1/27/2011

Knowledge Is Power SM
Apparatus Maintenance and Power Management
for Energy Delivery

Basic Insulation & Power

Factor Theory

Motivation for Testing

• Field Testing provides the maintenance engineer a
group of tools to assess the condition of HV
equipment
• Benefit for each test must be clear and results able to
be interpreted
• Data may relate to different areas
– Dielectric
– Thermal
– Mechanical
• Engineer should choose the right tool for the right job

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Motivation for Testing

• Identify unsatisfactory conditions during normal
routine testing
– General Condition
– Effective Broadband Techniques
• Responding to an event which questions the assets
health
– Fault Investigation
– Focused testing
• Ranking by status for reason of replacement or asset
management
– Condition Assessment
3

When & Why Field Testing?

• Acceptance
• Establish a Baseline
• R ti l to
Routinely t Establish
E t bli h a Condition
C diti Trend
T d
• Determine Dryness or Contaniation of
Insulation
• Assess Condition after Electrical Disturbance
• Isolate a Problem Area
• Assess Condition after a Relocation
• Asset Management - Ranking and Prioritizing
• Reduce Catastrophic Failures
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Why Test??

Why Test??

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Why Test??

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Why Test??

Definitions – High Voltage Assets

What are High Voltage Assets? What can we test?
• Primary System
– Generators
– Transformers
– Circuit Breakers
– Isolators
– Current Transformers
– Voltage Transformers
– Arrestors
– Cables
– Insulators

10
• Don’t forget Secondary Systems?

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Condition Monitoring
Two Methods of Testing
Off Line
– All
ll Tests can be
b performed
f d
– Large Volume of Data can be acquired
– Can review results & make decisions at leisure
– Expensive
• On-Line
– Reall Time
R Ti Access
A to Data
D
– Must be prepared to act on DATA
– Evolving Technology
– Possible future of C/M as systems become cheaper
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Test Methods

– Destructive Tests
– Breakdown tests
– Impulse tests
– Destructive
D t ti examinations
i ti
– Mechanical tests
– Non Destructive tests
– Hi-Pot Tests( HV applied or induced)
– Partial discharge (PD) testing
– Dielectric Dissipation Factor (DDF, DLA)
– Insulation resistance
– Dielectric Response Measurements
– Resistance tests
– Type tests
– See HV Plant Manufacturers lists of tests

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Insulation

When a elecric field is present between the plates (voltage

is applied across plates) two fundamental processes occur.
•Conduction
C d i
•Polarisation
Both of them are strongly influenced by the ageing,
deterioration or contamination of the dielectric.

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Insulation

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Perfect Insulator
The Capacitor

15

Ideal Insulation System

Evaluating Insulation System

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Real Insulation Model

Simplified Equivalent Circuits of an Insulation Specimen

RS

CP

CS

Series Circuit Parallel Circuit

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Test Sequence
• Apply a test voltage to an insulation specimen
– Potential across an impedance will result in current
flowing through the specimen
• Measure the current vector
– Vector has a magnitude and direction (angle)
– Reference is the applied voltage
• Calculate the impedance
p
– Ohms Law
– Exact the real and reactive components

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Basic Measurement
• Ohms Law
V  IZ
V  IR
– V = Test Voltage
• Applied a potential across an impedance
– I = Measured Current Vector
• Current through the impedance
– Z = Calculate impedance of the specimen
• Insulation system consisting of a Real and Reactive
component
Z  R  jX
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Measured Impedance
• Extract the Fundamental AC Characters of the
Insulation system
– Capacitance C
• Reactive Component
– Dielectric-Loss W
• Real - Resistance
– Dissipation Factor
• Power Factor %PF or PF
– Cos Θ
• Tangent Delta %DF or DF
– Tan δ

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Measurement Overview
Capacitance IT • Reference
– Applied Voltage
• Measure
– Total Current Vector
• Angle
• Magnitude
• Extract
– Reactive Component
• Usually Capacitance
θ – Real Component
• Resistance-Watts
Watts V

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Terminology
• Insulation vs. Dielectric
– Insulation
• Def: Material or a combination of suitable non-conducting
material that provides electrical isolation of two parts at
different voltages.
• Medium’s ability to prevent the flow of current, I.e. poor
conductor
– Dielectric
• Def: Medium in which it is possible to produce and maintain
an electric field with little or no supply of energy
• Specific measurable properties such as: Dielectric Strength,
Dielectric Constant, Dielectric Loss and Power Factor.

