Monitoring of high voltage power transformer using direct optical partial discharge detection technique

Abstract

In electrical power systems, high voltage power transformers are used to transfer the power from one substation to another. The insulation of the high voltage power transformers are gradually deteriorated due to electrical, chemical and mechanical stresses caused by the partial discharges (PDs). It is well established from several studies that PDs are the major source of insulation failure in HV power transformers. Thus the monitoring of PDs is essential for an early prediction of its life and advanced maintenance. In this paper, direct optical partial discharge detection (DOPDD) technique is used to monitor the PDs in a dielectric test cell, which is considered to be a laboratory model of a high voltage power transformer. The presented method has several advantages, as it is immune to electromagnetic interference, compact in size, and low cost etc.