This online session was part of IEEE NZ North Section Lifelong Learning Series 2020 and was organized by PES NZ North Chapter.

IEEE PES New Zealand North Chapter organized an online Distinguished Lecture Program (DLP) session on 23rd October 2020. The session was taken by Dr. David Peelo, a consultant and former switching specialist at BC Hydro for 28 years. The session drew participants from Industry and Academia from New Zealand, Australia, UK, and Indonesia and had around 37 participants.

A screenshot from one of the videos showing the characteristic of the arc

David discussed the evolution of disconnect switches and dating back from the early 1900s. The characteristics of free burning arcs and their dependence on the nature of the current were looked at in detail with the help of actual videos from the field. The shape, frequency of restrikes, arc looping, time taken for disconnection, and sound of the operation were clearly visible to the participants through the videos and their frame by frame dissection provided by David through his presentation.

Overall the session was engaging and drew appreciation from the attendees in the end. The session was moderated by Kate Murphy, Chair of IEEE PES NZ North Chapter. Kate also mentioned that PES NZ North will be having similar technical webinars in the future to facilitate learning opportunities for its members and the wider engineering community.

Kate Murphy,
Chair, IEEE PES NZ North Chapter