"Richard Fry" wrote in news:1174511497.343920.155080
@e1g2000hsg.googlegroups.com:

Would any poster in this thread who doesn't "believe in" reflected
power kindly explain how a transmission line can fail upstream of a
serious mismatch anywhere along the the length of that line. If that
doesn't result from the sum of forward and reflected voltage/current,
then (IYO) what is the reason such failures?

Without making any admissions about my beliefs...

A transmission line with mismatched load can be described in terms of
travelling waves, and the voltage and current at a point on the line can
be calculated from the forward and reflected waves.

The voltage at the point may be higher than under matched conditions for
the same load power, and that may cause insulation breakdown.

The current at the point may be higher than under matched conditions for
the same load power, and that would cause higher loss in conductors and
may result in damage.

Don't think that this doesn't occur. I've seen it many times, and had
to find and replace the molten and arced-over components that
resulted.

None of these explanations require designating "reflected power" at a
point, or implying that it is the energy in "reflected power" that is
totally and solely responsible for the physical damage.

Owen