High Voltage Equipment Research Articles

Diagnostics of porcelain insulators by partial discharges characteristics

RELEVANCE of the research is in the development of a non-destructive method for diagnosing porcelain insulators of high-voltage electrical equipment based on analysis of the characteristics of partial discharges (PDs). The problem of the final stage of breakdown of both the discharge gap and porcelain insulators recognizing is currently has not solved. THE PURPOSE. Recognition of PDs in solid insulation, study of PDs characteristics in a pre- breakdown situation, recognition of defective insulators based on PDs characteristics analysing. METHODS. The study of PDs characteristics for a defective and functional porcelain insulator were carried out. To study the characteristics of various types of PDs, including in the pre-breakdown situation, a system of surface-needle electrode system was used. RESULTS. The article describes compares the PDs characteristics obtained using standard R-400 device and a digital storage oscilloscope (DSO) using a telescopic antenna. A technique for recognizing the development of the pre-breakdown situation of the surface-needle discharge gap and the porcelain insulator was developed. The technique for recognizing a defective porcelain insulator from the amplitude-phase diagrams (APD) of PDs was developed. The method for assessing the breakdown voltage of porcelain insulators based on the characteristics of partial discharges was developed. CONCLUSION. At the moment of transition to the pre-breakdown stage were observed a sharp increase in the counter-movement of charges of opposite polarity. In the stage immediately before the breakdown, near zero values of the applied voltage of negative polarity, ordered PDs of the same polarity as the applied voltage were recorded in large numbers. These discharges led to an increase in leakage current and were interpreted as initial corona discharges. These discharges were recorded both by a telescopic antenna in a surface-needle system and in porcelain insulators.

Research on Ultra-Fast Transient Overvoltage Characteristics of Electric Locomotive

Operating overvoltage occurs when the pantograph or main breaker of an electric locomotive is operated, which is prone to causing insulation failure of high-voltage equipment. The HXD1 electric locomotive is taken as the research object in this paper to explore the characteristics and influencing factors of operating overvoltage. Under pantograph lifting, main breaker closing, main breaker opening, and pantograph dropping, operating overvoltage waveform in the high-voltage system is recorded by a high-speed oscilloscope and resistance–capacitance voltage divider to analyze the overvoltage characteristics and distribution law. Tested data show that the amplitude of operating overvoltage is in the range of 80 to 330 kV with ultra-high steepness, which is similar to the Very Fast Transient Overvoltage (VFTO) in power systems. The maximum overvoltage during the entire test occurred during the main breaker closing and its amplitude is 328.60 kV with a steepness of 4.21 × 104 kV/μs. The max overvoltage of the other operations (pantograph lifting, main breaker opening, and pantograph dropping) are 280.60 kV, 194.73 kV, and 305.56 kV with ultra-high steepness. High-amplitude overvoltage is predominantly located at the pantograph, while the low-amplitude sort is mainly observed around other high-voltage equipment. The result indicates that operating overvoltage belongs to ultra-fast transient overvoltage and its amplitude and steepness are higher than existing research.

Enhanced mechanical and dielectric properties of lignocellulosic composite papers with biomimetic multilayered structure and multiple hydrogen-bonding interactions

Lignocellulosic papers (LCP) are favored for electrical insulating applications due to their environmental friendliness, ease of processing, and cost-effectiveness. However, the loose structure and numerous pores inside LCP result in the poor mechanical and electrical insulating properties, posing challenges in meeting the requirements for the rapid upgrading of high-voltage electrical equipment. Herein, a 3D interconnective structure composed of 3D aramid nanofibers (ANF) and 2D carbonylated basalt nanosheets (CBSNs) is introduced to enhance the structure and the chemical bonding interactions of LCP. This is achieved by impregnating LCP into an ANF-CBSNs suspension, where the 3D interconnective ANF framework hosts numerous CBSNs. The resultant LCP/ANF-CBSNs (LCP/A-C) composite papers exhibit multilayered structure and multiple hydrogen-bonding interactions, demonstrating excellent mechanical and electrical insulating properties. Notably, the optimized LCP/A-C5 composite papers exhibit remarkable tensile strength (23.15 MPa) and dielectric breakdown strength (20.14 kV·mm−1), respectively, representing 229 % and 145 % increase compared to those of the control LCP. These impressive properties are integrated with excellent bending ability, outstanding high temperature resistance, exceptional volume resistivity, and low dielectric constant and loss, demonstrating their potential as highly promising electrical insulating papers for advanced high-power electrical equipment.

