Influence of surface shape on DC surface breakdown characteristics under metallic-particle contaminated conditions in SF6 gas

The influence of a metallic particle attached to a supporting insulator is remarkable in decreasing the dielectric strength in an SF₆ insulated apparatus. To solve this problem, a series of studies has been conducted on a method of improving the particle-initiated breakdown performance. In this paper, dc breakdown voltage characteristics and the breakdown mechanism are investigated under metallic-particle contaminated conditions in SF₆ gas by varying the particle condition and the surface shape of the acrylic plate with a rod-plane electrode. The main results show that a rib increases the breakdown voltage by a corona stabilization effect and the elongation of discharge path, but a groove decreases its effect drastically at lower gas pressures. The breakdown voltage at pressures higher than 4 atm may be estimated on the basis of the discharge-maintaining field and the discharge length which depend on the gas pressure and the surface shape.     

Dielectric Strength of Compressed Insulating Gases and their Mixtures

A method is developed for computing the discharge threshold voltages in SF6, N2 as well as their mixtures above atmopheric pressure. In electronegative gases, and for both uniform and nonuniform field gaps of positive polarity, there is a critical pressure above which field emission from the cathode surface has a significant effect. The method of calculation is based on the condition necessary for the onset streamer to propagate. The effect of increased pressure over the critical value is that spark breakdown takes place within the discharge gap unpreceded by any corona. The computed values are in good agreement with those measured experimentally at pressures below and above the critical value for both uniform and nonuniform field gaps. The present calculations confirm those predicted experimentally, namely, there is no significant difference in the behavior of pure SF6 and mixtures up to 50 percent of N2. The fact that mixtures can show a higher breakdown voltage at the same total pressure than pure SF6 is also confirmed.     

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     

电晕放电若干特性的探讨

在较大分子的气体(如SF_6)中,正、负电晕起始电压有明显差别,而且随着气体压强增加而增大。而在较小分子的气体(如空气)中,正、负电晕起始电压基本相同。不仅Trichel(负电晕)脉冲是有规律的,在较低气压下的SF_6气体中,正电晕脉冲也是有规律的。电晕稳定效应不仅受气压影响,而且受尖端半径的影响。对于空气中的正电晕,当尖端半径很小时,击穿电压并不升高。     

静态模拟气固两相体起晕和击穿的实验研究

研究了非均匀电场中的静态模拟气固两相体放电的击穿、起晕特性及固相物介电常数、占空比、放电间隙、电压极性和种类对击穿电压与起晕电压的影响。结果表明:实验范围内,正极性大占空比时,随放电间隙的增加,两相体的起晕电压逐渐低于空气的起晕电压。正极性和交流电压下,两相体的击穿电压比空气高。     

Impulse insulation characteristics of a composite insulation system having a wedge gap in SF6 gas

Impulse insulation characteristics were investigated in a composite insulation system having a wedge gap in SF₆ gas. The partial discharge inception voltages of wedge gaps with various types of film were measured and compared with the calculated breakdown voltages estimated from Paschen's curve of SF₆ gas. Also discussed is how the charge accumulated on the film surface due to a partial discharge had an effect on the creepage breakdown voltage. Partial discharge inception voltages in wedge gaps were higher with higher SF₆ gas pressures and with lower film permittivities. Creepage breakdown voltages depended little on gas pressures or on creepage distances. The dependency of breakdown voltages on gas pressures and the effect of polarity on the breakdown voltage differed with the types of film. This may be partly because the charge on the film due to partial discharge had an effect on the discharge propagation, and that charging of the film differed with the types of film.     

Laser‐induced burst corona and streamer corona for a positive DC nonuniform field gap in N2/NO mixtures

The characteristic of sparkover in a DC nonuniform field gap is closely related to the discharge mode at the onset time of corona. In order to investigate the transition mechanism from burst corona to glow corona or streamer corona, a discharge experiment which is controlled by a pulsed laser in N₂/NO mixture has been performed. From highly sensitive observation of discharge luminescence which corresponds to the discharge current wave, the transition from burst corona to streamer corona is identified by the electron avalanche, which is formed initially at the tip of the rod electrode with the highest electric field, and the effect of secondary ionization. Moreover, it is verified that the measured electron burst drift time with laser irradiation in the discharge gap is determined by the electric field of the discharge gap. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 140(2): 10–17, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.10007     

