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Non-ceramic (composite) insulators consist of a fiberglass core rod surrounded by a polymer housing. Weathershed materials may be subject to degradation and aging in service due to harsh environmental conditions. Performance evaluation of polymer weathersheds can employ fog chambers.
Non-ceramic (composite) insulators consist of a fiberglass core rod surrounded by a polymer housing. Weathershed materials may be subject to degradation and aging in service due to harsh environmental conditions. Performance evaluation of polymer weathersheds can employ fog chambers.
Non-ceramic (composite) insulators consist of a fiberglass core rod surrounded by a polymer housing. Weathershed materials may be subject to degradation and aging in service due to harsh environmental conditions. Performance evaluation of polymer weathersheds can employ fog chambers.
Review of Features of Fog Chamber at The Ohio State University
for Polymer Insulator Evaluation
Stephen A. Sebo, Edgar P. Casale, JosC R. Cedefio, Wibawa Tjokrodiponto and Sheikh A. Akbar The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210-1272, U.S.A. and J ohn Sakich and Tiebin Zhao The Ohio Brass Company, Wadsworth, Ohio 44281-0901, U.S.A. Abstract Non-ceramic (composite) insulators consist of a fiberglass core rod surrounded by a polymer weather- shed housing. The housing is generally nianufacturcd from an elastomer material. Weathershed materials may besubject to degradation and aging in service due to harsh environmental conditions. Performance evaluation of polymer weathersheds can employ fog chambers. Design and operational features of a new fog chamber are reviewed in this paper. Specific charactcr- istics reviewed are: size and main layout of the cham- ber, insulator arrangement, high voltage source; pro- tection, water circulation and data acquisition systcms. Test cycles and techniques are also discussed briefly. Introduction A non-ceramic (composite) insulator has a high-strength core surroundcd by a polymer weathcr- shed housing. Both ends have metal end fittings. Non-ceramic materials as high voltage insula- tors were introduced about 30 years ago. These com- posite insulators have two components. One is a resin- bonded fiberglass core rod of high tensile strength. The other is the housing, generally manufactured from an elastomer material, such as etliylcne propylcne rubber (EPR), which includes ethylene propylcne monomer (EPM) and ethylene propylcne diene nionomcr (EPDM), silicone rubber, and alloys of EPDWsilicone. Various other polymers, teflon and cycloaliphatic ep- oxy resins can also be used as housing matcrials. Fillcr materials, e.g., alumina trihydrate, are also addcd. Advantages of non-ceramic insulators over porcelain or glass insulators are well-documcntcd [ 11- [SI. The advantages are lighter weight, greater vandal- ism (i.e., impact) resistance, highcr strength-to-weight ratio, better contamination performance (they nccd lcss cleaning under pollutcd conditions), and improvcd transmission line aesthetics. There are manufacturing advantages as well, since they are not fragile and are easier to handle. There have been a variety of problems to be solved, though. Housing material tracking and erosion, surface changes, water absorption, reduction of con- tamination flashover strength, bonding failures along the rod-shed interface were reported [7], leading to changes in materials and manufacturing processes. At the same time, the range of tests of non- ceramic insulators has become broader and more so- phisticated. The objectives of these tests are to examine the pcrformance of non-ceramic materials and insula- tor designs, and to obtain information on the expected lcngth of service life of a specific non-ceramic insula- tor. One of the types of preferred tests is the appli- cation of fog chambers together with various matcrial diagnostic techniques. The purpose of this paper is to review a ncw fog chamber dcsign and utilization proj- ect prcscntly under way in the High Voltage Labora- tory at The Ohio State University (OSU). Sections of this paper review the size and main layout of the fog chamber, insulator arrangement, high voltage source and protection system, watcr circu- lation and fog generation system, data acquisition sys- tcm, and test cycle and procedure considerations. Re\.icw of Literature Scveral publications describe the dcsign of fog chambcrs, selcction of test