Streamer propagation along insulating surfaces

Results concerning the propagation of streamers along insulating surfaces under uniform electric field are presented. The basic properties of streamers, namely the electric field required for a stable propagation and the propagation velocity, have been measured and compared with propagation in air alone as a reference. The results have shown that in the experimental arrangement used significant space charges due to streamer branching are absent, therefore the properties observed are considered as characteristic of a single streamer. Streamers propagate stably with an intrinsic propagation field and a characteristic velocity that depend on the nature of the insulating material. For electric fields higher than the minimum field required for a stable propagation, a streamer system propagates with a `surface' and an `air' component     

Streamer propagation along profiled insulator surfaces

Experimental results on the propagation of positive streamers along contoured, axially symmetric, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) insulation surfaces are presented. A plane parallel electrode configuration provides a substantially uniform electric field for streamer propagation and a point electrode at the ground plane initiates the avalanche process. Basic streamer properties of velocity and propagation probability with field strength are measured and compared with the corresponding characteristics of air and cylindrical insulators. Several insulator profiles are investigated and the occurrence of multiple streamer paths is demonstrated, which are generally distinguishable as surface and air components with different propagation velocities. Comparative data of the breakdown fields for the various insulators is included     

正极性雷电冲击电压下天然酯绝缘油油纸沿面流注动态变化规律研究

油纸绝缘复合电介质沿面放电是电力设备内绝缘的研究基础,其在雷电冲击电压下的绝缘特性是变压器绝缘设计的重要参数之一。为了获得油纸沿面流注传播与消散过程中电学、空间电荷分布演化规律及其关联关系,以交界面平行于施加电场方向的油纸系统为研究对象,通过构建适用于绝缘油油纸沿面流注动态变化特性的试验观测系统,可同步获得正极性雷电冲击电压下流注传播和消散过程中的电压、放电电流和放电通道流注阴影图像。利用该平台还测量了油纸沿面正极性雷电冲击击穿电压。试验结果表明,在正极性雷电冲击电压下天然酯绝缘油油纸绝缘相对介电常数差异并不会促进油纸沿面流注的传播过程,而粘度对于油纸沿面流注侧向分支影响显著。粘度越低,空间电荷在迁移过程中所受到的阻力越小,流注头部空间电荷在受到表面电荷的斥力后越容易往油中扩散,空间电荷在绝缘油中所形成的空间电场使得油纸沿面流注的主分支能够在绝缘油中传播,增加了油纸沿面流注传播距离,从而使低粘度天然酯绝缘油油纸沿面正极性雷电冲击击穿电压略高于其纯油击穿电压。     

Positive streamer discharges along insulating surfaces

By measuring the currents associated with the streamer discharge along silicone rubber surfaces, parameters of streamer propagation such as the minimum field of streamer crossing, the field of stable streamer propagation, the mean velocity and the streamer charge distribution have been analyzed and compared to the streamer discharge in air alone. Clear differences were observed in the measured currents for the individual surfaces at low background fields (285 kV/m). For higher fields the streamer crosses the gap almost independently of the surface type. The minimum streamer field was found to be slightly increased compared to air. The field of stable streamer propagation also was higher than in air. It is ~ 570 kV/m, larger than that of the streamer discharge in air (~ 500), under the same conditions. The streamer speed was found slightly increased in the presence of the silicone rubber surface and the distinction between the individual surfaces was modest. A discussion on possible mechanisms for the observed differences in the streamer speed and currents with and without the insulator surfaces is presented. The net positive charge of the streamer along an insulating surface seems to be distributed along the streamer channel rather than localized in the front part of the channel as the case for the streamer in air     

