Finite Element Modeling of Direct-Buried High-Voltage Cable Ampacity Considering Dynamic Soil Thermal Properties

Finite Element Modeling of Direct-Buried High-Voltage Cable Ampacity Considering Dynamic Soil Thermal Properties | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Finite Element Modeling of Direct-Buried High-Voltage Cable Ampacity Considering Dynamic Soil Thermal Properties Jiang Chang, Kun Li, Tianyou Chen, Keru Jiang This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9421543/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 11 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Traditional ampacity evaluation for direct-buried cables often assumes static soil thermal resistance, which obscures actual operating margins. To address this, a new electromagnetic-thermal coupled finite element model for XLPE cables was developed, incorporating the dynamic thermophysical properties of porous soil.The study quantifies how water content dynamically alters heat transfer. Native soil’s thermal conductivity experiences a step mutation, jumping from 0.55 to 1.44 W/(m·K) at a 15% percolation threshold. Conversely, backfill sand offers stabler heat transfer, reaching 0.85 W/(m·K) at just 5% water content.Simulations of rainfall-to-drying cycles reveal a nonlinear relationship between ampacity and moisture. In supersaturated native soil, ampacity drops locally from 1250A to 1150A due to entrapped air. During the drying phase, hydraulic hysteresis disrupts the continuous water network, causing ampacity to plummet to 710A. Ultimately, this model accurately characterizes dynamic soil thermal resistance under varying hydrological conditions, providing strong theoretical support for evaluating the dynamic transmission potential of underground cable systems. Physical sciences/Engineering Earth and environmental sciences/Environmental sciences Earth and environmental sciences/Hydrology Direct-buried power cable Multiphysics coupling Finite element analysis Dynamic thermal properties Seasonal and humidity variations Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Figures 9 and 10 are not available with this version. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 06 May, 2026 Reviews received at journal 02 May, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 02 May, 2026 Reviews received at journal 24 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 22 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 21 Apr, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 20 Apr, 2026 Editor invited by journal 20 Apr, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 16 Apr, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 16 Apr, 2026 First submitted to journal 15 Apr, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9421543","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":630376265,"identity":"50b0726b-2862-49c8-acd9-59fc98b7ffe1","order_by":0,"name":"Jiang Chang","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAAxElEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACefkDCQcSDCTq+dkbiNRiOIPh4YEPFRYJkj0HiLXmBuPjgzPOVCQY3EggUgfj7OaEw7xtEnkGNx9vvMFQYxNNUAu7zDGwlmLJ22nFFgzH0nIbCNrSkAPWwth3O8dMgrHhMGEtDAfyP4C1NNw8Q6yWGwkJQO9LJE64wUOkFsMeYLx8qJAwluwB+iWBGL/Iszckf0gwqJPjZz+88caHGhsiHIYEDCQSSFEO0UKqjlEwCkbBKBgZAAAGNkft8Ff3zQAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"","institution":"Economic and Technical Research Institute of State Grid Anhui Electric Power Co., Ltd","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Jiang","middleName":"","lastName":"Chang","suffix":""},{"id":630376266,"identity":"390e2567-094c-44a6-aa68-7005ac55733f","order_by":1,"name":"Kun Li","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"国网安徽省电力有限公司","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Kun","middleName":"","lastName":"Li","suffix":""},{"id":630376267,"identity":"8a063795-4b68-46c6-bfd0-2e2da3c24772","order_by":2,"name":"Tianyou Chen","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Economic and Technical Research Institute of State Grid Anhui Electric Power Co., Ltd","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Tianyou","middleName":"","lastName":"Chen","suffix":""},{"id":630376268,"identity":"70612f96-eac5-4a76-85e4-481a9bcece5b","order_by":3,"name":"Keru Jiang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Economic and Technical Research Institute of State Grid Anhui Electric Power Co., Ltd","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Keru","middleName":"","lastName":"Jiang","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-04-15 04:24:14","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9421543/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9421543/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":108493275,"identity":"43b098d2-23be-41b6-b077-571e9f6fd70d","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-05-05 09:59:50","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":884197,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"FiniteElementModelingofDirectBuriedHighVoltageCableAmpacityConsideringDynamicSoilThermalProperties.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9421543/v1_covered_30aa2e97-c0fc-4d12-aefe-6041a8edb1c9.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"\u003cp\u003eNo competing interests reported.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFigures 9 and 10 are not available with this version.\u003c/p\u003e","formattedTitle":"Finite Element Modeling of Direct-Buried High-Voltage Cable Ampacity Considering Dynamic Soil Thermal Properties","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"scientific-reports","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"scirep","sideBox":"Learn more about [Scientific Reports](http://www.nature.com/srep/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Scientific Reports","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Scientific Reports","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Direct-buried power cable, Multiphysics coupling, Finite element analysis, Dynamic thermal properties, Seasonal and humidity variations","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9421543/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9421543/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eTraditional ampacity evaluation for direct-buried cables often assumes static soil thermal resistance, which obscures actual operating margins. To address this, a new electromagnetic-thermal coupled finite element model for XLPE cables was developed, incorporating the dynamic thermophysical properties of porous soil.The study quantifies how water content dynamically alters heat transfer. Native soil\u0026rsquo;s thermal conductivity experiences a step mutation, jumping from 0.55 to 1.44 W/(m\u0026middot;K) at a 15% percolation threshold. Conversely, backfill sand offers stabler heat transfer, reaching 0.85 W/(m\u0026middot;K) at just 5% water content.Simulations of rainfall-to-drying cycles reveal a nonlinear relationship between ampacity and moisture. In supersaturated native soil, ampacity drops locally from 1250A to 1150A due to entrapped air. During the drying phase, hydraulic hysteresis disrupts the continuous water network, causing ampacity to plummet to 710A. Ultimately, this model accurately characterizes dynamic soil thermal resistance under varying hydrological conditions, providing strong theoretical support for evaluating the dynamic transmission potential of underground cable systems.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Finite Element Modeling of Direct-Buried High-Voltage Cable Ampacity Considering Dynamic Soil Thermal Properties","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-05-04 07:36:20","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9421543/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2026-05-06T08:17:46+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-05-03T02:50:49+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"17621094547565426455898675387617561611","date":"2026-05-02T08:35:09+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-04-24T12:01:36+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"90241489973258061133025669679777016820","date":"2026-04-23T01:33:30+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"14374441864694231940575742566632944867","date":"2026-04-21T12:33:31+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-04-21T00:10:57+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvited","content":"","date":"2026-04-20T16:59:04+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-04-17T01:51:58+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2026-04-17T01:51:01+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Scientific Reports","date":"2026-04-15T04:17:40+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"scientific-reports","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"scirep","sideBox":"Learn more about [Scientific Reports](http://www.nature.com/srep/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Scientific Reports","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Scientific Reports","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"d68dce99-115b-4c9a-86a5-d780ad0bffbf","owner":[],"postedDate":"May 4th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2026-05-06T08:17:46+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-05-03T02:50:49+00:00","index":26,"fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"17621094547565426455898675387617561611","date":"2026-05-02T08:35:09+00:00","index":25,"fulltext":""}],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[{"id":67093939,"name":"Physical sciences/Engineering"},{"id":67093940,"name":"Earth and environmental sciences/Environmental sciences"},{"id":67093941,"name":"Earth and environmental sciences/Hydrology"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-05-19T09:24:38+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-05-04 07:36:20","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-9421543","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-9421543","identity":"rs-9421543","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}