Insulation characteristics of CO2 gas for nonstandard lightning impulse oscillations: Evaluation method of nonstandard lightning impulse waveform for CO2 gas insulation

SF₆ gas is widely used in electric power apparatus such as gas‐insulated switchgears (GIS), because of its superior dielectric properties; however, it has been identified as a greenhouse gas at COP3 in 1997, and alternative insulation gases to SF₆ have recently been investigated. One of the candidates is CO₂ gas, which has lower global warming potential (GWP). However, CO₂ gas has a lower withstand voltage level than SF₆ gas; therefore, it is necessary to rationalize the equipment insulation level and reexamine the insulating test voltage for electric power apparatus as low as possible. From our previous investigation, in SF₆ gas insulation system, we obtained that the insulation requirements of the real surges (called nonstandard lightning impulse waveform) are not as severe as those of the standard lightning impulse waveform. This paper describes the evaluation method for real surges, based on insulation characteristics of CO₂ gas gaps. Furthermore, the method was applied to typical field overvoltage waveform in the lightning surge time region for 500‐kV systems and it is obtained that the equivalent peak value of the standard lightning impulse waveform is possibly reduced by 10 to 15%. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 163(3): 1– 9, 2008; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.20560     

Breakdown characteristics of gas‐insulated switchgear for nonstandard lightning impulse waveforms under nonuniform electric field

To improve the insulation specification of gas‐insulated switchgear (GIS), it is necessary to recognize the insulation characteristics of SF₆ gas during actual surges (called nonstandard lightning impulse waveforms) occurring at field substations. The authors observed the insulation characteristics of SF₆ gas gap under various types of nonstandard lightning impulse waveforms and compared them quantitatively with those obtained with standard lightning impulse waveforms. The experimental results were used to derive an evaluation method for real surges, which was applied to typical surges for various UHV and 500‐kV systems. In the preceding study, therefore, only the case of a quasi‐uniform electric field (with a typical range of field utilization factors in the bus of a GIS) was investigated. In the present investigation, the insulation characteristics of an SF₆ gas gap for a nonuniform electric field were observed experimentally and an evaluation method for converting nonstandard lightning impulse waveforms equivalently to the standard lightning impulse waveform was investigated. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 177(1): 11–18, 2011; Published online in Wiley Online Library ( wileyonlinelibrary.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.21144     

Insulation characteristics of SF6 gas for nonstandard impulse voltage polarity reversal pulse waveforms

Evaluation of insulation strength for lightning surge that actually enters into substations is important in estimating insulation reliability of gas‐insulated equipment. The standard lightning impulse voltage (1.2/50 µs) is used for factory tests. However, the actual lightning surge waveforms in substations are complex and are usually superimposed with various oscillations. Insulation characteristics of SF₆ gas as a function of such complex voltages have not been sufficiently clarified. This paper deals with gap breakdown characteristics in SF₆ gas under submicrosecond pulses. Breakdown voltages are lower under a polarity reversal condition than under a monopolarity condition. The cause of this difference is discussed while observing discharge propagation using an image converter camera. The electrode size effect is also discussed. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 146(4): 18–25, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.10246     

Evaluation of Breakdown Characteristics of Gas Insulated Switchgears for Non-Standard Lightning Impulse Waveforms - Breakdown Characteristics for Non-Standard Lightning Impulse Waveforms Associated with Lightning Surges

To lower the insulation specifications (specifically, the lightning impulse withstand voltage) of a gas insulated switchgear (GIS) and thus cut the equipment cost while maintaining the high reliability of its insulation performance, it is necessary to define in an organized way the insulation characteristics for non-standard lightning impulse voltage waveforms that represent actual surge waveforms in the field and compare them with the characteristics for the standard lightning impulse waveform quantitatively. In the preceding paper, lightning surge waveforms and disconnector switching surge waveforms at UHV, 500 kV, and 275 kV substations were analyzed and five to six non-standard lightning surge waveforms with basic frequencies of 0.6 to 5.0 MHz were identified. In this paper, the dielectric breakdown voltage - time characteristics were measured under several different conditions mainly for the quasi-uniform SF₆ gas gaps that represent an insulation element of a GIS toward four kinds of non-standard lightning impulse waveforms associated with lightning surges. As a result, in the tested range, the dielectric breakdown values for nonstandard lightning impulse waveforms were higher than for the standard lightning impulse waveform by 3% to 32%.     