Positive Streamer Propagation and Breakdown in Air: the Influence of Humidity

The influence of humidity on streamer propagation at conditions from the threshold for propagation to those for streamer-induced breakdown was investigated in a uniform field in air at atmospheric pressure. Experiments were carried out in a three electrode arrangement consisting of a 12 cm long parallel-plane gap, with an auxiliary needle in the earthed anode. Positive streamers were initiated by applying at the needle electrode a pulse voltage which varied in amplitude. These propagated towards the upper plane electrode which was stressed by a negative dc voltage. Under natural atmospheric conditions, propagation and breakdown probability curves were obtained for several values of absolute humidity in the range between 5 and 22 g/m³. Thus, distributions of the electric field required for streamer propagation and breakdown were obtained and the associated velocity of propagation and time to breakdown were measured. Besides humidity, the amplitude of the voltage used for streamer initiation and the ambient electric field were considered as influencing parameters on streamer properties. Empirical equations are presented expressing the effects of the above parameters on the intrinsic streamer properties. A comparison with previous work in the literature is made and this leads to the conclusion that the influence of humidity on streamer propagation and breakdown can be placed in a sounder quantitative basis.     

正流注传播动力学特性随气压湿度的变化

为了解流注传播电场测量中大气参数的影响,利用“三电极系统”研究了不同气压湿度条件下正流注的传播电场和传播速度。利用两个光电倍增管检测流注在平行极板间的传播,获得了流注传播电场的概率分布及平均传播速度,得到了无外加脉冲电压时流注传播的“稳态电场”与相对空气密度、湿度间的经验公式,并和其它研究者提出的公式进行了比较。研究表明:流注传播的“起始电场”和“稳态电场”随着外加脉冲电压的减小而增大,随着气压和湿度降低而减小;电场强度相同时,流注平均传播速度随着气压和湿度的增大而减小,其数量级为105m/s。     

Streamer initiation in mineral oil. Part I: electrode surfaceeffect under impulse voltage

Presents a study of streamer inception in mineral transformer oil, in point-plane and rod-plane geometry under impulse voltage. The measurements performed with points and rods over a wide range of tip radii show a marked decrease of initiation fields when the electrode radius is increased. The initiation field is divided by 30 over the investigated range (from 1 μm points up to 2 cm rods). This effect compares fairly well with the "surface effect" known for breakdown voltages under uniform field with large electrodes. Plotting these results together shows the decrease of streamer initiation fields over a very wide electrode surface range (12 decades), proportional to S^-0.17 (S: electrode surface area, cm²). These results suggest the influence of electrode surface defects on streamer initiation under impulse voltage     

Variation of the Dynamics of Positive Streamer with Pressure and Humidity in Air

The dynamics of positive streamer in air under different pressure and humidity conditions was studied. The widely used three-electrode system was used to obtain the streamer propagation probability and average propagation velocity as a function of background field. A simulation was performed based on the 1.5D fluid model. Simulated intrinsic stability field for streamer propagation and corresponding average propagation velocity were in agreement with those deriving from experimental results. The intrinsic stability fields obtained with the empirical equations proposed by the author and other investigators were compared. It was analyzed that the effect of the amplitude and duration of voltage pulse applied on the needle. The statistical distribution of propagation field was explained by the dispersion of discharge time delay. The decrease of intrinsic stability field with the reduction of pressure and/or humidity was due to the increase of the conductivity of the streamer channel as a result of the weakening of attachment and/or electron-ion recombination effect.     

Study of the Development of Positive Streamers Along an Ice Surface

This paper presents the results of fundamental investigations on the inception and propagation of corona discharge on an ice surface stressed with a standard lightning impulse voltage. High-speed photography and photomultiplier techniques were used to observe and record the propagation of the streamers. The effects of several experimental parameters such as freezing water conductivity and HV rod electrode radius on the streamer inception parameters were investigated. Moreover, time to first streamer, inception voltage and corresponding field, as well as streamer propagation velocity and charge deposited by a streamer on ice surface were measured. The results are discussed and emphases are laid on the main factors influencing the development of positive streamers on ice surface.     

Measurement of streamer charge distribution on an insulator in SF6 Gas

The charge density produced by streamers on an insulator surface in SF₆ has been investigated by using a probe method with a high-speed temporal resolution. Concentric circular probes, which also act as a plane electrode, are used in this probe method. Probe signals are observed oscilloscopically and converted into the charge densities through a numerical calculation. This method reveals the charge distribution before a disturbance caused by the “back discharge.” The charge density thus obtained ranges from several nC/cm² up to about 60 nC/cm². The density depends on the pressure, voltage height and the position of the streamer. The electric field on the insulator is analyzed numerically taking into account the surface charge. The internal electric field of the streamer is found to be 40 ～ 50 kV/cm · atm when the streamer ceases its propagation. However, it partly exceeds the critical one (89 kV/cm · atm) during the propagation.     