Synergistically Constructing High-Dielectric Poly(m-phenylene isophthalamide)/Silica/Cellulose Nanofiber Composite Insulation Paper through Dynamic Covalent Chemistry and Hydrogen Bonding.

The rapid advancement of modern power equipment and high-power devices has imposed increasingly stringent demands upon the mechanical and dielectric properties of electrical insulation materials. Herein, we report a poly(m-phenylene isophthalamide) (PMIA) composite insulating paper with excellent dielectric breakdown strength, reliable mechanical properties, and high thermal stability. Enhanced surface activity of PMIA is achieved through surface modification, facilitating the synergistic integration of modified PMIA (MPMIA), bovine serum albumin (BSA)/silica (SiO2), and cellulose nanofiber (CNF) into composite paper using dynamic covalent bonds and hydrogen bonding. The prepared MPMIA-BSA/SiO2-CNF composite paper exhibits a laminated stacked structure with high tensile strength (32.68 MPa) and strain at break (9.57%). Meanwhile, MPMIA-BSA/SiO2-CNF composites have excellent dielectric breakdown strength (24.75 kV/mm) and good temperature resistance. Therefore, the MPMIA-BSA/SiO2-CNF composite paper has a broad application prospect in the field of high-voltage and high-power electrical equipment insulation.

Significantly Enhanced Corona Resistance of Epoxy Composite by Incorporation with Functionalized Graphene Oxide

Enhancing the corona resistance of epoxy resin (EP) is crucial for ensuring the reliable operation of electrical equipment and power systems, and the incorporation of inorganic nanofillers into epoxy resin has shown significant potential in achieving this. In this study, functionalized graphene oxide (KHGO) was synthesized via a sol-gel method to enhance the corona resistance of EP with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) used to assess the properties of KHGO/EP composites. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) verified the successful grafting of epoxy groups onto the GO surface. The thermal conductivity and stability of the KHGO/EP composite initially increased with KHGO content but declined when the content exceeded 1.2 wt.%. Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) indicated that KHGO improved interfacial compatibility with EP compared to GO, with agglomeration occurring when KHGO content exceeded a threshold value (1.2 wt.%). EIS analysis revealed that the corona resistance of the KHGO/EP composite was optimal at a filler content of 0.9 wt.%. After corona treatment, the saturation water uptake of the 0.9 wt.% KHGO/EP composite decreased by 15% compared to pure EP with its porosity reduced to just 1/40th of that of pure EP. This study underscores that well-dispersed KHGO/EP composite exhibits excellent corona resistance property suggesting the potential for industrial applications in high-voltage equipment insulation.

A Novel Method for Online Diagnostic Analysis of Partial Discharge in Instrument Transformers and Surge Arresters from the Correlation of HFCT and IEC Methods

In this work, a new methodology is proposed for the online and non-invasive extraction of partial discharge (PD) pulses from raw measurement data obtained using a simplified setup. This method enables the creation of sub-windows with optimized size, each containing a single candidate PD pulse. The proposed approach integrates mathematical morphological filtering (MMF) with kurtosis, a first-order Savitzky-Golay smoothing filter, the Otsu method for thresholding, and a specific technique to associate each sub-window with the phase angle of the applied voltage waveform, enabling the construction of phase-resolved PD (PRPD) patterns. The methodology was validated against a commercial PD detection device adhering to the IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) standard. Experimental results demonstrated that the proposed method, utilizing an off-the-shelf 8-bit resolution data acquisition system and a low-cost high-frequency current transformer (HFCT) sensor, effectively diagnoses and characterizes PD activity in high-voltage equipment, such as surge arresters and instrument transformers, even in noisy environments. It was able to characterize PD activity using only a few cycles of the applied voltage waveform and identify low amplitude PD pulses with low signal-to-noise ratio signals. Other contribution of this work is the diagnosis and fault signature obtained from a real surge arrester (SA) with a nominal voltage of 192 kV, corroborated by destructive disassembly and internal inspection of the tested equipment. This work provides a cost-effective and accurate tool for real-time PD monitoring, which can be embedded in hardware for continuous evaluation of electrical equipment integrity.