V-t characteristics of SF6 gas during lightning surges

The waveform of a standard lightning impulse differs greatly from those of actual lightning surges acting on GIS. This raises the problem of the equivalence of the standard lightning impulse. This report describes the effect of voltage waveforms on insulating performance in an SF₆ gas gap subjected to fast oscillating impulse voltages simulating actual lightning surges, and the evaluation of V-t characteristics by applying the equal area criterion. © 1997 Scripta Technica, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 119(4): 1–11, 1997     

Evaluation of breakdown characteristics of gas insulated switchgears for non-standard lightning impulse waveforms - analysis and generation circuit of non-standard lightning impulse waveforms in actual field

To lower the insulation specifications (specifically, the lightning impulse withstand voltage) of a gas insulated switchgear (GIS) and thus cut the equipment cost while maintaining the high reliability of its insulation performance, it is necessary to define in an organized way the insulation characteristics for non-standard lightning impulse voltage waveforms that represent actual surge waveforms in the field and compare them with the characteristics for the standard lightning impulse waveform quantitatively. In this paper, first, lightning surge waveforms and disconnector switching surge waveforms at UHV, 500 kV, and 275 kV substations were analyzed and five non-standard lightning surge waveforms with basic frequencies of 0.6 to 5.0 MHz were identified. Next, high-voltage circuits that generate these non-standard lightning surge waveforms were designed and constituted using EMTP (electro magnetic transients program) based on a circuit with a gap, inductors, and resistors connected in series and resistors and capacitors connected in parallel. Further, circuits were actually constructed, to obtain voltage waveforms approximately equal to those designed. Finally, the dielectric breakdown voltage-time characteristics were measured under several different conditions for the quasi-uniform SF₆ gas gap that represents an insulation element of a GIS. As a result, it was found that, in the tested range, the dielectric breakdown values for non-standard lightning impulse waveforms were higher than for the standard lightning impulse waveform by 6% to 32%     

Insulation properties of a CO2/N2 50% SF6 gas mixture in a nonuniform field

This paper describes partial discharge (PD) inception and breakdown voltage characteristics of a CO₂/N₂/SF₆ gas mixture in a nonuniform field. These voltage characteristics were investigated with ac high voltage by changing the mixture rate of each gas of CO₂, N₂, and SF₆ gas and the gas pressure from 0.1 MPa to 0.6 MPa. It was found that adding a small amount of CO₂ gas into a N₂/SF₆ mixture causes a drastic increase in the breakdown voltage. For instance, when the mixture rate of SF₆ in N₂/SF₆ gas mixture is 50%, with the addition of 1% CO₂ the maximum breakdown voltage becomes 1.31 and 1.15 times higher than that of a 50% N₂/50% SF₆ gas mixture and pure SF₆ gas, respectively. Moreover, those voltage characteristics of a CO₂/N₂/SF₆ gas mixture were also investigated by changing the electric field utilization factor as well as by applying positive and negative standard lightning impulse voltages in order to discuss the corona stabilization effect, which seems to be one reason for the drastic increase in the breakdown voltage. These results and breakdown mechanism of the CO₂/N₂/SF₆ gas mixture are discussed on the basis of the corona stabilization effect and the dissociation energies of the component gases by observing PD light images, PD light intensities through a blue and red filter, and PD current waveforms. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 140(3): 34–43, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.10019     

Evaluation of breakdown characteristics of gas insulated switchgears for non-standard lightning impulse waveforms - method for converting non-standard lightning impulse waveforms into standard lightning impulse waveforms -

To lower the lightning impulse withstand voltage of gas insulated switchgear (GIS) while maintaining the high reliability of its insulation performance, it is important to define in an organized way the insulation characteristics for non-standard lightning impulse voltage waveforms that represent actual surge waveforms in the field and compare them with the characteristics for the standard lightning impulse waveform quantitatively. In the preceding researches, lightning surge waveforms and disconnector switching surge waveforms at UHV, 500 kV, and 275 kV substations were analyzed and five to six kinds of non-standard lightning impulse waveforms with basic frequencies of 0.6 to 5.0 MHz were identified. Then, the dielectric breakdown voltage ? time characteristics were measured under several different conditions on the quasi-uniform SF6 gas gaps and partly the coneshaped insulating spacers that represent insulation elements of GIS for six kinds of nonstandard lightning impulse waveforms. In this paper, the resultant breakdown voltages were evaluated in terms of the overvoltage duration, which led to their formulation in a unified way. On the basis of these insulation characteristics and their unified formulation, the paper investigated a method for converting non-standard lightning impulse waveforms into standard lightning impulse waveforms with equivalent stress for the insulation. When the constructed algorithm was applied to five examples of representative two type waveforms in the lightning surge time region, they were converted into standard lightning impulse waveforms with crest values reduced by 20% to 34%, suggesting potentiality for reduction of lightning impulse insulation specifications of GIS.     