Propagation characteristics of a positive surface streamer

The potential distribution of a developing positive surface streamer was measured by the Pockels effect. The transient potential distribution along a linear path was measured at minimum resolutions of 20 µm and 2 ns. Additionally, velocity of a streamer, average electric field along a streamer, and the developing length were measured while changing the insulator thickness from 0.8 to 5.0 mm. The potential along a positive surface streamer decreases linearly with the distance from the high‐potential electrode, and its gradient is about 500–650 V/mm, which is independent of the inception voltage and the insulator thickness. © 2006 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

金属颗粒对绝缘油流注发展特性的影响研究

变压器在制造、运行和维修等过程中,其内部绝缘油难免会引入金属颗粒,为探究金属颗粒对油纸绝缘性能的影响,文中搭建并调试了油纸绝缘雷电冲击放电试验平台等,开展了金属颗粒对绝缘油流注发展特性影响试验研究,研究了不同浓度金属颗粒对绝缘油流注起始电压与发展过程中形态的影响,并通过COMSOL仿真平台进行验证。结果表明,金属颗粒会促进油中流注的起始与发展过程,流注停止长度和发展速度与颗粒浓度呈正相关,而绝缘油流注起始电压与击穿电压与颗粒浓度呈负相关,金属颗粒的引入会使得流注形态更加发散。分析认为油中金属颗粒与流注的相互作用是降低流注起始电压,加速流注发展,进而降低绝缘油击穿电压的主要原因。     

Positive streamer propagation in large oil gaps: electricalproperties of streamers

This paper presents experimental data and calculations concerning the electrical properties of positive streamers in mineral oil at large gaps and HV. The experiments concern the measurement of charge, electric field, and the determination of the potential drop along streamers, either in the liquid alone, or for streamers guided within insulating tubes. Calculations of charge and field distribution around streamers are carried out by charge simulation. To do this, streamers are represented by objects with simple shapes (spheres or cylinders) equivalent to their macroscopic aspect. These models lead to a correct agreement with measured streamer charge and field on the plane electrode. Qualitative correlations are established between calculated field distributions and streamer behavior such as velocity, transitions between propagation modes. It is also concluded that the potential drop in streamers and branching both act as regulating mechanisms that help to keep the streamer tip field, and hence the velocity, constant over a wide voltage range     

Positive streamer propagation in large oil gaps: experimentalcharacterization of propagation modes

This paper presents an experimental study of positive streamer propagation in mineral oil, in large point-plane gaps under impulse voltage. A systematic investigation was done concerning the influence of gap distance (⩽35 cm), and voltage from streamer inception up to large overvoltages. The measurements presented concern breakdown voltage measurements, time to breakdown, visualization of streamers (streak and still photographs), electrical measurements (transient current, charge), light emission intensity. Streamers are characterized and then classified into different modes (2nd, 3rd and 4th modes) according to their propagation velocities up to more than 100 km/s. According to the applied voltage, transitions between modes are observed, and correlations are established between charge, shape, and streamer velocity. The physical mechanisms as well as practical consequences are then discussed     

Progression of Positive Corona on Cylindrical Insulating Surfaces Part II: Effects of Profile on Corona

Characteristics of corona discharges over insulating surfaces are described. Two insulating materials, PTFE and porcelain are compared and contrasted using identical insulator surface profiles and dimensions and identical impulse voltage waveforms. The insulators were in the form of right cylinders and of similar shape but with a single shed, of practical dimensions added. Properties studied include the inception conditions, spatial development, light emission and changes in corona pattern. Results are discussed in terms of the relative permittivity of the materials, the surface profile and the physical effects of the surface upon corona properties.     

