Field Test of Mitigation Methods for Stray Currents from DC Electric Railroad(1) Stray Current Drainage System

직류전기철도 전식대책 실증실험(1) 누설전류 배류시스템

With the wide spread of direct current (DC) electric railroads in Korea, the stray currents or leakage currents from negative return rails become a pending problem to the safety of nearby underground infrastructures. The most widely used mitigation method for this interference is the stray current drainage method, which connects the underground metallic structures to the rails with diodes (polarized drainage) or thyristor (forced drainage). Although this method inherently possesses some drawbacks, its cost effectiveness and efficiency to protect the interfered structures has been the main reason for the wide adoption. In this paper, we show the field test results for the application of stray current drainage system to a city gas pipeline paralleling a depot area of a metropolitan rapid transit system. The process for optimal positioning is briefly illustrated. The effectiveness of constant voltage, constant current, and constant potential drainage schemes was also described.