conditions, instrunmitation and data acquisition, test proccdurcs and tcst rcsults. A 1.52111 x 1.521~1 x 1.37ni high chambcr with a pyramidal roof dcvclopcd at the Massacliusctts Insti- tute of Technology is discusscd i n [ l]. The first salt-fog chambcr of Dow Corning Corp. is dcscribcd in dctail i n [2]; similar but more advanced chanibcrs havc bcen dcvelopcd lntcr by Don (0-7083-3580-5) 1996 IEEE Annual Report - Conference on Electrical Insulation and Dielectric Phenomena, San Francisco, October 20-23, 1996 Corning researchers. Their salt-fog chambers are cu- bicles with 1.52ni sides and a pyramidal roof. Information on a larger cube-shaped chamber at the University of Windsor with 2.53111 sides is avail- able in [3] and [SI. A clean-fog chamber, 2n1 x 2111x 3111high, set up at The University of Tokushima, is discussed in [4]. The fog chamber at Arizona State University, 3.6Sm x 3.65m x 2.44m high, is described in [SI. Several test procedures of accelerated aging and flashover tests on non-ceramic insulating materials are discussed and analyzed in [SI and [6]. Comprehensive bibliographies related to non- ceramic insulators and their test methods and proce- dures are available in [7] and [SI. There are two IEC standards pertinent to this subject; they are [9] and [lo]. IEC 1109 specifies the maximum chaniber vol- ume used for salt-fog tests; it is 10m3 [lo]. Size and Main Layout of the Fog Chamber Tlie polymer insulators are tested in a fog chamber made of transparent plastic material. Polycar- bonate (or Lexan) sheets were selected for the sides and roof of the chamber due to their impact strength, tem- perature resistance, design flexibility and chemical inertness. The aging characteristics of polycarbonate sheets are superior to those of acrylic. A practical ad- vantage is that acrylic tcnds to become brittle with age, polycarbonate does not. The chamber size selected is 1.72111 (5.65ft) x 2.44111(Sft) x 1.83111(Gft) high, with a gable roof. Top- side angle of the roof is 90 degrees. The volume of the chanibcr is 9.5ni3 (33Sft3), satisfying [lo]. Tlie chamber is on a steel base frame. All componcnts are angle elements for their mechanical strength. Tlie base has O.66111high, individually braced legs with casters. Two lcveling legs are also employed in order to prevent rolling of the chamber once it has been positioned. The center of the base is 0.05m lowcr than the side elcnicnts of the base frame. There is a 0.0Sni drain hole at the lowest point of the base. There are eight steel braces between the sides of the base frame and the center drainage point. Eight plywood segments are supported by these braces. These segments have been treated with liquid water repellent. The boltom of the chamber is covered with an indus- trial strength rubber membrane glued to the plywood segments. The walls of the chamber rest on the rubber membrane. The menibrane is folded up the walls making the chamber leak-proof The polycarbonate walls and roof elements of the chaniber are joined by fiberglass (Glastic) angles, room temperature vulcanizing (RTV) silicone sealant, and nylon screws. One of the short or end walls of the chamber supports the high voltage bushing. The op- posite side is the location of the access door. The four fog nozzles are mounted along the two long or side walls of the chamber. Figure 1 is the view of the fog chamber at The Ohio State University. Figure 1. View of the fog chamber at OSU. Insulator Arrangement in the Chamber The insulators under test are suspended verti- cally, with their grounded ends upwards, from the roof of the fog chamber. Horizontal suspension is possible, too. A spoke-type system is also available for the posi- tioning of small insulators or sample pieces of insula- tion. (The spoke-type system has been selected over a disc-type system in order to reduce the dripping of condensed water during the tests.) A pedestal can be used for the mounting of longer or larger insulators during tests. High Voltage Source Due to the specific test requirements, the high voltage source selected is a 240V I 69000V, SOkVA, 60Hz single phase transformer. The voltage regulator is a bank of six variable voltage transformers con- nected in parallel with a total capacity of 42kVA. The six units are on a common sh,aft with motor operated voltage control. Uniform current distribution among the six units is ensured by six paralleling transformers. 