At RDT, we continue to strengthen our commitment to technological innovation in the energy sector. We are proud to participate in the European project EasyDC-FOS, an initiative designed to address key challenges facing the European Union, including energy security, industrial competitiveness and the transition towards a climate-neutral power system.

The project focuses on the development of new solutions for High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission systems, a key technology for transporting electricity over long distances, integrating renewable energy sources and enhancing the reliability of power infrastructures .

EasyDC-FOS – Innovation for the next generation of HVDC grids

Description

EasyDC-FOS takes a comprehensive approach to the design, monitoring, digitalisation and validation of advanced HVDC cable solutions. Its objective is to develop safer, more efficient and longer-lasting technologies capable of meeting the current and future needs of the European energy system.

Objectives

The project scope includes:

  • Defining design requirements, technical specifications and applicable standards.
  • Designing and developing a safe, cost-effective HVDC cable solution with enhanced performance and extended lifetime.
  • Developing and optimising digital tools and indicators to monitor thermal, acoustic and space charge ageing phenomena.
  • Creating a fault location tool based on fibre optic sensing to detect acoustic, vibration and temperature anomalies.
  • Deploying a digital partial discharge monitoring system with an online analyser to reduce false alarms.
  • Integrating stand-alone digital models into a secure edge-based infrastructure.
  • Demonstrating the technologies in relevant European environments through testing and benchmarking.
  • Ensuring the long-term sustainability of the proposed solutions .

RDT's Contribution

Within EasyDC-FOS, RDT leads Task 5.2 and contributes to Task 5.3, focusing on the development of space charge models and other ageing phenomena, as well as supporting ageing algorithm development.

Key activities include:

  • Identification of ageing mechanisms that can be monitored through fibre optic sensing, such as space charge and partial discharges.
  • Development of bipolar charge transport models capturing injection, trapping, recombination and charge memory effects.
  • Parametric calibration using optimisation algorithms under different operating conditions.
  • Coupling space charge results with advanced partial discharge models, including defect behaviour and operational conditions.
  • Extraction of quantitative indicators to support condition assessment and ageing evaluation algorithms.
  • Development of reduced-order models for fast evaluation and integration into decision-support systems .

Project Partners

EasyDC-FOS is driven by a European consortium coordinated by RDT Lumiker, bringing together companies, universities and transmission system operators from across Europe. This collaborative approach enables the accelerated development, validation and demonstration of advanced HVDC and monitoring solutions under real operating conditions.

RDT’s commitment to energy innovation

RDT’s participation in EasyDC-FOS reinforces our commitment to developing advanced technologies that contribute to the digitalisation, resilience and sustainability of the energy system. Through this project, we continue to generate high-value solutions and expertise to address the challenges of the European energy transition.