Analysis of SF6 and CF4 consumption for refueling high-voltage switching equipment

The article describes to eliminate possible errors in the supply of cylinders with sulfur hexafluoride and cylinders with carbon tetrafluoride to high-voltage substations for refueling switching devices such as high-voltage switches, voltage transformers, etc. Conduct an analysis of possible erroneous supplies of the two above-mentioned gases at the substation. Make an analysis of possible residuals (or shortfalls) of gas cylinders after refilling. Make an assumption about the reasons for the appearance of possible residues. Give recommendations for overcoming possible problems. Make the appropriate calculations. Propose a formula (table) for recalculating the consumption of both types of gases. Make a table for calculating the actual values of the number of supplied cylinders, related to the discreteness of the volumes of the cylinders and the switching devices themselves. Draw appropriate conclusions and make recommendations. To achieve this goal, a method was used to calculate the state of an ideal gas using software for working with spreadsheets. The article reflects the relevance of the topic and discusses the features of refueling high-voltage SF6 equipment in various climatic conditions (below minus 40-49°F). An analysis of typical ratings of high-voltage switches used at highvoltage substations was carried out. A graph is presented for converting the molar fraction (contributing to pressure) of gases into the mass fraction. A sample calculation of the number of cylinders is presented for two commonly encountered volumes of switching devices and fortyliter gas cylinders for several standard cylinder filling ratios. Presumptive conclusions are presented regarding the assessment of real errors when sending gas cylinders for refilling switching devices. The article offers an understanding of the sequence of problems associated with incorrect calculations and a complete methodology for calculating the correct volumes (mass) of gas depending on the actual types of devices used, depending on the volume of supplies pieces of equipment.

Ultra-High Frequency Sensors for Detecting Partial Discharge in Power Cables

Partial discharge (PD) detection is vital for evaluating the health of power cable insulation, where failure can lead to significant disruptions. This study investigates the use of Ultra-High Frequency (UHF) sensors to detect PD signals, which typically occur in nanoseconds. The sensors operate in the GHz range and minimize interference by selecting frequencies above 400 MHz, where background noise is reduced. Through comparison with other detection methods, UHF sensors demonstrate superior sensitivity in measuring minor discharges, providing a reliable means for on-site condition assessment of high-voltage equipment. The study concludes that UHF sensors offer a practical solution for improving PD detection accuracy, particularly in challenging field conditions.

A novel method to evaluate insulation performance of SF6 alternative gases based on modified GIPF-Local properties model

Abstract The development of structure-activity relationships (SAR) emerges as a crucial strategy to establish the correlations between molecular micro-parameters and the macroscopic dielectric strength, thus markedly improving the gases screening efficiency. However, conventional prediction approaches have failed to characterize the molecule electronegativity accurately, resulting in inadequate prediction precision within extensive gas databases. To address this limitation, we have devised an insulation prediction method that incorporates corrections based on molecular local properties, including local ionization energy and local electron affinity. They enable us to determine both the electron acceptance and donation capacity of the whole molecular orbital electron cloud: a more accuracy assessment of electronegativity. Compared with previous method, our enhanced approach combined local properties with structural and GIPF parameters. It has yielded substantial improvements based on an extensive database comprising 91 gases, as evidenced by an increase in the correlation coefficient from 0.848 to 0.969. Utilizing the modified GIPF-Local properties model, over ten potential gases were found and categorized according to their application. This innovative screening strategy provides crucial insights for exploration and design of new eco-friendly gases as substitute for SF6 used in high-voltage power equipment.