Gaseous electrical discharge characteristics in air and nitrogen at cryogenic temperature

In designing superconducting electrical power apparatus, the knowledge of cryogenic gas and liquid insulation characteristics is essential. The authors have studied the discharge characteristics of relatively long-gap configurations in air and nitrogen at a cryogenic temperature. A sphere-to-sphere electrode with a gap length of 20 to 150 mm is used for measurements in uniform electric field. The breakdown voltage characteristics basically obey Paschen's law at cryogenic temperature for 50 Hz, AC, DC and lightning impulse voltage applications. A rod-to-plane electrode with a gap length of 20 to 330 mm is used for measurements in nonuniform electric field. In air at cryogenic temperature and nitrogen gas at both room and cryogenic temperature, streamer-like corona discharge appears near the tip of the rod electrode before the breakdown, and the breakdown voltage increases linearly with gap length. In air at room temperature thin film-like corona discharge, however, appears near the tip of the rod electrode before breakdown, and the breakdown voltage becomes higher than the other case. In order to examine the variation of corona discharge characteristics, some additional experiments are conducted. As a result, it becomes clear that thin film-like glow corona discharge appears when electronegative gas is contained and sufficient electrons are supplied from the cathode.     

基于支持向量机的棒-板空气间隙击穿电压预测方法及其应用

空气间隙的击穿电压与放电起始前的电场分布特征存在多维非线性关系。为了实现空气间隙的击穿电压预测,以电场特征集作为输入,以间隙在加载电压下是否击穿作为输出,采用支持向量分类机建立击穿电压预测模型。针对极不均匀电场空气间隙的击穿特性受电晕影响的问题,提出两种修正方法:通过增加受电晕影响的训练样本数据,提高预测模型的泛化性能;或基于"电晕云"的思想进行二次电场计算及特征量提取,对预测模型的输入特征进行修正。采用修正后的模型对极不均匀电场下棒-板间隙的工频击穿电压及棒-板长空气间隙的操作冲击放电电压进行预测,预测值与试验值吻合良好。该方法有利于减少试验次数,降低试验成本。     

振荡冲击电压下SF_6极不均匀场间隙的放电特性

根据IEC 60060-3所规定的振荡冲击电压波形,研究了在正极性振荡雷电冲击电压和振荡操作冲击电压下SF6气体极不均匀场间隙的放电特性,包括SF6压强(P)和50%起晕电压(UP50)关系、SF6压强(P)和50%击穿电压(UB50)关系等。并且比较了振荡雷电冲击和标准波雷电冲击下SF6气体极不均匀场间隙的放电特性的异同。结果表明,振荡型冲击电压因其振荡特性,使SF6极不均匀场间隙的放电次数增加,这有利用发现GIS中存在的例如导电尖刺等电极缺陷;等波头的振荡冲击波和双指数冲击波作用下SF6极不均匀场间隙的有着相似的放电特性,这对振荡型冲击波替代双指数波在较高等级的GIS现场耐压试验中的运用有重要的指导意义。     

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     

Characteristics of N2/SF6 mixture gas in creeping discharge developing in narrow gap with backside electrode

The flashover voltage with a backside electrode was found to be lower than that without the backside electrode. Under microsecond pulse voltage application, we describe the characteristics of a creeping discharge developed in the narrow gap with the backside electrode. Using a CCD camera and ultrahigh‐speed camera, we observed the corona extension processes. The lowest flashover voltage was found to be obtained at positive polarity with a SF₆ content D = 3%. In the corona extension obtained using an ultrahigh‐speed camera, peculiar differences were observed in the corona extension process. The corona extension increased, and rapid flashover was observed at D = 3%. Using a CCD camera, small coronas were detected from the backside electrode. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 158(2): 31–38, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.20431     

组合空气间隙交流击穿电压计算方法研究

典型空气间隙的击穿电压特性是外绝缘设计的重要依据,为研究电位悬浮体对空气间隙击穿电压的影响,文中以简化的组合间隙放电模型为研究对象,实验研究了悬浮导体长度和高压电极形状对组合空气间隙击穿电压的影响特性和变化曲线。基于实验数据和观测到的放电现象,文中在考虑子间隙的击穿顺序和流注通道压降的基础上,建立了组合间隙击穿电压的计算模型。利用该模型对含有电位悬浮导体的组合间隙击穿电压进行了计算,结果表明,文中提出的计算模型得到的击穿电压计算值和实验数据相比,相对误差小于5%,说明该方法对于计算含有电位悬浮导体的组合空气间隙击穿电压具有一定的适用性。     