Parallel streamer discharges between wire and plane electrodes in water

Streamer discharges in tap water and distilled water have been generated by applying a voltage pulse from 120 to 175 kV and 500 ns duration to a wire-to-electrode configuration. Electrical and optical diagnostics were used to explore the temporal development of the streamers in tap and distilled water, at various applied voltages and both polarities. With the wire serving as anode, multiple, parallel streamer discharges were generated. The number density of these streamers along the wire decreases with decreasing electric field on the surface of the wire. The dependence of the streamer density on electric field indicates the role of field enhancement at inhomogeneous microstructures along the wire as streamer initiation mechanism. The appearance of the discharge was different for tap and distilled water. However, the measured average streamer propagation velocity from the positive wire to the grounded plane electrode, of 32 mm//spl mu/s, was independent of the water conductivity and the applied voltage. This suggests the existence of a self-sustained electric field at the streamer head. With the wire serving as cathode, only a weak light emission from the area close to the wire was observed, and streamers did not appear for the same voltage amplitude as with the positive polarity. This suggests that an ionic current flowing in the water is not dominant in the streamer propagation process.     

Comparisons of direct-current breakdown characteristics in dry air and SF6 gaps using a parallel-plane arrangement with variable height protrusion

Breakdown voltages in uniform and quasi-uniform field gaps are sensitive to the presence of small protrusion on the electrode surface in SF₆ at high pressures. The aim of the present work is to study direct breakdown and corona stabilized breakdown for the transitive region from uniform to nonuniform gap in dry air and SF₆ at low pressures up to a critical pressure when direct breakdown takes place by a leader discharge crossing the gap in SF₆. In a parallel-plane gap with a variable-height protrusion subjected to the dc voltage, corona onset voltage is remarkably controlled by the protrusion height. The present electrode arrangement has the advantage of directly measuring the minimum critical guiding field strength for the propagation of a streamer discharge at corona onset. The experimental observations have been explained qualitatively on the basis of a streamer model and precise electric field calculations of gap.     

真空高压二极管的绝缘结构分析

为提高真空高压二极管中绝缘子的耐压能力,利用静电场有限元模拟、电磁PIC模拟及传统理论计算的方法,分析了计及实际环境中绝缘子与电极之间微小间隙存在时绝缘子几何形状、绝缘材料与电极接触方式、电极结构、特别是导引磁场及回流电子对绝缘子耐压能力的影响。研究表明,抑制阴极三结点处场增强效应、尽量避免电子轰击绝缘子表面以控制解吸附气体量、适当的绝缘表面处理有利于提高绝缘子耐压能力,可作为设计真空高压二极管绝缘子的基本原则,并给出了一些具体的建议。     

Surface flashover of oil-immersed dielectric materials in uniform and non-uniform fields

The applied electrical fields required to initiate surface flashover of different types of dielectric material immersed in insulating oil have been investigated, by applying impulses of increasing peak voltage until surface flashover occurred. The behavior of the materials in repeatedly over-volted gaps was also analyzed in terms of breakdown mode (some bulk sample breakdown behaviour was witnessed in this regime), time to breakdown, and breakdown voltage. Cylindrical samples of polypropylene, low-density polyethylene, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene, and Rexolite, were held between two electrodes immersed in insulating oil, and subjected to average applied electrical fields up to 870 kV/cm. Tests were performed in both uniform- and nonuniform- fields, and with different sample topologies. In applied field measurements, polypropylene required the highest levels of average applied field to initiate flashover in all electrode configurations tested, settling at ~600 kV/cm in uniform fields, and ~325 kV/cm in non-uniform fields. In over-volted point-plane gaps, ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene exhibited the longest pre-breakdown delay times. The results will provide comparative data for system designers for the appropriate choice of dielectric materials to act as insulators for high-voltage, pulsed-power machines.     

Breakdown and prebreakdown phenomena in liquids under positiveimpulse voltages

We examine the breakdown and prebreakdown behavior of two insulating liquids: benzyl-toluene and mineral oil in a nonuniform electric field at large distances (up to 20 cm) under a positive impulse voltage. We evaluate and compare the breakdown strengths of both liquids in these conditions as a function of interelectrode distance via Weibull type plots, a method commonly used when dealing with insulating gases and solids. The comparative behaviors of the liquids change greatly when the cumulative probability of breakdown is decreased from 100%. The second part of this study concerns streamer stopping lengths and the corresponding current and light emission signals