CONTENT

 INTRODUCTION

 PROPERTIES OF INSULATOR

 MATERIALS

 TYPES OF INSULATORS

 BREAKDOWN

 TESTING OF INSULATORS

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INTRODUCTION
Insulation is the act of covering a bare metal with an insulator. Insulators are
materials that stop the flow of current through them. There are a whole range of
insulators used for protecting electrical carrying metals. In this passage we are
going to talk about the material used for the insulators and their breakdown.

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MATERIALS
Materials used for insulators are selected base on these properties:

 They must be mechanically very strong

 Their dielectric strength must be very high
 They must provide very high insulation resistance to the leakage currents
 They must be impervious to the entrance of gases or liquids into the
materials
 They should not be porous
 They should be free from impurities
 They must have high ratio of punctures strength of flash over voltage
 They should not affected by changes in temperature

Material for underground cable insulation

Insulators used for underground cables are made from:

XLPE (cross linked Polythene)

This material is produced when low density polythene is vulcanized under
controlled conditions.

Advantages

 It is light weight
 It has low dielectric constant and good mechanical strength.
 It permit conductor temperatures of 90oC and 250oC under normal and
short circuit conditions
 It has low water absorption and can be buried directly in soil
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Polyvinyl chloride (PVC)

It is a synthetic material obtained from acetylene and can be produced in grades

depending on the polymerization process used. It is in the form of a white powder
which is odourless, tasteless, chemically inert, non-inflammable and insoluble at
ordinary temperatures in all liquids. In pure form it is rigid and brittle at low
temperature. When used for cable insulation it must be combined with a
plasticizer whose function is to form a gel and make the material plastic over the
desired range of temperature. Its mechanical properties are not as good as those
of rubber and the insulation resistance is also lower than that of rubber. However,
it is inert to oxygen and almost inert to oils, many acids and alkalies. Therefore, it
is preferable to rubber in many environmental conditions.

Paper

Paper is the most important insulating material used in the manufacture of power
cables up to 500kv rating. For providing insulation over the conductor, the paper
tape is lapped on to the conductor until the required thickness is obtained, it is
then dried and impregnated with insulating compound. The insulating compounds
are required to have, besides high electrical insulation properties, a high viscosity
at working temperatures (50-80oC), a low viscosity at impregnation temperatures
(105-120oC), a smooth change in viscosity with temperature and very low
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coefficient of thermal expansion.

Advantages

 It is superior over heat conductive

 It has the ability to withstand high temperatures
 It is durable and has high dielectric strength
 It is inexpensive and has low electrostatic capacitance.

Material for overhead lines

Materials for overhead lines are made from:

Porcelain

Porcelain insulators are made from clay, quartz or alumina and feldspar and are
covered with a smooth glaze to shed water. Insulator made from porcelain rich in
alumina are used where high mechanical strength is criterion. Porcelain has a
dielectric strength of about 4-10kv/mm.

Advantages of porcelain

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  Porcelain is hard
 It is smooth
 It is glazed( it is coated with glass coating)
 It is free from porosity

Glass

Glass has a higher dielectric strength but it attracts condensation and the thick
irregular shapes needed for insulators are difficult to cast without internal strains.

Advantages of Glass

 They have very high dielectric strength about 140kv per cm of thickness of
the material.
 They have high resistivity if properly annealed
 It has simpler design
 They have higher compressive strength than porcelain insulators
 They are transparent so any flaw, impurities, air bubbles, cracks etc. can
easily be detected.

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Disadvantages of Glass

 The moisture easily condenses over the surface due to which dirt will
deposit on its surface leading to leakages.
 Glass cannot be cast into different shapes for high voltages

Steatite

Steatite is made from a combination of magnesium oxide and silica.

Advantages

It has high tensile strength and used in situations where the insulator is in pure
tension i.e. when transmission lines take sharp turns.

TYPES OF INSULATORS FOR OVER HEAD LINES

Pin-type insulator

A pin insulator consists of a non-conduction material such as porcelain, glass,

plastic, Polymer, or wood that is formed into a shape that will isolate a wire form
a physical support (or “pin”) on a telegraph, utility pole or other structure,
provide a means to hold the insulator to the pin and provide a means to secure

the conductor to the insulator.

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The pin insulator is designed to secure the conductor to itself. The most common
way to do this is to use a wire to tie the conductor to the insulator. Another
method is to design the insulator with self-typing features such as complex slots
and grooves formed into the insulators. Finally, for heavy conductors, gravity can
be used to hold the conductor in place.

