Flashover mechanism of silicone rubber insulators used for outdoor insulation - ii

Minesh Shah, George G. Karady, R. L. Brown

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

54 Scopus citations

Abstract

Flashover mechanisms of silicone rubber used for outdoor insulation is presented and experimentally proven. A hydrophobic surface of silicone rubber wets and accumulates contaminants differently compared to conventional porcelain and glass insulators. This suggests that the flashover mechanism of silicone rubber insulators is different than porcelain and glass. This paper (Part II) experimentally investigates ohmic heating, electrical field caused interaction between water droplets, generation of conductive regions and filaments, field intensification caused spot discharges and the ultimate flashover of silicone rubber along wetted filaments. These studies have resulted in a new flashover mechanism which provides a better understanding of silicone rubber outdoor insulators and their excellent contamination performance. These results will be used for the development of a better laboratory test procedure to evaluate composite insulators performance in contaminated conditions.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1972-1978
Number of pages7
JournalIEEE Transactions on Power Delivery
Volume10
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 1995

Keywords

  • Silicone rubber insulator
  • spot discharges flashover

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Energy Engineering and Power Technology
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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