Evaluation of breakdown characteristics of oil-immersed transformers under non-standard lightning impulse waveforms - definition of non-standard lightning impulse waveforms and insulation characteristics for waveforms including pulses

To lower the insulation specifications (specifically, the lightning impulse withstand voltage) of oil-immersed transformers and thus cut the equipment cost while maintaining the high reliability in its insulation performance, it is necessary to grasp in an organized way the insulation characteristics under non-standard lightning impulse voltage waveforms that represent actual surge waveforms encountered in the field and compare them with the characteristics under the standard lightning impulse waveform quantitatively. As described in this paper, the first step in a series of study for the purpose above was taken by analyzing lightning surge waveforms and restriking surge waveforms such as disconnector switching surge waveforms at UHV, 500 kV, and 275 kV substations and identifying four typical non-standard lightning impulse waveforms with basic frequencies of 0.24 to 1.0 MHz. Then, two of these non-standard lightning impulse waveforms, the single-pulse waveform which is the most basic type and the waveform with a pulse in the crest and a subsequent flat section, were used to measure the breakdown voltage and the partial discharge inception voltage while changing the parameters, on three models that represent the insulation elements of windings of oil-immersed transformers. Then, the resultant average breakdown voltages were evaluated in terms of the overvoltage durations, leading to a result of formulating them in a unified way. In the tested range, the dielectric breakdown values under non-standard lightning impulse waveforms were higher, marking 52% at the maximum, than those under standard lightning impulse waveforms in all the cases, suggesting a possibility of lowering the insulation specifications of an oil-immersed transformer     

Evaluation of Breakdown Characteristics of Oil-immersed Transformers under Non-standard Lightning Impulse Waveforms - Method for Converting Non-standard Lightning Impulse Waveforms into Standard Lightning Impulse Waveforms

To lower the insulation specifications (specifically, the lightning impulse withstand voltage) of oil-immersed transformers and thus reduce equipment cost while maintaining high insulation reliability, it is required to identify the insulation characteristics under non-standard lightning impulse waveforms that are associated with actual surge waveforms in the field and quantitatively compare them with the characteristics under the standard lightning impulse waveform. In the previous research, field overvoltages in the lightning surge time region were analyzed, and four typical non-standard lightning impulse waveforms were defined. These four waveforms were used to measure the breakdown voltages and the partial discharge inception voltages on three models of the winding insulation elements of oil-immersed transformers. The average breakdown voltages were evaluated in terms of the overvoltage duration. This paper describes a method for converting of non-standard lightning impulse waveforms into standard lightning impulse waveforms with equivalent stress for the insulation. The constructed algorithm was applied to four examples representing two types of non-standard lightning waveforms. Due to the conversion into standard lightning impulse waveforms, the crest values were reduced by 14% to 26%. This seems to be a potential for reduction of lightning impulse insulation specifications of oil-immersed transformers.     

Investigation of partial discharge mechanism by simultaneous measurement of current waveform and light emission

We observed current pulse waveforms of partial discharge (PD) in SF₆ gas so as to investigate the PD mechanism. We also measured light intensity and light emission image of PD simultaneously under different conditions of applies voltage and SF₆ gas pressure. From these experiments, we found that the “double-peak current waveform” appeared at high pressure and high voltage conditions. We also analyzed the mutual correlation of waveforms between a single current and the light emission. Moreover, we obtained experimental evidence of filmentlike light image appearing at the PD tip under the same condition with double-peak current waveform. From the electric field analysis around the needle electrode tip, we believe that the filamentlike light image expands beyond the critical electric field of SF₆ gas. Thus, we concluded that these current waveforms with double peaks showed evidence of leader-type PD, leading to breakdown. Finally, we could point out that leader-type PD should be distinguished and measured for the diagnosis of GIS insulation performance. © 1999 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 129(4): 58–65, 1999     

