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International Journal of Latest Research in Scienceand Technology Vol.1,Issue 3 :Page No.247-253 ,September-October (2012) http://www.mnkjournals.com/ijlrst.

htm ISSN (Online):2278-5299

PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF NON-CERAMIC INSULATORS FOR HIGH VOLTAGE TRANSMISSION


Dr. S. Usa1, V. P. Karthika2 , D.Edison Selvaraj3, Mr.M.Kiruba Sankar4, Mr.C.Dinesh Aravind5
1

Professor & Head,Division of High Voltage Engg,College of Engineering, Guindy ,Anna University, Chennai. 2 Division of High Voltage Engg,College of Engineering, Guindy,Anna University, Chennai. 3 Assistant Professor Department of EEE Mepco Schlenk Engineering College,Sivakasi.Department of EEE 4,5 Mepco Schlenk Engineering College, Sivakasi.

Abstract In order to meet the advancement in energy transmissions and distributions, better insulating materials were sought which would enable to achieve better energy efficiency during transmissions. To achieve a compact and reliable design of electrical insulation material for the present day requirements, there is an urgent need for better and smart insulating materials and in this respect, use of non-ceramic insulators rather than classical ceramic insulators on high voltage transmission lines and at high voltage machineries like transformers seems to be very encouraging. Such change was often favourable for engineering purpose. The, non-ceramic insulators withstands adverse environmental conditions holds good and also has a superior resistance to shock loads due to conductor or hardware failure on adjacent spans Keywords- Polymeric insulators, FEM, FDM Fibre Reinforced Polymer (FRP), Corona discharge, metal fittings

I. INTRODUCTION . Non ceramic insulators were first introduced in 1959.They were used from epoxy and when used outdoors or in contaminated environment. They were susceptible to problem with UV radiation, Tracking and Erosion. Non ceramic insulator or composite insulator means a central core covered by the outer insulating coating. Central core provides the mechanical support to the conductor. Protective coating is used to protect the central core from external agents. The fibre glass core afforded protection against the environment through encapsulation in a rubber housing. The mechanical connection at the insulator ends was made using a variety of means. In all cases metal end fittings were attached to the fibre glass rod to give the insulator the mechanical strength the application required. Early advantages of non ceramic insulators claimed that they achieved up to 90% of weight reduction when compared to the ceramic equivalent, they also had a superior resistance to shock loads due to conductor or hardware failure on adjacent spans. Non ceramic insulators withstand vandalism. Significant portions of ceramic insulator failures are due to the vandalism involving shooting. When a bullet hits a ceramic unit, it breaks or shatters. Non ceramic insulators do not fail immediately when shot, because their components are not brittle. There are instances where non ceramic insulators have remained in service without problems for many years after being shot.

II.POLYMER INSULATOR MAJOR COMPONENT TERMINONLOGY. Polymer rubber: The polymer insulators used by FPL have had material composed of silicone rubber, ethylene propylene rubber (EPR), or an "alloy" (EPR with silicone oils added). The sheds and sheath are made of polymer rubber. Test results and experience have shown that silicone rubbers generally perform much better than EPR in contamination. We use only silicone within 1 mile of saltwater bodies. Sheath: The sheath is the covering for the rod. Its primary function is to keep water out of the rod and protect it from ultraviolet Radiation (UV) End fittings: End fittings have the mechanical function of transferring mechanical load from the fibreglass rod to the structure, and the fibreglass rod to the conductor. They are generally galvanized steel, but sometimes aluminium is used. End fitting seal: At the junction of end fitting at the polymer rubber there must be a tight seal to keep water out. In most insulators a silicone sealant is applied after the insulator is manufactured. Anchor: The anchor is the metal part compressed onto the rod of a post insulator. The anchor is then bolted onto the base plate. Corona ring: The purpose of corona rings is to reduce the electrical field stress at the end fittings. They are required at the line end of all 230KV suspension insulators and at both ends of all 500KV polymer suspension insulators. Corona rings are designed for each manufacturer insulators. They are not inter-changeable.

