INTRODUCTION

• In high voltage apparatus, two important components are

conductor and insulator

conductor insulator
carry high voltage, current isolate system

apply electric field

HV subjected to electric field

• Due to application of intense electric field from the high

voltages, insulation may fail
• Time taken for failure of insulation can be very quick or
long; depending on several factors

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INSULATION MEDIA
Dielectric Breakdown Strength (DBS)
• DBS of an insulating material is the maximum electric
field strength that it can withstand intrinsically without
breaking down, measured in V/m
HV

insulation

breakdown
electron
freed electron electron
accelerated “avalanche”

• In other words, it is the electric field intensity that causes

‘insulator to act as conductor’
• DBS of an insulating material is an intrinsic property of
the bulk of the material
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INSULATION MEDIA
Dielectric Breakdown Strength (DBS)

electrons freed

what is the difference

accelerated by between conduction and
electric field breakdown?

collision with
neutral molecules
electron Formation of
“avalanche”
electrically
conductive path
breakdown within very short
period of time
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INSULATION MEDIA
Dielectric Breakdown Strength (DBS)
• Typical DBS for various materials:

Insulating Material Breakdown Strength (MV/m)

Helium ~ 0.15
Gas
Air ~3
Mineral oil 10 - 15
Liquid
Benzene 16
Polyethylene ~ 20
Fused silica 25 - 40 Solid
Waxed paper 40 - 60

• These values, however, are not definite since DBS also

depends on other parameters such as materials of the
electrode, temperature, rate of electric field applied, etc.
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INSULATION MEDIA

Gas /
vacuum

Solids
Types of Liquids
insulation

Composites

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INSULATION MEDIA
Gases/vacuum
• Most common gaseous insulation is air at atmospheric
pressure
• Breakdown in gases occurs due to collisional ionization
between free electrons and gas molecules
• In some gases, free electrons are removed by attachment
to neutral gas molecules; hence DBS is very high. Such
gases are called electronegative gases
• Gases at high pressure can have DBS up to 25 MV/m
• Insulating gases are usually chosen based on their
chemical inertness and stability and these include
nitrogen (N2), carbon dioxide (CO2), freon (CCl2F2) and
sulphur hexafluoride (SF6)
• Ideally in vacuum, collisional ionization is prevented due
to absence of gas molecules; hence significantly large DBS
~ 1000 MV/m

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INSULATION MEDIA
Liquids
• Liquids are used for the purpose of insulation and heat
dissipation
• Breakdown mechanism for liquid is the same as gas
breakdown
• Highly purified liquids can have DBS as high as 100
MV/m but in reality, this value is lowered due to the
presence of solid impurities and dissolved gases
• In addition to DBS, selection of liquid used for insulation
is based on conductivity, flash point, gas content,
viscosity, dielectric constant, dissipation factor, stability,
etc.
• Examples of insulating liquid include petroleum, organic
esters, polybutanes, silicone oils, fluorocarbons, etc.
• In practical, liquids are used at voltage stresses of about 5
– 6 MV/m when the equipment is continuously operated

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INSULATION MEDIA
Solids
• Good solid insulation should have similar dielectric
properties for gases and liquids
• It should also have good mechanical and bonding
strengths
• Organics and inorganic materials are used for high
voltage (HV) insulation purposes
• Common organic materials used are thermosetting epoxy
resins such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene
(PE), etc.
• Common inorganic materials include ceramics and glass
• If a solid insulator is perfectly homogeneous and is free
from imperfections, its DBS can be as high as 1000 MV/m
• This is called the ‘intrinsic breakdown strength’ and can
be obtained under carefully controlled laboratory
conditions
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INSULATION MEDIA
Composites
• Composites are when more than one type of insulation
are used together
• It is important to make sure that components of the
composite are chemically stable and will not react with
each other
• They should also have nearly equal dielectric constants
• Liquid insulant should not absorb any impurities from
solid insulation which may adversely affect its resistivity,
dielectric strength and loss factor
• Examples include solid/gas insulation used in
transmission lines, solid/liquid composite (transformer
winding insulation)

can you think of any other

examples of composite
insulation?
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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
• The intensity of the electric field determines the onset of
breakdown and the rate of increase of current prior to
breakdown
• Thus it is very essential to estimate the electric stress and
its distribution in a HV equipment
• Electric field can be determined using Gauss’ theorem
and electrostatic potential theory
• Gauss’ theorem states that the total electric flux through a
closed surface is proportional to the total electric charge
enclosed within the surface

electric field
E

surface with total charge

area A Q
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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
• Based on electrostatic principle, electric field is defined as
the gradient of voltage

• In plotting the equipotential and electric field lines,

- lines are at right angles to each other
- density of field lines is an indication of electric stress
• Important parameters to be determined in estimating
electric field are the maximum electric field, Emax, average
field, Eave, and field enhancement factor, f, where

• Estimation of Emax is important in order to insulate the

system appropriately

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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION

Parallel
plates

Field
configuration

Concentric Concentric
spheres cylinders

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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
Parallel plates
A

E
r=d r=0

• Using Gauss’ theorem,

where E is the electric field, A is area, Q is charge and ε is

the permittivity of region between the electrodes
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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
Parallel plates
A

E
r=d r=0

• Based on electrostatic theory,

where V is the voltage difference between electrodes, and

d is the separation between electrodes
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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
Parallel plates
A

E
r=d r=0

• From these two expressions, it can be deduced that

and the maximum field Emax is also the same

• Thus the field enhancement factor, f is 1

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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
Concentric cylinders

• Using Gauss’ theorem,

where r is radius, and L is the length of cylinder

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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
Concentric cylinders

• Based on electrostatic theory,

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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
Concentric cylinders
• From these two expressions, it can be deduced that

• Electric field, E is a function of r. Emax is when r is smallest,

• Average field, Eave can be expressed as

• Therefore the field enhancement factor, f is

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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
Concentric spheres

r=a
r=b

• Using Gauss’ theorem,

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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
Concentric spheres

r=a
r=b

• Based on electrostatic theory,

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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
Concentric spheres
• From these two expressions, it can be deduced that

• E is function of r; Emax is when r is smallest

• Average field, Eave can be expressed as

• Therefore the field enhancement factor, f is

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ELECTRIC FIELD ESTIMATION
Summary
Configuration Emax Eave f

Parallel plates

Concentric
cylinders

Concentric
spheres

can you determine the

capacitance for each type
of configuration?
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