[time-nuts] Optical time sync

[Jim Lux]

At 11:54 PM 5/1/2008, Hal Murray wrote:

> > I assume that this would have to be locked to the grid frequency
> > somehow  - can't see all that power being rectified then sent out
> > through a  grid-locked inverter.
>
>Why not?
>
>Diesel-electric locomotives do electrical conversions because it's more
>efficient than mechanical gears.
>
>Some high voltage transmission lines are DC.  The conversion sites on each
>end must be interesting.


And makes it much easier to stabilize the power flow between 
regions.  (A 2000 km long transmission line makes for all sorts of 
interesting things with reactive sources at one end and reactive 
loads at the other).

The Pacific DC Intertie terminates at Sylmar (in the San Fernando 
Valley, about 20 miles north of downtown Los Angeles).. +/-500kV at 3000A.

They just recently (last 10 years) changed from mercury pool 
inverters to solid state thyristors.  Both are quite impressive.