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METHODS OF PRODUCING POLYMER FIBER

1. Polymer insulators are made of organic materials and so subjected to chemical changes on the surface due to weathering and dry band arcing. 2. Polymer insulators may suffer from erosion and tracking which may lead ultimately to failure of the insulators. In non ceramic insulators, a fibre reinforced plastic (FRP) core, attached with two metal fittings, is used as the load bearing structure. The presence of dirt and moisture in combination with electrical stress results in the occurrence of local discharges causing the material deterioration such as tracking and erosion. In order to protect the FRP core from various environmental stresses, such as ultraviolet, acid, ozone etc., and to provide a leakage distance within a limited insulator length under contaminated and wet conditions, weather sheds are installed outside the FRP core. Silicone rubber is mainly used for polymer insulators or composite insulators as housing material. However, since polymer insulators are made of organic materials, deterioration through ageing is unavoidable. Hence, ageing deterioration is a primary concern in the performance of polymer insulators. And also non-ceramic insulators are exposed to various environmental stresses, which include many forms of precipitation, UV radiation, and pollution. The performance of non ceramic insulators is important for both dry and wet conditions. Long term problems with them are related to the degradation of polymer materials used for the insulator, corona phenomena on the insulator surface, and pollution flashover. Most of these problems are related to the electric field distribution along the insulators. The electric field strength on non-ceramic insulators needs to be controlled for two reasons: 1. To prevent significant discharge activity on the surface material of non ceramic insulators under both dry and wet conditions which may result in the degradation of the pollution performance of these insulators.

METAL FITTINGS

FIBRE GLASS ROD

INJECTION MOULDING The Silicone housing is injection moulded over FRP rod in a fully automatic Microprocessor controlled Injection Moulding Machine. The housing is bonded securely over the entire length of the FRP rod. These fibers can be manufactures using: 1. Induction molding 2. Machine roll method etc. Also much metal reinforcement can be done using these methods in order to increase the strength of materials mostly the polymers are built with some reinforcing materials like Metal fibers etc. these provides better fatigue results than ceramic insulators III.Advantages of polymer insulators is as follows: 1. Silicone rubbers have low surface tension energy and thereby maintain a hydrophobic surface property, resulting in better insulation performance under contaminated and wet conditions. 2. Polymer insulators have higher mechanical strength to weight ratios compared with those of porcelain or glass insulators which enables the reduction of costs for construction and maintenance of transmission or distribution lines. 3. Polymer insulators are less prone to serious damage from vandalism such as gunshots. The disadvantages of polymer insulators are as follows:

2. To avoid the internal discharge activity inside the fibreglass rod and the sheath rubber material that could result in mechanical or electrical failure. To control the electric field strength, the end fitting shape of non ceramic insulators needs to be carefully designed. And also grading ring design is used to minimize the E-Field in Polymeric insulators. IV.ELECTRIC FIELD DISTRIBUTION OF POLYMERIC INSULATORS Today, the insulation of overhead transmission lines with composite insulators is common practice worldwide. A large variety of designs of such insulators is available on the

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market for all currently used service voltage levels. It is well known that the electrical field distribution of insulator sets equipped with composite insulators differ from those equipped with conventional insulators (ceramic long rod, ceramic or glass cap and pin type insulators). Generally, the field distribution of a composite long rod insulator set is more non-linear than of a set with conventional insulators. This is caused by missing intermediate metal parts and by the dielectric material characteristics of the polymeric materials used for composite insulators. The field distribution along non-polluted composite insulators is mainly influenced by the earth and high voltage (hv) capacitances. The real situation can only be calculated numerically e.g. using the Finite Element Method (FEM) which is a numerical calculation techniques for finding appropriate solution of partial differential equation as well as integral equations. The solution approaches based on eliminating the differential equation into an approximating system of ordinary differential equations which are numerically integrated using shed techniques such as Eulers method, Ring-kutta etc.

the electrical properties like permittivity of the material are important.