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Terminology
• What is a Power Factor/ Dissipation
Factor/Tangent Delta Test?…
– Overall assessment of the condition of the
insulation
– The underlying principle of this test is to
measure the fundamental AC electrical
characteristics of insulation.
– AC high
hi h voltage
lt llow currentt measurementt

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Basic Equation
I C  EwC
w  2f
A Physical
C traits
4d
A
I C  Ew
4d
• A=area of electrodes
• ε=Dielectric constant
• d=Distance between electrodes

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Distance Between the Plates “d” of the Capacitor

Id Double the
I2d
d distance 2d
E E

C= A A C
=
4d 4d) 
Id = EC I2d = EC/2) = Id/2

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Relationship between Current and Capacitance

I C  EwC
IC
C
E
Ew
w  2f
E  10 KV *
C  265 I C  for 60 Hz 
**

C  318 I C  for 50 Hz 
**

*10KV equivalent measurement or actual 10KV test potential

**Current in mA, Voltage in KV and Capacitance in pF

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Dielectric Constant
 If the plates between a capacitor are filled with another
insulating material, the capacitance changes.
 This factor is the dielectric constant 
 B ddefinition
By fi i i the
h dielectric
di l i constant off a Vacuum
V is
i 1.0.
1 0 All
other dielectric constants are referenced to this standard.

Vacuum Oil =2.2

Cvacuum=10 pF Coil =  x CVacuum = 22 pF

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Various Dielectric Constants

Material Dielectric Constant Dielectric Strength

(kV/mm)
Vacuum 1.0
Air 1.000549 3
Mica 5.4 10-100
Oil Impregnated Paper 3.7 16
Porcelain 7 5.7
Rubber 2.4 - 3.7 12
Oil 2.24 12
Silicone Fluid 2 75
2.75 15
Water (20o C) 80

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Typical Insulation System

High-Voltage Test Lead

Current & Loss

Meter

Guard Test Ground Lead

Ground
Test Mode-GST
Ground
Oil  = 2.1
Porcelain  = 7.0
Paper  = 2.0
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Oil Leaking from an Insulation System

Oil = 2.1
Porcelain = 7.0 Given three dielectrics in series the
Paper = 2.0
dielectric constant is:
Air = 11.0
0
2.1 x 7.0 x 2.0
before = = 2.65
2.1 + 7.0 + 2.0

If the Oil leaks out and is replaced by air...

1 x 77.0
0 x 22.0
0
after = = 1.4
1 + 7.0 + 2.0

C => It
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Example: Change in Capacitance

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Example: Change in Capacitance

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Example of Winding Movement

Insulation System 1995 New 1996 Fault Difference

CH pF 2155 2159 0.2%
CHL pF 4360 3886 -10.9%
CL pF 8291 9339 12.6%

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Dielectric Loss

• Def: Time rate at which electric energy is

transformed into heat in a dielectric when it is
subjected to an electric field.
field The heat
generated is given in terms of Watts.
Real Loss represented as Watts

Watts  E IR

Watts  Contamination + Deterioration

Contamination  Water + Carbon + Dirt
Deterioration  Carbon + Corona

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Power Factor Is Size Independent

IC2 IT2
Specimen 1: 5 MVA Transformer
Specimen 2: 10MVA Transformer

IC1 IT1

IR1 IR2 E

Power Factor is an evaluation of the quality of the insulation

and is size independent
remains the same regardless of the size of the transformer

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Fundamentals AC Characteristics
•Characters of the test specimen (insulation
system)
–Total Current IT
–Capacitance C
–Dielectric-Loss W
–Dissipation Factor %DF or DF
–Power
Power Factor %PF or PF

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Basic Insulation Circuit

Basic Power/Dissipation Factor Circuit

37

Definition

• The Term Power/Dissipation Factor Describes

– The phase angle relationship between the applied
voltage across and the total current through a
specimen.
– The ratio of the real power to the apparent power.
– The relationship between the total and resistive
current