Characteristics of creeping discharge developed in a narrow gap between insulators and effect of a backside electrode

Discharge characteristics have been investigated for a needle–plane electrode configuration containing insulating barriers with a narrow gap which has been placed between the needle and the plane. The characteristics of creeping discharge developed in the narrow gap of the barrier filled with SF₆ are especially considered. In the case of a configuration with a backside electrode below the needle, the corona generated from the needle easily extended to the gap. On the other hand, for a configuration without a backside electrode, the corona has hardly extended to the gap, and on increasing the applied voltage the corona developed greatly in the gap. This difference in corona extension should affect the flashover characteristics in the present system. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 146(2): 27–36, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.10248     

Creeping flashover characteristics in (N2/SF6) gas mixture under pulse voltage

The effect of a barrier between a needle electrode and a plane one in an (N₂/SF₆) gas mixture on creeping flashover was investigated using a microsecond pulse voltage. The SF₆ gas content was varied from 0% to 100%, and the gas pressure from 0.1 MPa to 0.3 MPa. The flashover voltage increased with increasing SF₆ gas content for a positive needle electrode. For a negative needle electrode, excepting the total pressure of 0.1 MPa, at which similar flashover characteristics were obtained to the positive case, a considerable decrease in flashover voltage was found in the case of a mixture of a few percent SF₆ in (N₂/SF₆) gas mixture at elevated total pressures. The corona behavior on the barrier in (N₂/SF₆) gas mixture was investigated by means of a high‐speed digital framing camera. © 2000 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 131(1): 1–9, 2000     

PD time‐sequential properties of SF6 and SF6 gas mixture including CO2

This paper deals with partial discharge (PD) time‐sequential properties of SF₆/N₂/CO₂ ternary gas mixture as well as SF₆ and SF₆/N₂ gas mixture under AC and positive DC voltage applications. The measurements were carried out by changing the gas pressure up to 0.6 MPa and applied voltage with the N‐shape characteristics of breakdown voltage versus gas pressure for each tested gas considered. We obtained experimental results of the gas pressure dependence of maximum peak value of PD current pulse as well as the relationship between the time interval of PD pulses and the peak value of PD pulse. We discuss the mechanism of increase in breakdown voltage by adding CO₂ into SF₆/N₂ gas mixtures in terms of change of PD type from streamer to leader discharge. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 151(3): 32–40, 2005; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.20073     

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     

The influence of surface charge on lightning impulse breakdown ofspacers in SF6

We have investigated the influence of surface charges on the discharge development across particle contaminated spacer surfaces under SF₆ for lightning impulse (LI) voltages (1.2/50 μs). Surface charges may be generated by dc, ac or lightning impulse stress. The discharge characteristic shows a strong reduction of the insulation strength if the applied voltage and the surface charge have opposite polarities. The investigations were performed with a needle protrusion attached to the bottom electrode to give severe field distortion. The bottom electrode was biased positively. The influence on the discharge process is observed by measuring the surface charge distribution and predischarge currents. The results reveal changes in streamer onset voltage, streamer to leader transition, and leader development     

Effects of a barrier on creeping discharge characteristics in SF6 and N2 gases under pulse voltages

This paper describes the effect of a barrier on creeping discharge characteristics in SF₆, N₂, and their mixtures. The barrier height effect on the discharge voltage was investigated under a positive pulse voltage. The discharge voltage increased with increasing barrier height in SF₆ gas. On the other hand, the discharge voltage hardly changed with the barrier height in N₂ gas. In order to clarify the mechanism of the initial creeping corona, it was observed by optical techniques, including an ultra-high-speed electronic imaging system (IMACON 468). The creeping corona path revealed differences in images at various barrier heights. The accumulated charge induced on the barrier by the initial corona in SF₆ gas was able to suppress the development of the later creeping corona, in contrast with N₂ gas. © 1998 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 125(4): 1–8, 1998     

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.