Polyphosphazene with excellent superhydrophobicity, electrical insulation, flame-retardancy, and mechanical durability for composite insulators

Abstract

Composite insulator is an important component of the power system which has high requirements for insulating properties, hydrophobicity, long-term reliability, and safety. Aiming to improve the comprehensive performance of composite insulators, we propose a novel composite based on polyphosphazene matrix and inorganic fillers including h-BN, SiO2 and aramid pulp (AF-p). By the synergistic effect of the optimized chemical structure of polyphosphazene and modification by multi-scale hydrophobic electrical insulation fillers, the poly(difluoroalkoxy)phosphazenes (PDFP) composite presents enhanced hydrophobicity with the static water contact angle (WCA) up to 154° and rolling angle (RA) as low as 8°. Benefiting from the multiscale roughness constructed by multi-fillers, the PDFP composite exhibits superior mechanical durability. The contact angle of the sample still exceeds 150° after abrasion by sandpaper (800#) for 1000 cm. Meanwhile, with the addition of hybrid insulation fillers, the Weibull breakdown strength of PDFP/30h-BN/10SiO2-200/6AF-p is improved by 76 % compared to PDFP. Besides, the unique elemental composition of PDFP endows the PDFP composite with excellent flame retardancy with a 55 % limiting oxygen index and V-0 of the UL-94 grade, which guarantees safety for insulator applications. The results confirm the great potential of polyphosphazene for composite insulators.