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Basic Insulation & Power Factor Theory

How to Calculate Power Factor

Real Power = Real Current
EI I
  R R

Apparent Power Total Current

EI I T T

Watts = E x IR

Watts
W tt
PF = Cosine  =
EI T

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Trigonometric Functions

sin  IC / IT
IT
IC cos IR / IT

 tan IC / IR
90

IR
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Basic Insulation & Power Factor Theory

•Characters of the test specimen (insulation

system)
–Total Current IT
–Capacitance C
–Dielectric-Loss W Overall evaluate
–Dissipation Factor %DF or DF } of the insulation
(physical and
–Power
Power Factor %PF or PF quality)
q y) size
independent

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Basic Insulation & Power Factor Theory

Power Factor Vs. Dissipation Factor Vs. Tangent Delta

IC IT
I
Power Factor = COS  = R

I T

 I
Dissipation Factor = TAN  = R

I

C

IR E
 % PF (% COS )  % DF (% TAN )
90 0 0 0
89.71 .500 .29 .500
84.26 10.00 5.74 10.05
0 100.00 90 INFINITY
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Comparison of Percent Power Factor With

Percent Dissipation Factor for Various
Ph
Phase A l off andd 
Angles
 
 % PF (% cos)  % DF (% tan)
90 0 0 0
89.71 .50 .29 .50
87.13 5.00 2.87 5.00
84.26 10.00 5.74 10.05
81.37 15.00 8.63 15.18
53.13 60.00 36.87 75.00
45.00 70.71 45.00 100.00
0 100 90 infinity

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Power Factor Is:

•Independent of specimen size

Useful for tabulations and comparisons
p

•Temperature sensitive
Needs to be corrected for liquid-filled apparatus

•Performed at or near apparatus frequency

Similar to normal operation

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Overall Test Temperature Correction

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Dielectric Loss and Power Factor:

What Are They Good for...
The Dielectric Loss and Power Factor are sensitive to:

Moisture (free, in cellulose, with particles in oil)

Products of Oxidation or mineral oil

Carbon (with moisture)

Metal contamination

At Higher
g voltage:
g

Ionization in solid insulation

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Is the Doble Test Effective for Detecting

Defective Insulation?
PF = .5 PF = .5 PF = .5 PF = .5
1)
2 pF 2 pF 2 pF 2 pF

.5 + .5 + .5 + .5
PF   .5
4


1 1 1 1 1 1
     2 c  pF
c 2 2 2 2 2

PF = .5 PF = .5 PF =2.5 PF = .5

2 pF 2 pF 2 pF 2 pF

.5 x 3  2 .5 1
PF   1.0 c pF
4 2


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Is the Doble Test Effective for Detecting

Defective Insulation?

PF = .5 PF = .5 PF = .5
2)

2 pF 2 pF 2 pF

.5.5.5
PF  .5
3

1 1 1 1 1
    c .667
c 2 2 2 2
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Analysis of Percent Power Factor

Compare to limits published by Doble

Compare to previous results
Compare among similar or sister units
Examine the trend
Do not use PF if current is less than
200A

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Basic Principals of Testing:

Always test the smallest piece possible

• Power factor testing measure the average

Insulation
condition of an insulation system
Test contamination
• Contamination would affect the total
insulation system, but not to a large degree

Always break an insulation system into the Smallest

possible part in order to detect insulation faults.

The contamination becomes a “bigger piece” of

Test the insulation and is easier to see

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Importance of Testing the Smallest Subsystem

Subsystem Tests
Case 1
0.5% 0.5% •Four (4) subsystems of equal quality.
•Each
Each subsystem has equal power factor and they are equal to
the total system power factor (power factor is independent of
Total System Test size).
0.5% 0.5% •Each subsystem may have a higher meggar reading than the
total system.
P.F.=0.5%

Case 2
0.3% 0.2%
LV Circuit Buswork •Four (4) subsystems of non-equal quality.
•Each subsystem may have a different power factor.
•The total system power factor is a measure of the average
1.1% 0.4% quality/condition of all insulation included in the test.
HV Circuit Bushings

It is important to test the smallest subsystem possible (economically feasible)

in order to evaluate the quality of each individual subsystem.
Otherwise, bad insulation could be disguised by good insulation (and vice-versa).

