A Study of Air Gap Breakdown at 28.5 Kilohertz

Abstract

Measurements of the electrical breakdown of both quasi-uniform and highly nonuniform-field air gaps at a frequency of 28.5 kHz are reported. Gaps between a variety of electrode geometries ranged from a few centimeters to over two meters in length. Breakdown voltages significantly below the corresponding 60 Hz values were observed with electrodes for which appreciable pre-breakdown di scharges occurred, and a pattern of "anomalous" flashovers at considerably lower than the normal breakdown voltages was noted with quasi- uniform field gaps. The results obtained appear to correlate well with the data found in the literature for higher frequencies but lower voltages. An annotated bibliography is included.