基于SF6混合气体绝缘性能的设备补气策略研究

随着电力需求的增长和环境保护要求的提高,SF₆气体的使用逐渐受到限制。SF₆混合气体在一定程度上减少了SF₆气体用量,目前已经在电气设备中应用。文中针对SF₆混合气体在220 kV气体绝缘组合电器（GIS）中发生泄漏引起的绝缘变化展开研究,通过改变微量的气压值和混合比,探究混合气体的绝缘性能变化,分析气压、混合比因素对工频击穿电压的影响规律,获取各气压下各比例混合气体的绝缘强度曲线图,从而得到保证设备安全稳定运行的补气策略。研究发现,混合气体击穿电压的变化规律呈现出随着压强和混合比的提高,非线性程度增大的特点,并且得到了设备安全运行的混合比和气压的边界值。文中的研究可以为SF₆/N₂混合气体绝缘设备提供运维规程和技术标准,同时为制定混合气体的检测技术标准奠定基础。     

Dielectric characteristics of oil‐filled transformer in the presence of nonstandard lightning surge waveforms

To achieve a rational insulation design for transformers, it is important to evaluate dielectric strength against surges actually impinging on equipment on‐site. This paper deals with the breakdown voltage characteristics of an oil gap under nonstandard lightning surge waveforms combined with oscillatory voltages. It is found that the breakdown voltages of the oil gap under nonstandard impulse waveforms are higher than standard lightning impulse voltages. The results can be ascribed to V–t characteristics of the oil gap in short‐time impulse voltage ranges. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 146(3): 39–45, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.10229     

Quantitative evaluation of lightning surge range voltage–time characteristics in high‐pressure SF6 gas

Gas‐insulated switchgear (GIS) is subjected to very fast transient overvoltages such as lightning surges or disconnector switching surges. Therefore, the sparkover voltage and time (V?t) characteristics of SF₆ in a very short time range of less than are of great interest from the viewpoint of insulation design and coordination for a GIS. This paper describes the V?t characteristics of SF₆ at a gas pressure of 0.5 MPa using a steep‐front square impulse voltage under a quasi‐uniform field gap and presents a quantitative evaluation of the V?t characteristics for a nonstandard lightning impulse voltage. In the case of a square impulse, the V?t characteristics of positive polarity were observed to be almost flat over a long time range from 80 ns to , and rose steeply over a short time range from 80 ns down to 20 ns. For negative polarity, the V?t characteristics exhibit a gentle rise from 200 ns down to 40 ns. In the estimation of V?t characteristics, the equal‐area criterion parameters were quantitatively estimated using the square impulse. For a nonstandard lighting impulse, we found that application of the equal‐area criterion with these parameters for the nonoscillating impulse and oscillating impulse of up to 5.3 MHz as a model of lightning surge and disconnector switching surge is possible. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 159(4): 8– 17, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.20309     

Impulse partial discharge and breakdown characteristics of rod–plane gaps in air and N2 gases

In response to growing environmental concerns, we attempted to develop switchgear without using SF₆ gas. In our research, we used compressed air and pure N₂ as an electrical insulation gas, because of their low global warming potential. In this paper, we examined the impulse breakdown and impulse partial discharge characteristics under various conditions related to nonuniformity of the electric field. The experimental results show that the breakdown voltage (BDV) of air is higher than that of pure N₂ gas under highly nonuniform field conditions in the rod–plane gap. On the other hand, the discharge inception voltage of air and N₂ were almost the same. Furthermore, first partial discharge (PD), leader discharge, and its transition to the breakdown were successfully observed through the measurement of discharge current and light emissions under impulse voltage application. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 148(3): 36–43, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.10277     

A study on condition assessment method of gas‐insulated switchgear. part II. influence of moisture in the SF6, detection of a partial discharge on a spacer,repetition discharge and overheating by incomplete contact