3) The dimensions and position of the corona rings: If the corona rings are not properly placed, electric field should be affected. For example Due to the improper connection, Arc damage to the corona ring is harmless unless the ring has been loosened or knocked off the insulator. In such cases, simply replace the ring but not the insulator. Figure shows the Arc damage to 230KV corona ring

The E-field magnitudes are larger close to the energized and grounded ends of a composite insulator. Typically the energized end is subjected to the highest field magnitudes. In some cases the position of highest E-field occurs adjacent to the end fittings, while in other cases it may occur within a short distance of the end fitting. Since the voltage distribution produces high fields in the vicinity of both line and ground ends. It is known that, if the electric field at 2.2kV/mm, gives corona results. V.FACTORS THAT DISTRIBUTION INFLUENCE THE E-FIELD

Arc damage to 230KV corona ring 4) The geometry of the attachment hardware, conductor bundles, grounded hardware and grounded structure; 5) The orientation of the insulator and its physical relationship to the attachment hardware, corona rings, conductor bundle, grounded hardware and line structure; 6) Value of the energized line voltage;

There are numerous factors that influence the E-field distribution. The most important of these include: 1) Geometry of insulator; including weather-shed system, Fibreglass rod and end fittings; The shape and size of the geometry are different for composite insulators. Depends upon the shape and size, capacitance are different. So depending upon the geometry of insulator, the electric field is non linear. And also electric field is higher at energized end and along the axis of polymeric insulator. 2) Electrical properties of polymer weather-shed, fibreglass rod material and possibly semi-conductive grading; Electrical properties such as Permittivity of the material are different from each other. Because Permittivity varies the voltage withstand, clearness, contamination performance. So

VI.Factor affects the performance of NCIs 1) Polymer base and compound quality; 2) Formulation and design; Accumulation of mould Silicone insulators can sustain mold and algae growth. Tests have shown this can reduce contamination performance. Fortunately, mold and algae growth does not seem to occur near salt exposed areas, where the contamination performance of silicone is most needed. FPL has not had a known flashover due to mold or algae growth on a polymer insulator. These algae formation might lead to reduce the life of Corona ring. They might also corrode the metal fittings attached the corona ring .This could cause failure of the corona ring. In case of old ceramic insulators the algae

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formation might develop erosion and corrode the inner metal rod .this effect can be avoided by using a polymer.

different situations will have different E-field distributions. Similarly, different composite insulator designs applied in the same situation will have different E-field distributions.

Mold on a silicone post

4) Core quality and fitting gap attachment method; 5) Manufacturing process and quality control;

Due to a unique manufacturing process and poor quality control in 1990 the sheds of one manufacturers insulators were found to be loosely applied. The shed could be ripped off the rod relatively easily. This problem was identified and remedied by the manufacturer. There are some insulators in-service with this feature. There have not been any failures due to this, and the insulators need not be replaced.

Need For Grading Ring: Corona rings are used to improve the performance of the insulator strings. They reduce corona discharges as well as associated audible noise level and radio and television interference levels. Corona rings do also improve the voltage distribution along the insulator string by reducing the percentage of the voltage on the unit nearest to the power transmission line. More importantly, they can eliminate the corona degradation. Depending upon the application and physical design of non ceramic insulators, a corona ring is normally installed at the line end side. For voltage above 345kV, a Grading ring is also installed at the grounded end. However, use of grading ring reduces the dry arcing distance of insulators thereby increasing the length of the insulator making direct replacement of ceramic insulator string more difficult. VI.ELECTRIC FIELD DISTRIBUTION OF POLYMERIC INSULATORS The electric field distribution around HV insulators under dry conditions is governed by the geometry and the capacitance distribution along the insulator surface. In this case of composite insulators formed by a string of discs, which have a large capacitance, the voltage has a graded distribution along the string. This phenomenon helps to avoid a high voltage stress at or near outdoor insulators. However, in the case of non ceramic insulators, the permittivity of material and shape of the insulators results in a uniform distribution along the insulator, which produces the high electric field strength in the vicinity of both line and grounded end. Electrical performance of polymeric insulator: 1. Power frequency withstand voltage (IEC 60383) 2. Lightning impulse withstand voltage (IEC 60383) 3. Switching impulse withstand voltage (IEC 60383) 4. Maximum withstand voltage of pollution (IEC 170) 5. Corona characteristic (IEC 60437) 2. Polymeric Insulator model using FEM Polymeric Insulators are used to be modelled by using FEM. The 220kV insulator is modelled with appropriate boundary conditions. The relative permittivity of FRP and SiR are taken as 5 and 3.7. The HV terminal with grading ring is energized with 127kV and the LV terminal at 0V. The electric field is computed using electrostatic 2D axis symmetry FEM field analysis. FEM is a numerical calculation technique for finding appropriate solution of partial differential equation as well as integral equations. The solution approaches based on eliminating the

