Analytical hierarchy process for scheduling the priorities of the environmental factors in transmission lines maintenance

Power line maintenance plays a vital role in line performance and equipment utilization. This paper presents an improved mathematical model to optimize the application of multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) in power line maintenance. The model used in this work is formulated to attain an optimal utility of power lines through the applications of MCDM. In this study, a MCDM by the means of an Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) is suggested, where some factors are taken into consideration for reliability. The suggested method firstly analyzes the most effective factors on the line performance. Afterwards, it arranges the preventive maintenance scheduling according to the factors priorities, this provides the best utility and performance values. To demonstrate the selection process, a 33kv line has been used as a case study. Environmental conditions and line behavior have been developed and simulated by using (AHP) software as a support tool for the MCDM process. The results show that the loss of heat gain rate from the sun and the emissivity is received higher priority in the preventive maintenance scheduling concerning conductor and its behavior.