Rationalization of the maintenance of gas‐insulated equipment under operation and lifetime extension based on the results of appropriate diagnosis are necessary to reduce the cost of gas‐insulated equipment. Therefore, condition‐based maintenance (CBM) is required and accurate methods for observing the inside of equipment are important. In this report, we describe a diagnosis method that can be used for actual gas‐insulated equipment, such as to assess the deterioration of the spacers made of epoxy resin and to detect loose connections in the central conductor. The principal results are summarized as follows: (1) The quantity of decomposition gases depends on the moisture and magnitude of the partial discharge. However, decomposition gases were detected even if SF₆ had low moisture content (less than 100 ppm) similar to that used in actual equipment. This means that our method can be applied to actual equipment. (2) It became clear that CF₄ is a typical gas generated by partial discharge on the spacer surface. Therefore, it is possible to diagnose spacer deterioration by monitoring CF₄. (3) Decomposition gases (SF₄, SO₂, SO₄, SO₂F₂) were generated by impulse breakdown, which was assumed to be due to repetition discharge caused by insulation failure and loose connections. (4) SF₆ gas was assumed to be exposed to a loose connection and was heated from room temperature to 800 °C, and the generated decomposition gases were analyzed by FTIR in real time. As a result, the decomposition gases were generated at temperatures above approximately 500 °C in a heating time of 1.5 minutes. Therefore, a loose connection can be detected by analyzing the decomposition gas. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 176(2): 22–30, 2011; Published online in Wiley Online Library ( wileyonlinelibrary.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.21108     

基于混合气体热特性的GIL氮气使用配比研究

SF₆/N₂混合气体具有绝缘性能良好、环境效益好等优点,被认为是能替代SF₆的最具发展前景的气体之一,但SF₆/N₂混合气体在不同场景下的混合比问题尚缺乏研究。文中在保证气体绝缘输电线路(GIL)绝缘水平的前提下,建立多物理场耦合计算模型,从混合气体热特性的角度出发,分析不同绝缘气体压强、负载电流和环境温度下SF₆/N₂混合比与GIL温升之间的关系,为GIL在不同场景下选择合适的SF₆/N₂混合比提供依据。结果表明：绝缘气体压强和相同压强下SF₆含量均与GIL温升呈负相关关系;设备的负载电流长期超过3 kA时,建议SF₆含量为40%～60%;设备运行在中低纬度地区时,建议SF₆含量为40%～70%,运行在高纬度地区时,建议SF₆含量为30%～40%。此外,由于设计GIL设备时考虑了安全裕度,因此通常SF<...     

High-voltage testing on UHV equipment: Overshoot and base curve for oscillating lightning impulse

As the higher impulse testing voltage, residual inductance of the test circuit or the stray capacitance of the test object increases with size. This means that the overshoot superposed on standard lightning impulse voltage would not be neglected because of its larger value during the lightning test. This paper describes the analysis of overshoot and oscillation based on the equivalent circuit containing a residual inductance. The waveform parameters such as relative overshoot magnitude, oscillation frequency are also derived to evaluate the influence of the residual inductance in the impulse testing circuit. The oscillating impulse waveform is related to the base curve of the standard lightning impulse. Furthermore, the base curve for oscillating impulse is proposed by the analysis. Copyright © 2009 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Commercialization of an extra high-voltage nonflammable transformer

A perfluorocarbon (PFC)-immersed 275-kV transformer with compressed SF₆, gas has been developed. This paper describes the basic cooling and insulation characteristics of PFC, the ac partial discharge voltage, and the aging of PFC-immersed insulation. The results demonstrate that a prototype 275-kV 100-MVA three-phase transformer can be operated without any difficulties for an extended period of overvoltage. This prototype has an ac partial discharge initiation strength which is 1.5 times that of the ac test voltage and a lightning impulse breakdown strength which is 1.5 times that of the test voltage. A 275-kV 250-MVA three-phase transformer was built and is being operated at the Abe substation of Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc. The transformer has been operating satisfactorily.     

Problems of the application of N2/SF6 mixtures to gas‐insulated bus

In designing a gas‐insulated bus (GIB) using N₂/SF₆ mixtures, there are many application problems, such as the mixture pressure needed in order to maintain the required dielectric and heat transfer performance. Problems of recycling SF₆ are also essential in applying N₂/SF₆ mixtures. This paper presents the minimum breakdown field strength at lightning impulse and the temperature rise of the conductor and enclosure as measured for N₂/SF₆ mixtures. Considering the dielectric and heat transfer properties, we clarify the problems of application of mixtures to a GIB and discuss the appropriate mixture ratio of SF₆ in designing a GIB comparable to the present dimensions. In addition, the lowest limit of SF₆ content in a liquefied recovering method is theoretically estimated for reference in practical SF₆ recovery from mixtures. It is important for design to consider both breakdown phenomena, including the area effect of electrode, and the heat transfer properties of mixtures. © 2001 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 137(4): 25–31, 2001