Pin insulators are almost always deployed in the open air, so isolation when wet is
a major consideration. To combat this problem, Pin insulators features extra skirts

or wide shells to increase the

surface distances between the conductor and the pin.

The “pin” is typically a wooden or metal dowel of about 3cm diameter with screw
threads. The pin insulator has threads so that it can be screwed into the pin. A
typical pin insulator is more than 10cm in diameter and weighs one kg or more.
Size depends on the voltage to be isolated and the weight or span of wire to be
supported.

Suspension Type insulators

Suspension insulators consist of porcelain disc units mounted one above the
other. Each disc consists of a single shed of porcelain grooved on the surface to

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increase the creepage distance.

The upper surface of each disc is inclined at a suitable angle to the horizontal in
order to ensure free drainage of water. Each disc is provided with a metal cap at
the top and a pin underneath. The cap is recessed so as to take the pin of another
unit and thus a string of any required number can be built. The suspension
insulator has many advantages over pin insulators. Some of these are:

a. Each disc is designed for a low voltage and the required degree of
insulation is achieved by using a suitable number of discs. In the event of
failure of one disc and not the entire string needs replacement.
b. Since the line is suspended flexibly, the mechanical stresses are reduced.\
c. If it is proposed to increase the line voltage the line insulation can be
increased by adding the appropriate number of discs.

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Post insulators
These are insulators that are used for supporting the bus bars and disconnecting
switches in substations. A post insulator is similar to a pin type insulator but has a
metal base and frequently a metal cap so that more than one unit can be
mounted in series.

Strain insulators

These are special mechanically strong suspension insulators and are used to take
the tension of the conductors at line terminations and at positions where there is
a change in the direction of line. The disc of a strain insulator is in vertical plane as

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compared to the discs of suspension which are in horizontal plane.

BREAKDOWN OF INSULATORS
The breakdown of an insulator is the rapid reduction in the resistance of an
electrical insulator that can lead to sparks. Breakdown can be due:

a. Mechanical stress: breakdown due to this is very rare because defective

pieces are weeded out in the routine factory tests.

b. Cracking: this is due to continued action of alternate and sometimes rapidly

varying heat and cold, dryness and dampness which produce high stresses
on the porcelain and lead to failure.
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c. Porosity : this is due to under firing or other causes leads to failure because
porous material absorbs water from atmosphere or cement and its
electrical resistance decreases. The leakage current which flows through
the porcelain tends to heat up a localized portion to a high temperature.
This local heat may them cause mechanical failure followed by the passage
of a power arc through the insulator shell. A porosity test is a necessary
routine factory test for insulators.

d. Puncture: breakdown of an insulator by puncture is quite rare. Insulators

are so designed that they never puncture. Nevertheless puncture does
occur occasionally due to improper vitrification in the material. The
puncture voltage of an insulator is the voltage which will cause a
breakdown in the porcelain between the conductor and the insulator base,
causing the insulator to be destroyed. The breakdown through puncture is
affected by the electrical characteristic of the material and the care taken in
the manufacture. The puncture causes a permanent damage to the
insulator.

e. Flashover: The most common cause of the insulator breakdown is the

flashover of the insulator. The flashover voltage is the voltage which will
cause an arc through the air surrounding the insulator. In actual practice
insulators are often subjected to power frequency and impulse over
voltages due to switching and lightning. If the over voltage exceeds the
flashover voltage of the insulator, an arc occurs between the line conductor
and insulator base. As and when a flashover occurs the surrounding air is
ionized that there is virtually a follow through power arc due to the system
voltage, after the transient voltage has subsided. After a flashover an
insulator continues to function properly unless it is shattered by the heat of
the arc. For this reason insulators are often fitted with arcing horns to keep
this power are away from the insulator.

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 TESTING OF INSULATORS
An insulator should have a good mechanical strength to withstand the load
conditions. It should not have any pores or voids which may lead to breakdown.
Its electrical strength should be large enough to withstand the normal voltage and
unusual over voltages but the insulators should flashover at such voltages which
are likely to cause damage to other equipment. The following tests are performed
on the insulators:

Porosity test

This is a destructive test and is performed on very few selected pieces, usually
one or two out of a production batch. The insulator to be tested is broken into
pieces and the pieces are immersed in a 1% solution of fuchsine dye in alcohol
under pressure of 15x106N/m2. After sufficient time the piece are removed from
the container and examined. A deep penetration of the dye indicates porosity.