Adsorption behavior of SF6 partial discharge decomposition components on metal (Pt, Pd) modified ZnO surfaces

High-voltage SF6 gas-insulated equipment generates various characteristic gas components during partial discharge faults, threatening the equipment’s normal operation. Based on density functional theory, this study investigates the adsorption behaviors of H2S, SO2, SO2F2, and SOF2 on ZnO bilayers before and after Pt/Pd modification. Analysis of adsorption energy, density of states, conductivity, and recovery time reveals that the adsorption effectiveness of ZnO bilayer on SF6 decomposition components is H2S > SO2 > SOF2 > SO2F2. Pt/Pd doping significantly reduces the adsorption energy of gas molecules on ZnO surfaces but does not alter the adsorption effectiveness. Additionally, considering the significant changes in Pt/PdZnO’s conductivity after adsorption of specific gas molecules, PtZnO is suitable as a sensor material for H2S, SO2, and SO2F2, while PdZnO is suitable for SO2 sensing. This study provides a theoretical foundation for developing novel sensor materials for SF6 decomposition components, potentially enhancing electrical equipment’s economic and operational safety.

Investigating the principle and application of high-frequency and high-voltage pulse AC equipment for oil–water separation of heavy crude oil

To address the challenges of oil–water separation encountered during the processing of heavy crude oil, this study meticulously examines the kinetics of demulsification under an electric field. Consequently, a cutting-edge high-frequency/high-voltage AC pulsed power supply has been innovatively developed. This device boasts a flexible voltage-adjustment mechanism, strategically enhancing the inverter output voltage incrementally throughout the pulse’s duration. This method effectively reduces the negative impact of current surges on the operational stability of crude oil desalination plants, especially during the commutation periods of the switching devices. Furthermore, it resolves the issue of premature power supply shutdowns to the desalination plant, caused by peak currents misinterpreted as critical short-circuit currents leading to pole plate breakdowns. An industrial application study conducted at Shandong Chambroad Petrochemicals Co., Ltd. Under identical operational conditions, the power supply designed in this research outperforms traditional electrical desalting transformers in several key aspects. These include a notably enhanced oil–water separation capability and significantly more stable performance. Remarkably, the desalting efficiency shows substantial improvement even at increased feed rates, under constant other conditions. The experimental findings indicate that the average rates of desalination and dehydration achieved by this power supply exceed 90%. Moreover, even when the feed rate is augmented by approximately 75% under constant operating conditions, the desalination efficiency remains 78.49% higher than that achieved by standard industrial frequency electric desalination transformers. Additionally, the desalting outcomes are predominantly unaffected by fluctuations in the initial salt content of the feedstock, demonstrating the robustness of the developed solution.

Theoretical Investigation of the Pyridinium-Inspired Catalytic Dehydration of Heptafluoro-Iso-Butyramide for the Synthesis of Environmentally Friendly Insulating Gas Heptafluoro-Iso-Butyronitrile.

Heptafluoro-iso-butyronitrile (i-C3F7CN) represents a feasible eco-friendly replacement gas for the most potent greenhouse gas sulfur hexafluoride in various high-voltage power transmission equipment. The reaction mechanisms for the in situ synthesis of i-C3F7CN from heptafluoro-iso-butyramide [i-C3F7C(O)NH2] in the presence of trifluoroacetic anhydride (TFAA) and pyridine (Py) in dimethylformamide solution have been studied within density functional theory with M06-2X exchange-correlation functional with the 6-311++G(d,p) basis set and the high-level ab initio complete basis set quadratic CBS-QB3 method. It is revealed that the unimolecular dehydration of i-C3F7C(O)NH2 can be catalyzed efficiently by TFAA in terms of both kinetic and thermodynamic aspects, producing i-C3F7CN and trifluoroacetic acid (TFA). Furthermore, Py is capable of reducing the energy barrier of the rate-determining step through hydrogen abstraction to form pyridinium hydrogen. The synergic effect of the TFAA/Py co-catalyst plays a pivotal role in the production of i-C3F7CN as the Gibbs free energy barrier can be lowered by more than 40 kcal/mol with the ratio of TFAA:2Py, in accordance with the experimental observation. The present theoretical work provides new insights into the rational design on the novel catalysts for large-scale synthesis of the perfluorinated nitriles.

