Enhancing the High Voltage XLPE Cable Insulation Characteristics Using Functionalized TiO<sub>2</sub> Nanoparticles

Abstract

The current research aims to study the influence of loading Titanium Dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles on the dielectric, thermal and mechanical properties of the commercial Cross-Linked Polyethylene (XLPE) used as the main insulation in power cables. Using the concept of composite, XLPE/TiO2 nanocomposites samples were prepared by the melt blending method with different ratios of nanoparticles (0.5, 2, 3.5 and 5% wt/wt). The surface treatment of TiO2 nanoparticles was carried out to reduce the agglomeration of TiO2 nanoparticles inside the XLPE. The morphology of the prepared samples was studied by X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and the dispersion of nanoparticles in the XLPE polymer matrix is checked using Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM). Thermal analysis test for all samples have been investigated. The dielectric properties, such as dielectric constant (er) and loss tangent (tan δ) for XLPE/TiO2 nanocomposites were measured under frequencies ranging from 1 Hz to 1 MHz. AC Breakdown Voltage (AC-BDV) was also measured using a controlled high voltage testing transformer (50 Hz) under sphere-to-sphere field. The mechanical properties were evaluated by performing the tensile test and tensile strength and elongation values were measured. It was found that nanocomposites with functionalized TiO2 exhibited better dielectric, thermal and mechanical properties compared to nanocomposites with nonfunctionalized TiO2.