444 The output voltage of the transformer is con- nected to the high voltage bushing of the fog chanibcr. The bushing is lightweight, custom-made, utilizing a section of a high voltage cable, cable terminators, and polymer weathershed housings. There is a circuit breaker (that trips at 200A) in the 240V connection of the high voltage source. There are 250mA low voltage fuses in the ground con- nection of each insulator. Water Circulation and Fog Generation System Four air atomizing spray nozzles are em- ployed, two on each long wall of the fog chamber. It is a pressurized set-up: the water and air supplied to each nozzle are under pressure. Flow rates of the water and air of each nozzle can be adjustcd to change tlie water particle size. Each nozzle fits into an adapter that is a part of a flange mount, holding the nozzle securely in place in the polycarbonate wall of the chamber. Various spray hcads can be employed; the heads initially selected produce a dcflccted flat spray pattern. The fog created by this pattern is very uniform; it fills the chamber gradually, from the base upwards. Each nozzle has a clean-out needle assembly. The nozzles are made of stainless steel. The water flow rate supplicd by each of the four nozzles can be varied bctwcen 0.1 and 0.47 dm3/min (1.5 to 7.4 gal/hr). The air flow rate at each nozzle can be varied bctween 45 and 266 dm3/min (1.6 to 9.4 standard ft3/min), the absolute air pressure range at the nozzles is 140-500kPa (20 to 70psi). The watcr and air flow rates are monitored at each nozzle by ap- propriate flow meters. Each flow metcr is equippcd with a valve to control the water and air flows, rcspcc- tively. Eithcr clean fog or salt fog can be applied in the fog chaiiibcr. In the case of salt fog, a saline solu- tion is obtaincd by mixing sodium-chloride with dcionizcd watcr in a 75 litcr plastic tub until the dc- sired conductivity, e.g., 250 or 2500 pS/cm, is rcachcd. (A mixed-bed deionizer system is uscd. The dcionizcd water produced by the unit has a conductivity about 3-5 pS/cni.) The plastic tub is under the ccntcr drainage point of tlie fog chamber; it is on castcrs for easy handling. A portable nicter is employcd to nicasurc the conductivity and the tempcrature. The mctcr is equipped with automatic temperature compensation i n the 0-50 degree C range. The air is supplied by a comprcssor. The wa- ter is circulated by a corrosion-resistant pump. The saline solution is filtered constantly and changcd daily. Steam fog generation is available for some flashover tests. It is produced by boiling water in a gal- vanized steel tub with immersion heaters. It is easy to adjust the steam production rate (grams/hour/m3) as desired. A different high voltage transformer is uscd for these experiments by moving the fog chamber, that has casters, to another location. Data Acquisition System The data acquisition system nionitors the Icakage current of each insulator or specimen under test, via the voltage drop across a series resistor outside the fog chamber. The leakage currents flowing through the contaminatcd surface of the insulators under test are sensed, conditioned, digitized, processed, dis- played, and finally stored for further analysis. The A/D converter employed by the data ac- quisition system has 12-bit resolution, 16 single-ended (or 8 diffcrential) input channels, niaximuni acquisi- tion rate of 100 ksampledsec, and niax. +5 V bipolar input voltage range if the gain is 1. The gain is switch- selectable (1, 2, 4 or 8). Virtual instrumentation software, DASYLab, was detcrmined to be the most suitable option for this application. An icon-based program has bccn devel- oped to classify the leakage currcnt pulse counts using bins, and to compute cumulative charge, and niaxi- niuni and minimum current pulse values [ 1 11. A signal conditioning system protects the in- put terminals of the data acquisition system against overvoltages in the case of insulator flashover. The dcsktop computer used is a 16MByte RAM, 586 / 133MHz type PC. A power line condi- tioner is uscd to protect the computer from problems causcd by transicnts and to ensure line-to-load isola- tion. An unintcrruptible power supply is eniploycd. Test Cycles and Procedures The initial step i n tcsting polymer insulators is the cliaractcrization of the wcathcrshcd material using various diagnostic tcchniqucs, such as Electron Spcctroscopy for Chemical Analysis (ESCA) and Fourier Transformed Infrarcd Spectroscopy (FTIR). Other tcchniqucs, for