Review on Security Range Perception Methods and Path-Planning Techniques for Substation Mobile Robots

The use of mobile robots in substations improves maintenance efficiency and ensures the personal safety of staff working at substations, which is a trend in the development of technologies. Strong electric and solid magnetic fields around high-voltage equipment in substations may lead to the breakdown and failure of inspection devices. Therefore, safe operation range measurement and coordinated planning are key factors in ensuring the safe operation of substations. This paper first summarizes the current developments that are occurring in the field of fixed and mobile safe operating range sensing methods for substations, such as ultra-wideband technology, the two-way time flight method, and deep learning image processing algorithms. Secondly, this paper introduces path-planning algorithms based on safety range sensing and analyzes the adaptability of global search methods based on a priori information, local planning algorithms, and sensor information in substation scenarios. Finally, in view of the limitations of the existing range awareness and path-planning methods, we investigate the problems that occur in the dynamic changes in equipment safety zones and the frequent switching of operation scenarios in substations. Furthermore, we explore a new type of barrier and its automatic arrangement system to improve the performance of distance control and path planning in substation scenarios.

Thermal Imaging-Based Abnormal Heating Detection for High-Voltage Power Equipment

Thermal infrared imaging could detect hidden faults in various types of high-voltage power equipment, which is of great significance for power inspections. However, there are still certain issues with thermal-imaging-based abnormal heating detection methods due to varying appearances of abnormal regions and complex temperature interference from backgrounds. To solve these problems, a contour-based instance segmentation network is first proposed to utilize thermal (T) and visual (RGB) images, realizing high-accuracy segmentation against complex and changing environments. Specifically, modality-specific features are encoded via two-stream backbones and fused in spatial, channel, and frequency domains. In this way, modality differences are well handled, and effective complementary information is extracted for object detection and contour initialization. The transformer decoder is further utilized to explore the long-range relationships between contour points with background points, and to achieve the deformation of contour points. Then, the auto-encoder-based reconstruction network is developed to learn the distribution of power equipment using the proposed random argument strategy. Meanwhile, the UNet-like discriminative network directly explores the differences between the reconstructed and original image, capturing the deviation of poor reconstruction regions for abnormal heating detection. Many images are acquired in transformer substations with different weathers and day times to build the datasets with pixel-level annotation. Several extensive experiments are conducted for qualitative and quantitative evaluation, while the comparison results fully prove the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed instance segmentation method. The practicality and performance of the proposed abnormal heating detection method are evaluated on image patches with different kinds of insulators.

Simulation on Operating Overvoltage of Dropping Pantograph Based on Pantograph–Catenary Arc and Variable Capacitance Model

When the electric locomotive pantograph is dropping, the interruption of pantograph catenary contact causes electromagnetic oscillation and arcing. The frequent arc burning that occurs due to charge accumulation results in the amplitude of overvoltage increasing gradually, posing a threat to locomotive high-voltage equipment. However, the physical mechanisms and characteristics of overvoltage are still unclear. This paper proposes a simulation model of operating overvoltage due to a dropping pantograph based on the pantograph–catenary arc and variable capacitance. Distributed RLC electromagnetic oscillation is considered, which allows the real-time calculation of arc resistance and capacitance. Under the same working conditions, the error between the simulation and test results is less than 4.0%, which proves the credibility of the model. The variation law of overvoltage under different dropping speeds or catenary phases was investigated, which shows the max amplitude is 298.20 kV and steepness is 2096.80 kV/μs at 0.30 m/s speed. The waveform shows the characteristics of high amplitude and high steepness, similar to very fast transient overvoltage (VFTO). There is a sinusoidal relationship between the catenary phase and overvoltage amplitude. The closer the catenary phase to 90°, the higher the overvoltage amplitude. The research has important guiding significance for the overvoltage formation mechanism of a traction power supply system and the insulation coordination design of high-voltage equipment.

