Breakdown in Commercial Liquids

Factors affecting Breakdown

a. Nature and condition of Electrodes
b. Physical properties of liquid

c. Impurities present
d. Dissolved Gases

e. Geometry of Electrodes
f. Volume of Liquid in High Stressed Region

Theories Proposed for Breakdown

a. Suspended particle mechanism

b. Cavitation and bubble mechanism

c. Statistical or stressed oil volume theory

Suspended particle theory

Impurities or particles floating in the liquid align The force that drags them into the Electric Field is given by 1 3 e s el 2 F r E 2 e s 2e l If er is large,

1 3 F r E 2 2

The particles form conducting chain which leads to breakdown

Cavity and bubble breakdown theory

Liquids usually contain bubbles or cavities located on electrode surfaces as dissolved gases in liquid volume dissociation of products by electron collision giving rise to gaseous products liquid vaporization by internal discharges from points and irregularities at the electrode surfaces.

a. b. c.

d.

When a free gas bubble or a cavity exists and is immersed in a liquid subjected to uniform electric field E0, the field inside the bubble is given by

3E 0 Eb el 2
If Eb is equal to the field at which the gas inside the bubble ionizes, a discharge takes place within the bubble

Formation and Collapse of a Bubble

Instability of Bubble leading to Breakdown

Stressed oil volume theory

The weakest link or particle in a large volume determines the breakdown strength ;of the liquid More the volume, larger will be the number of weak links or particles The breakdown strength is inversely proportional to the stressed oil volume The breakdown strength is highly influenced by gas content in oil, solid impurities present

Breakdown Stress as a function of Stress Oil Volume

Power Law for Breakdown Voltage

The breakdown of a spark gap under uniform field conditions follows the power law Vb = V0dn

where V0 = breakdown Voltage of 1 unit length gap n = a constant usually between 0.6 to 0.9 that depends on properties of the liquid

Breakdown Strength of typical commerical oils

Oil Working Stress (kV/cm) 20 to 50 Breakdown Strength (kV/cm) 150 to 200

Transformer Oil

n-hexane (cable oil) 100 to 150 200 to 250 Polybutane (capacitor Oil) 100 to 200 ~1000