Mechanical strength test

The insulator is mounted on the crossarm as in the normal working conditions. A

conductor of length 1.5 times the length of the insulator in use. The conductor
should not be less than one cm diameter. Then the following mechanical strength
tests are performed:

a. A mechanical load equal to 1.5 times the load of the conductor, expected in
a single span is applied, in compression for pin type insulators and tension
for suspension insulators. For strain insulators the applied should be 1.5
times the tension that would come on the insulator while in use. The load
maintained for one minute should not cause any crack or break in the
insulators.
b. The rated voltage of the insulator is applied to the attached conductor and
a load equal to 1.25 times the normal load coming on the insulator is
applied for 1 minute. No crack or breakage should occur.

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 c. Normal load is applied and conductor is supplied with 75% of dry-flash over
voltage. The insulator should be able to withstand power frequency voltage
of this magnitude along with load. This test is a design test and may not be
performed as acceptance test by the user.
d. For pin type insulators, a bending stress equal to three times the normal
load on insulator is applied for one minute. This force is in the direction of
the conductor. The insulator or it pin should not show any sign of damage
after the test and the permanent set to the insulator due to this load
should not exceed 1%. This test is made only on pin type or post type
insulators and not on strings.

Power Frequency Dry Flashover Voltage Test

The conductor of a size not less than that used for mechanical strength
measurement is used. For pin insulators the winding wire of not less than 3mm
diameter has to be used. The insulator should be mounted or suspended from a
crossarm extending at least 3ft (0.9m) on either side and there should be no other
conduction object in the vicinity of the conductor. A steadily increasing power
frequency voltage is applied and raised till the flashover occurs. The test is
repeated 5 or 10 times. For 5 readings, the mean is taken as the correct flashover
voltage. The other more commonly used method is to take the median of 10
values of flashover voltage. The median can be obtained by arranging the ten
values in ascending order and taking the average of 5th and 6th reading. The
voltage so obtained is called the 50% dry flashover voltage.
The 50% power frequency dry flashover test can also be performed by applying
the same voltage to 10 insulators together. The spacing between the insulators
should have at least 4 times the length of each. All the insulators may not
flashover simultaneously. The voltage till which 5 insulators have flashover is
called the 50 per cent power frequency voltage. The flashover voltage obtained
by the mean of 5 or median of 10 readings should not be less than that given in IS:
731 (1971).
The voltage may be applied constantly and the voltage which causes flashover
after one minute is called one minute dry flashover voltage.

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Power frequency Wet Flashover Voltage

In this test water is sprayed on the insulator at an inclination of 45o and

equivalent to a precipitation of 3mm per minute. Then the test is continued in the
same way as in dry flashover test, the spray being continued till the actual
flashover occurs. The resistivity of water in this test should be 10000Ω/cm and if
the resistivity of pure water be more, it can be reduced by adding small quantities
of mineral salt or an inorganic acid. This voltage should not be less than the values
given in IS: 731 (1971) for the smallest value noted for 10 tests.

Impulse Voltage Flashover Test

Voltage impulses of increasing magnitude are applied to the conductor in

succession. The peak value of impulse voltage giving flashover is called the
impulse flashover voltage. The impulse ratio is given by impulse flashover
voltage/power frequency dry flashover voltage. Minimum acceptable flashover
voltages are given in standards. If a surge generator for high voltage, of the order
required, be not available, a high frequency (usually 200 kHz) damped voltage
may also be applied.

Puncture Voltage Test

This test is a destructive test and very few pieces out of a batch are selected for
this test. The insulator with the pin in proper position and conductor at the other
end is immersed in insulating oil and a steadily increasing power frequency
voltage is applied. The voltage at which conduction starts is called the puncture
voltage. In air, flashover occurs at a voltage lower than the puncture voltage, so
the test is conducted in oil at room temperature. The puncture voltage for strings
should be at least 30% higher than the power frequency wet flashover voltage
and for pin insulators it should not be less than that given in IS: 731 (1971). As an
acceptance test the voltage can be rapidly increased to the value given in
standards for pin insulators and 1.3 times the wet flashover voltage for string
insulators. No conduction should take place. The acceptance test as such, is anon

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destructive test and the insulator can be reused if the puncture has not actually
taken place.

References

Power system analysis and design by B.R GUPTA

alliedinsulators.com

mantatest.com

aorn.org/

wikipedia.org

zeniumcables.com

Electrical Insulation in Power Systems (Power Engineering (Willis))

Power System Analysis by John Grainger and Jr., William Stevenson

Allaboutcircuits.com

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