Additives distribution and electrical properties in zinc oxide varistor prepared by a wet chemical method

Cobalt-, praseodymium-added zinc oxide varistor was prepared through a wet chemical method followed by sintering with or without calcination. Changes in grain size, compact density, additives distribution, and voltagecurrent/ capacitance-voltage relations were investigated for the characterization of the samples sintered at temperatures from 1473 to 1573 K without calcination or with calcination at 773 K for 2 h. The electrical properties were compared with nhose of samples prepared by two types of ball mill methods. The wet chemical method provided almost the same additives-distribution profile and less impurities in comparison with the ball grinding method carried out for 10–100 h. The donor concentration and the potential-barrier height for the samples were evaluated by Double Schottky Barrier Model. Addition of small amount of both cobalt and praseodymium in preparation by the wet chemical method was effective for a better nonlinearity relation between voltage and current, which has potential for a smaller sized varistor.     

Nb2O5掺杂对ZnO压敏电阻器电性能的影响

本文研究了Ｎｂ＿２Ｏ＿５掺杂以及Ｎｂ＿２Ｏ＿５与ＺｎＯ煅烧对ＺｎＯ压敏电阻器电性能的影响。实验表明，Ｎｂ＿２Ｏ＿５的掺入使压敏电场减少，当Ｎｂ＿２Ｏ＿５含量为０．１％ｍｏｌ时，其压敏电场最小．非线性系数最大。煅烧温度越高，压敏电场越高，非线性系数越大。     

晶闸管变压式电容无功补偿方法的研究

提出了一种通过晶闸管开关装置直接调节电容器两端电压以调节电容无功功率的方法和相应的原理及接线。同时提出了换级控制方法,分析了故障时产生的断态过电压,采用氧化锌压敏电阻过压保护后,重新对断态过电压进行了仿真。结果表明:补偿装置能多级、大范围调节容性无功,较之于其它快速补偿装置综合工程造价低,有望用于高压电网;装置故障时,会出现严重过电压,若过压保护动作后可使断态电压降低到允许范围内。     

Failure of high power varistor ceramic components

Ceramic varistors are electronic components which have a sharp change (over several orders of magnitude) of their electrical resistance at a well-defined voltage (switching voltage). Starting at low voltages, the resistance is large. But by exceeding the switching voltage the resistance drops dramatically and the component acts as a good conductor. Mounted parallel to a consumer, they are used as protection devices against over voltage loading. In the technical routine yearly billions of varistors are used to protect power lines, transformation stations, electronic devices, microelectronic systems or even LEDs.In service large temperature differences may come into existence, which cause severe mechanical stresses that even may destroy the components. The basic principles of the varistor behaviour are explained and examples of mechanical failure are discussed.     

Influence of Ge and GeO2 on the microstructure and varistor properties of TiO2–Ta2O5–CaCO3 ceramics

This study investigated the effect of elemental crystal Ge or/and GeO₂ doping on the microstructure and varistor properties of TiO₂–Ta₂O₅–CaCO₃ varistor ceramics, which were prepared via the traditional ball milling–molding–sintering process. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, scanning transmission electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy demonstrated that co-doping with Ge and GeO₂ changed the microstructure of TiO₂–Ta₂O₅–CaCO₃ ceramics, thereby increasing the nonlinear coefficient and decreasing the breakdown voltage. The optimum doping concentrations of Ta₂O₅, CaCO₃, Ge, and GeO₂ exhibited the highest nonlinear coefficient (α=14.6), a lower breakdown voltage (E_B=18.7 V mm⁻¹), the least leakage current (J_L=10.5 μA cm⁻²), and the highest grain boundary barrier (Φ_B=1.05 eV). In addition, Ge and GeO₂ function as sintering aids, which reduce the sintering temperature because of their low melting points.     

Effect of Bi2O3 and Sb2O3 on the grain size distribution of ZnO

In the present study, the effect of Bi₂O₃ and Bi₂O₃+Sb₂O₃ additions on the size distribution of ZnO grains is investigated. Without the usage of a powder bed, the addition of Bi₂O₃ provides a transient liquid phase that enhances the densification. The residual Bi segregates alters the surface/grain boundary energy ratio, which encourages the ZnO grains to grow. The size variation is also increased. The addition of both Bi₂O₃ and Sb₂O₃ induces the formation of pyrochlore, spinel and inversion boundary. Their presence reduces not only the average grain size, but also the size variation.     

Voltage polarity dependent current paths through polycrystalline ZnO varistors

Due to the scatter of properties of individual grain boundaries, a scatter of the behavior of low-voltage varistor components and asymmetric current–voltage characteristics with respect to the electrical field direction is observed. Using complementary methods (thermography, scanning surface probe microscopy, electron back-scattered diffraction), we investigated the grain boundary behavior of Praseodymium type varistors. Measurements on the relevant grain boundaries revealed a newly observed effect: dependent on the field direction, the main current flows via different spatial paths.     

Thermal and electrical stability of ZnO varistors with glass additives

Glasses in the PbO-B₂O₃-Al₂O₃-BaO-CaO-SiO₂ system were employed as the dopant to ZnO varistors. The thermal stability of the varistor is enhanced with glass additives. The temperature coefficient of threshold field for the sample doped with 1 w/o glass (65 w/o PbO - 23 w/o B₂O₃ - 12 w/o SiO₂) is 1 × 10^-4/K as compared to 3.3 × 10^-3/K for that of the undoped sample. The change in the temperature dependence of the field-current density characteristics is more related to the barrier height change than the refractory behavior of the glass employed. Heat treatment is very effective in recovering the degraded samples by providing the activation energy for the diffusion of Zn interstitials. The experimental results can be explained with a Schottky barrier model.     

混掺钢屑铁砂水泥砂浆压敏性研究

在砂浆中混掺钢屑和铁砂两种工业废弃料,制备得到环保低成本的水泥基复合材料,在测定其抗压强度的基础上采用交流两电极法研究其导电性能和压敏性能,并分析研究了混掺掺量、弹塑性荷载、不同加载速率以及冲击荷载等对其压敏性的影响。试验结果表明,随着导电材料掺量增加,试件压敏性更加明显。加载速率越大,试件电阻率变化越大;冲击荷载数值对瞬间电阻率与卸载后电阻率均有较大影响。     

Effect of sintering temperature on varistor properties and aging characteristics of ZnO–V2O5–MnO2 ceramics

The microstructure, electrical properties, dielectric characteristics, and DC accelerated aging behavior of the ZVM-based varistors were investigated for different sintering temperatures of 800–950 °C. The microstructure of the ZVM-based ceramics consisted of mainly ZnO grain and secondary phase Zn₃(VO₄)₂, which acts as liquid-phase sintering aid. The Zn₃(VO₄)₂ has a significant effect on the sintered density, in the light of an experimental fact, which the decreases of the Zn₃(VO₄)₂ distribution with increasing sintering temperature resulted in the low sintered density. The breakdown field exhibited the highest value (17,640 V/cm) at 800 °C in the sintering temperature and the lowest value (992 V/cm) at 900 °C in the sintering temperature. The nonlinear coefficient exhibited the highest value, reaching 38 at 800 °C and the lowest value, reaching 17 at 850 °C. The varistor sintered at 900 °C exhibited not only high nonlinearity with 27.2 in nonlinear coefficient, but also the highest stability, in which %ΔE_1 mA = −0.6%, %Δα = −26.1%, and %Δ tan δ = +21.8% for DC accelerated aging stress of 0.85 E_1 mA/85 °C/24 h.