Article: Construction of a full lifecycle risk assessment model for high-altitude tension clamps in substations Journal: International Journal of Critical Infrastructures (IJCIS) 2026 Vol.22 No.15 pp.1 - 29 Abstract: Tension clamps are vital hardware for mechanical fixation and electrical connection of substation overhead lines, whose failures pose a serious threat to grid operation safety. This paper proposes a full-lifecycle risk assessment model integrating physics-of-failure and data-driven dual prediction. X-DR images of clamps were collected to build a dataset containing five crimping defects, and were processed via Gaussian filtering, CLAHE and Gamma correction; object detection algorithms realise automatic defect identification and positioning. Lifecycle risk factors covering design, manufacturing, installation, operation-maintenance and retirement are extracted with factor-failure mechanism mappings. A four-dimensional risk index system was weighted by the AHP-entropy method, and a quantitative risk model with four-tier criteria was established to evaluate failure probability and associated losses. Case studies using regional grid X-DR data verify its performance in defect detection and risk quantification, supporting condition-based maintenance and full-lifecycle decision-making for tension clamps. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: Construction of a full lifecycle risk assessment model for high-altitude tension clamps in substations

Authors: Bo Sun; Changhao Yu; Lei Cao; Lei Fan; Jiang Lin

Addresses: The Electric Power Research Institute of Guizhou Power Grid Company, China Southern Power Grid, Guizhou, Guiyang, 550000, China ' Guizhou Power Grid Company, China Southern Power Grid, Guizhou, Guiyang, 550000, China ' Guizhou Power Grid Company, China Southern Power Grid, Guizhou, Guiyang, 550000, China ' The Electric Power Research Institute of Guizhou Power Grid Company, China Southern Power Grid, Guizhou, Guiyang, 550000, China ' Nanjing Deruan Information Technology Development Co., Ltd., Jiangsu, Nanjing, 211500, China

Abstract: Tension clamps are vital hardware for mechanical fixation and electrical connection of substation overhead lines, whose failures pose a serious threat to grid operation safety. This paper proposes a full-lifecycle risk assessment model integrating physics-of-failure and data-driven dual prediction. X-DR images of clamps were collected to build a dataset containing five crimping defects, and were processed via Gaussian filtering, CLAHE and Gamma correction; object detection algorithms realise automatic defect identification and positioning. Lifecycle risk factors covering design, manufacturing, installation, operation-maintenance and retirement are extracted with factor-failure mechanism mappings. A four-dimensional risk index system was weighted by the AHP-entropy method, and a quantitative risk model with four-tier criteria was established to evaluate failure probability and associated losses. Case studies using regional grid X-DR data verify its performance in defect detection and risk quantification, supporting condition-based maintenance and full-lifecycle decision-making for tension clamps.

Keywords: tension clamp; full lifecycle; risk assessment; X-DR detection; thermal breakdown.

DOI: 10.1504/IJCIS.2026.157300

International Journal of Critical Infrastructures, 2026 Vol.22 No.15, pp.1 - 29

Received: 08 Jul 2026
Accepted: 28 Aug 2026
Published online: 27 Oct 2026 *

Title: Construction of a full lifecycle risk assessment model for high-altitude tension clamps in substations

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