example XPS (X-ray Photocmis- sion Spcctroscopy) and EDS (Energy Dispersive Spcc- troscopy) are also available. The sccond stcp of the polymcr insulator evaluation is a scrics of ac flashovcr tests on thc insula- tors, at diffcrcnt slurry lcvcls (characterized by thc equivalcnt salt dcposit density [ESDD] figures), at 445 steam fog conditions. This flashover voltage is one of the reference points used in evaluating the insulator. The next step is to expose the energized insu- lators cyclically to salt fog for an extended period of time (e.g., 500 hrs). Then a new series of ac flashover tests in steam fog is performed on the insulators. Material characterization tests are conducted again on the aged polymer insulator component sam- ples. Also, aged insulator samples are exposed to ul- traviolet (UV) rays for several months before another series of material characterization tests is performed. Analysis of Tests Degradation of the polymer insulators can be evaluated by their electrical, mechanical, chemical and physical characteristics. The analysis of tests considers several features, such as time to failure, flashover volt- age, leakage current (waveshape, peak magnitudes, pulse count, change vs. time), cumulative charge, tracking resistance, surlace condition, surface conduc- tance, etc. Summary The widespread use of non-ceramic insulators has made the evaluation of their long-term perform- ance essential. Preferred test methods can supply quantitative information on the aging characteristics of polymer housing materials of non-ceramic insulators and on the length of their expected outdoor service life. Application of a fog chamber is one of the preferred test methods. Testing non-ceramic insulators in a new fog chamber, a joint project of The Ohio State University and The Ohio Brass Company, has bcen discussed in this paper. Various design and operational features, test cycles and test procedures have also been reviewed. Acknowlcdgcnicnts Discussions and visit with Messrs. E. A. Rey- nnert and G.A. Toskey of Dow-Corning Corp. bcfore the construction of the fog chamber were valuable. The fog chamber was constructed by Messrs. Carl A. Rus- sell and William C. Thalgott. References [ 11 D.C Jolly, A Qualitative Method for Detennining the Resistance of Polymers to Surface Discharges, IEEE Trans. on El. Insulation, Vol. EI-17, August 1982, pp.293-299. [2] E.A. Reynaert, T. Orbeck, J.A. Seifferly, Evaluation of Polymer Systems for Outdoor HV Insulator Application by Salt Fog Chamber Testing, Proc. of the 1982 IEEE ZntI Synip. on Electrical Insulation, pp. 242-247. [3] R.S. Gorur, E.A. Cherney, R. Hackam, A Comparative Study of Polymer Insulating Materials Under Salt Fog Con- ditions, IEEE Trans. on El. Insulation, Vol. EI-21, April 1986, pp. 175-182. [4] K. Isaka, Y. Yokoi, K. Naito et al., Development of Real-Time Systemfor Simultaneous Observation of Visual Discharges and Leakage Current on Contaminated DC Insu- lators, IEEE Trans. on El. Insulation, Vol. 25, December 1990, pp. 1153-1160. 151 A. DeLa0, R.S. Gorur, J . Chang, AC Clean Fog Tests on Non-Ceramic Insulating Materials and a Comparison with Porcelain, IEEE Trans. on Power Delivery, Vol. 9, October 1994, pp. 2000-2008. [6] H.M. Scl~eider, W.W. Guidi, J.T. Bunlham, R.S. Gorur, J.F. Hall, Accelerated Aging and Flashover Tests on 138 kV Nonceramic Line Post Insulators, IEEE Trans. on Power Delivery, Vol. 8, January 1993, pp.325-336. [7] J.F. Hall, History and Bibliography of Polymeric Insu- lators for Outdoor Applications, IEEE Trans. on Power Delivery, Vol. 8, January 1993, pp.376-385. [8] S.H. Kim, R. Hackam, Effects of Saline-Water Flow Rate and Air Speed on Leakage Current in RTV Coatings, IEEE Trans. on Power Delivery, Paper No. 95 WM 248-5 PWRD. [9] Artificial Pollution Tests on High Voltage Insulators to beUsed on AC Systems, Inteniational Standard, lEC 507, Second Edition, 199 1. [lo] Composite Insulators for AC Overhead Lines witha Nominal Voltage Greater Than 1000 V -Definitions, Test Methods and Acceptance Criteria, International Standard, IEC 1109, First Edition, 1992. [ 1 11 E.P. Casale, S.A. Sebo, Polymer Insulator Fog Cham- ber Project: Data Acquisition SystemDevelopment, Proc. of the 1996 CEIDP (companion paper). Corresponding author: Prof. Stephen A. Sebo Department of Electrical Engineering The Ohio State University Columbus, Ohio 43210-1272, U.S.A. Phone: 1-6 14-292-74 10 E-mail: sebo@ee.eng.ohio-state.edu FAX: 1-614-292-7596 446