De bonded poly suspension

De-bonded poly

6) Handling, storage and delivery damage;

Each of these parameters must be taken into account when determining the E-field distribution through either modelling or measurement techniques. Depending on the specific case the impacts of variations in these parameters will vary. When determining the E-field through modelling or measurements, it is important to determine which of these needs to be accounted for and to what degree. Since the E-field distribution is dependent on a wide range of parameters, identical composite insulators applied in

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differential equation into an approximating system of ordinary differential equations which are numerically integrated using shed techniques such as Eulers method, Ring-kutta etc.

5. 6.

400 750

18-21 30-35

Table 1 explains the difference between FEM and FDM FEM FDM

1. To handle the complicated geometry with relative case.

1. It is not restricted to handle square shape and simple alternative. Thereof, the handling of geometry in FEM is straight forward.

2. Quality is higher. Extremely problem dependant and several examples to the contrary can be provided.

2. Quality between grids is poor.

HIGH HYDROPHOBICITY PHOBICITY

LOW

HYDRO

Effect of the E-field distribution: A. Corona Discharges on the Surface of, or in Contact With, the Polymer Weather-Shed Material and/or End-Fitting Seals; Under wetting condition discharges can result due to the enhancement of E-Field caused by higher permittivity of water droplet coming in contact with surface of rubber sheath. Hydrophobicity reduction: On ceramic material with heavy chalking loses its inherent property of Hydrophobicity. A guideline for classifying hydrophobic material using pictorial representations is available from Transmission Design if required. Hydrophobicity is the ability of a surface to bead water. The loss of hydrophobic on an insulator surface normally does not mean it should be replaced. EPR insulators. B. Dry Band Arcing Under Contaminated Conditions; C. Discharges Internal to the Fibres glass Rod and Polymer Weather-Shed Material or at the Interface between the Rod and Weather-Shed System: If Electric field magnitude exceed in these areas, defect such as voids, inclusion or de-bonding may result in internal discharge activity due to this damage to the rod. D. Corona on metal end fitting; Under dry condition, the electric field is higher at energized end and metallic end fitting and corona ring can result in corona activity.

For higher voltages, a string of suspension insulators is used. The number of insulator units used depends on the voltages of the lines. If the height of suspension insulator increases, voltage will be increased. So from the dimension of 220kV long rod insulator, we can design higher rating of insulator by using increasing the height of insulator. Table2 and 3 explain the height of insulator and no of units for voltage ratings respectively. Table 2 Voltage Ratings (kV) Height of Insulators S. NO (mm) 1 34.5 800 2 69 1015 3 110 1365 4 220 1976 5 345 2020 6 500 3641 7 765 4700 Table3 S. No 1. 2. 3. 4.

Voltage (kV) 33 66 132 230

No of units 3-4 5-7 9-11 14-20

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Under wet condition, the water drop attached to the hardware, these produces higher electric field at the droplet tips.

VII.REGIONS OF INTEREST: There are three main regions of interest when considering the E-field distribution of composite insulators. 1) On the surface of, and in the air surrounding, the polymer weather-shed surface and surrounding the end-fitting seal. 2) Within the fibreglass rod and polymer rubber weathershed material, as well as at the interfaces between these materials and the metal end fitting. 3) On the surface of, and in the air surrounding the metallic end fittings and attached corona rings. If the E-field magnitude in any of these three regions exceeds critical values, excessively large magnitudes of, discharge activity can ensue, and the long or short term performance of the insulator may be affected. Table 4 explain the diameter of the insulator

applications. If composite insulators are applied in nonstandard transmission line applications (e.g., in substations or with nonstandard hardware), the generic recommendations may not apply. Modelling and testing may be necessary. Industry information has described several examples of corona rings being improperly installed. In order to overcome these concerns, insulator manufacturers have designed attachment methods to minimize installation errors. The implementation of an effective education and inspection program can limit errors. CORONA RING DESIGN

