchgears are used to connect and disconnect electrical equipment, for example two separate power lines. To erase the lightning impulse when connecting and disconnecting, the switchgear needs to have some insulation material.

GIS have traditionally been insulated with Sulphur Hexafluoride (SF6), the world’s strongest GHG that is 23,500 times stronger than CO2 in terms of its global warming effect. Its emissions into the atmosphere are nearly irreversible as there is no natural sink or an effective disposal method. Moreover, in a business-as-usual scenario, SF6’s installed base is expected to increase by 75% by 2030 from 2019 levels. It is for this reason that regulators, especially in the EU and the US, are looking to phase out its use in switchgear in the coming years, and why alternatives are urgently needed.

Nuventura provides such alternatives for the MV range, and so far, is the only dry-air GIS provider to address the 36 kV voltage range. With this type-tested technology we have delivered projects for Westnetz, (German DSO) E.DIS (German DSO), APEX (German hydrogen company), as well as partners in Spain, Austria, New Zealand, Colombia and Turkey. 

Nuventura works with both switchgear end-users (utilities, EPCs, industry, project developers etc.) and manufacturers (OEMs, panel builders) with the aim of accelerating and facilitating the energy industry’s transition away from SF6. In so doing, nuventura helps companies reduce their carbon footprint and become compliant with imminent 

 

Find out more

Nuventura completed a pilot with one of the biggest energy providers in Germany Westnetz/Innogy. They also delivered projects for E.DIS (German DSO), APEX (German hydrogen company), as well as for partners in Spain, Austria, New Zealand, Colombia and Turkey. They are currently in the process of expanding the manufacturing capabilities of their Berlin plant, as well as their list of reference projects, partners and their product portfolio’s offering.