Effect of aluminum particles on the insulating properties of C4F7N/CO2 mixed gas

The C4F7N/CO2 mixed gas is most expected to replace SF6 in high-voltage power equipment, and the generation of free metal particles in gas-insulated equipment is unavoidable and highly susceptible to inducing insulation failures. In this paper, the effects of flaky, spherical, and mixed shape aluminum particle defects on the breakdown characteristics of C4F7N/CO2 mixed gas are investigated and compared to those of SF6 under the same conditions. The experimental results show that the effect of particle defects on the insulating properties of C4F7N/CO2 gas mixtures is visualized by the fact that particle defects reduce the breakdown voltage of C4F7N/CO2 gas mixtures, increase their stochasticity, and reduce the enhancement of the insulating properties of C4F7N/CO2 gas mixtures by increasing the air pressure. The greater the number of particles, the greater is the degree of influence. Comparison of the SF6 and C4F7N/CO2 gas mixtures reveals that, in the case of flake defects, increasing the air pressure improves the insulation performance of the SF6 gas better than that of the C4F7N/CO2 gas mixture. Under the condition of the same number of particles, the larger the proportion of spherical particles in the hybrid particles, the smaller is the influence of metal particles on the C4F7N/CO2 mixed gas and on SF6 gas.

Design and experimental study of copper bars for high voltage equipment boxes of rail trains

Abstract This article describes the theoretical design and selection of copper bars, simulation of electric field theory for different structural copper bars, and vibration anti loosening tests for different fasteners, providing theoretical and data support for the forward design of high-voltage copper bars, and providing certain guidance for subsequent projects. The design and selection of copper bars have been verified to meet the requirements through vibration tests and impulse withstand voltage tests.

On the Application of Solid Polymer Insulation for Indoor High-Voltage Equipment

On the Application of Solid Polymer Insulation for Indoor High-Voltage Equipment

Effects of cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) conductors in medium voltage power grids and load analysis

This study discusses the problems occurring in a microgrid established with XLPE conductors. The use of XLPE in electric grids has increased, causing problems such as voltage rise that leads to breakdowns in high-voltage equipment, increased capacitive power, and harmonic distortion. The Ferranti Effect also occurs, especially in these grids with no-load or low-load situations. Power demand in such microgrids varies depending on working days, holidays, and seasons. It is important to understand such grids' behavior and dynamic power demands for the continuity and quality of energy. Firstly, the grid was modeled in the Matlab/Simulink environment, and end-of-line and beginning-of-line voltages were simulated for three different load cases and compared with the measured grid parameters. Then, artificial intelligence-supported power forecasting and analysis were carried out using three years of power consumption data to analyze the grid's behavior and determine the energy demand in any period. Results show the existence of voltage rises at the end of the line in low load cases. Artificial intelligence algorithms have successfully predicted dynamic power demands. The study results are pioneering steps for autonomous grid management (e.g., anomaly detection) and sustainable smart grid designs that can decide which devices will be fed from the grid.

A Study on the Efficient Degradation of Sulfur Hexafluoride by Pulsed Dielectric Barrier Discharge Synergistic Active Gas

SF6 is a strong greenhouse effect gas, which is widely used in high-voltage electrical equipment such as circuit breakers and high-voltage switchgear because of its excellent insulation performance and arc extinguishing ability. In recent years, the use and emission of SF6 have been rising, and with the proposal of the dual carbon strategic goal, its harmless degradation has become an urgent problem to be solved. In this paper, SF6 was degraded by pulsed DBD plasma technology and O2. Studies have shown that the addition of O2 can effectively promote the degradation of SF6. With the increase in the added O2 content, the DRE and EY of SF6 first increased and then decreased. Under the conditions of the input power of 50 W, SF6 concentration of 2%, and gas flow rate of 50 mL/min, the reaction system obtained the highest DRE and EY of 58.40% and 5.24 g/kWh when the O2 content was 1%, respectively. In the SF6/Ar/O2/H2O system, the addition of H2O could improve the product selectivity of SO2F2, and when the O2 concentration was 1%, the highest selectivity of SO2F2 was 48.96%, and the concentration was 8006.76 ppm. The addition of O2 inhibited the production of SO2, and with the addition of the O2 system, SO2F2 and SOF4 were the main components of degradation products; however, there were also SOF2, SO2, SiF4, SF4, etc. In this paper, the decomposition path of O2 under SF6 was analyzed in detail according to infrared spectroscopy and decomposition products.