Corona ring design parameter: To reduce the maximum electric field on the surface of the sheath, corona rings are installed on the energized end fittings of HV insulators. Typically, for lower voltages system voltage such rings are built into insulator structure. However for higher voltage levels, separate corona rings are installed into the insulator structures. External rings which are designed for installation in only one orientation and location to avoid miss application are performed. Presently, there are no standards governing the design parameters and placement of the corona rings on high voltage structure. Hence, the corona ring at incorrect location on the insulator may lead to amplification in the maximum field. Therefore, it is critical to research the most appropriate position to place the gradient ring on the insulator. It is commonly adopted that the corona ring be placed near the energized end. Table explain the grading ring parameter for different voltage ratings

S.NO 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Voltage rating (kV) 34.5 110 220 345 500 765

Diameter insulator 25 26 20 27 28 22

of

S.No.

Voltage rating(kV)

Control of E-field distribution: 1. End Fitting Design: The design of the end fitting has an influence on the E-field distribution within the composite insulator, on the surface of the weather-shed material and on the surface of the metallic end-fittings. Large end fittings with rounded edges tend to reduce the peak magnitude of the E-field values in close proximity of the end fittings. 2) Corona Ring Application: The application of appropriately designed corona rings can also be used to reduce the maximum E-field magnitudes and move the position of the maximum E-field away from the end-fitting (as the end-fitting seal is considered critical). The dimensions and location of the corona ring have a significant influence on the E-field distribution. Corona rings are not applied in all applications Corona rings are generally designed and tested for standard transmission line

Corona ring radius(R)in mm

Corona tube radius(r)in mm

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

110 220 230 500 800

280 150 100 187 300

12.5 25 38 100

Height of corona tube(H )in mm 465 38 38 80

In order to control the three different parameters, the electric field was computed at different values of R, r, H. These parameters of the corona ring play a significant role in the electric field along the insulator surface. In this, two parameters are fixed while the other varies in practical range.

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Such corona rings are often manufactured out of aluminium to attain greater levels of weight reduction and higher levels of corrosion resistance. Simulation results: Electric field distribution

VIII.CONCLUSION Fibre reinforced or polymer insulating material could be advantageous over traditionally used ceramic insulator in transmissions factors like corona ring of high voltage transformer as they provide better resistance to absorb shock than a ceramic insulator and its cost of production is also very less compared to classical insulators. They also withstand on thermal agitation and lasts for long time. They show high degree of Hydrophobicity which is the inherent property of the corona ring insulators .They resist from water absorbing thus prevents chalking and erosion of corona material. They provide better fatigue resistance and dont support the growth of algae or molds which may corrode the material and they provide a better performance on discharging in high voltage conditions. Thus on account to the above results it is good to us polymer material to make the corona rings of Transformers than ceramic materials

References:
[1] ELECTRIC FILED ON AC COMPOSITE TRANSMISSION LINE INSULATORS Andrew J. Phillips, John Kuffel, Anthony Baker, Jeffery Burnham, Anthony Carriais, Edward Cherney, William Chisholm, Bogdan Vancia, and Jennifer Yu. IEEE 2008. [2]. AGEING OF TRANSMISSION LINE INSULATORS: THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE. N. Bashir, H. Ahmad. [3]. RESEARCH ON POTENTIAL DISTRIBUTION OF COMPOSITE INSULATORS AND GLASS INSULATORS BY NUMERICAL SIMULATION. Fan Yadong, Wen xishan, Deng Wei, Li Xiaoping IEEE 2006 [4]. CORONA RING DESIGN OF 800kV DC COMPOSITE INSULATOR BASED ON COMPUTER ANALYSIS. Wen Sima, Kunwu, Quig Yang, Caxia Sun. IEEE 2006. [5]. SIMULATION OF VOLTAGE DISTRIBUTION CALCULATION METHODS OVER A STRING OF SUSPENTION INSULATORS. S.M. Al Dhalaan, M. A. Elhirbawy. IEEE 2003. [6]. SIMULATION OF THE ELECTRIC FILED ON COMPOSITE INSULATORS USING THE FINITE ELEMENT METHOD, V.T. KONTARGYRI I.F. GONOS N.C. ILIA I.A. STATHOPULOS

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