GPR Zone of Influence of a Modern Electric Power Network

In this paper, the GPR zone of influence is analyzed for a typical real case scenario. The overhead and underground portions of the electric network around the 230 kV substation including transmission lines, distributions lines and the underground pipe network of a nearby town have been modeled. The total extent of the grounding network exceeds 10 miles. The zone of influence has been analyzed for different fault locations. It is demonstrated that the borders of the zone of influence represent a very complicated pattern even for this relatively simple scenario and that this pattern changes tremendously depending on the fault location. The computation method used in the analysis is based on the electromagnetic field theory approach