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Power Factor Tip-Up

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What is a partial discharge?

• Partial discharges (PD) are localized electrical

discharges within an dielectric insulation system,
restricted to only a part of the dielectric
material, thus only partially bridging the electrodes.
• The insulation may consist of solid, liquid or
gaseous materials, or any combination.
• The term “partial discharge” includes a wide group
of electrical discharge
g pphenomena.

53

PD – wide group of discharge phenomena

Internal discharges:
• In voids or cavities within solid or liquid
materials (incl. at boundaries of different
insulation materials)
• Continuous impact of discharges in solid
dielectrics forms discharge channels (treeing)
External discharges:
• Surface discharges: At boundaries of different
insulation materials  tracking
• Corona discharges: Discharges in gaseous
dielectrics when strong, inhomogeneous fields
are present
Discharges due to electrically floating potentials
(related to gaseous dielectrics)

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Why do PD occur?

• Practical dielectric insulation often contains voids or cavities

• The voids/cavities are usually filled with a medium (i.e. gas),
often
ft with
ith lower
l breakdown
b kd strength
t th than
th the
th main
i
dielectric (the breakdown strength of air is ~100 times less
than many solids)
• The electric field in a composite dielectric is distributed
according to capacitances, and the dielectric permittivity of
the medium (gas) is usually lower than the solid. Thus, an
air-filled void will have a field stress enhancement related
to the dielectric/solid permittivity r

55

Why do PD occur?

• If the voltage across the void is high enough (>the

inception voltage), the field stress in the void will exceed its
g and the voltage
dielectric strength g across it collapses/breaks
p /
down, i.e. a partial breakdown/discharge has occurred
• The solid dielectric in series with the void will withstand the
externally applied voltage and “choke off” the PD
• The PD will re-ignite if the voltage builds up to the inception
voltage again or on voltage reversal
• The PD breaks chemical bindings
g in the dielectric,, the solid
erodes and gets ”thinner” and eventually fails

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Example – void in solid

Cc: Capacitance of void

Cb: Capacitance of solid in series
w/void
Ca: Capacitance of the rest of the
solid
Va: Applied voltage of solid
Vc: Voltage across void
V+/V-: Inception volt. for PD in void

Groups of discharges originate from

a single void and give rise to
current pulses (pos. and neg.)

57

Detection of partial discharges

• Detection is based on the energy exchanges that take place

during the discharge

Heat Light
Dielectric
losses
Electromagnetic Chemical changes,
radiation gases

I
Impulse
l S
Sound/
d/
current pulses
noise

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PD Detection Methods

1. Electrical transients: The flow of charge at the defect will cause

an equivalent charge transfer within the apparatus also reflected
in the external circuit  allows effective and calibratable
detection (IEC 60270)
2. Electromagnetic radiation: PD generates high frequency
electromagn. radiation up to 1 GHz)
• VHF/UHF sensors (inductive/capacitive sensors)
• Spectrum analyzers
• Skin effect currents leaving dielectric gaskets

3. Chemical changes: Measurements of by-products/gases

• DGA in dielectric liquids
• SF6-gas
• Ozon etc.

59

PD Detection Methods

4. Sound/noise/vibration: Tens of kHz regime

• Contact probes/transducers to detect/locate
i t
internal
l discharges
di h (GIS,
(GIS cable
bl accessories,
i
transformers, switchgear)
• Airborne/remote detection of corona and surface
discharges: Windings, cable terminations etc.
5. Light: Ultra violet cameras to locate PD (e.g. DayCor
Corona Camera)

6. Heat: Infrared cameras/scanning to detect more intense

PD

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Partial Discharge
• Conelectric CT

61

Power Factor Vs. Test Voltage

Tip-Up = Power Factor at Line-to-ground voltage -
Power Factor at 25% Line-to-ground voltage
As test voltage is increased, the power factor will increase
depending on the void density
density.
%PF

%PF @ L-G
%PF @ 25% L-G

E
25% L-G L-G
Tip-up occurs in dry-type insulation specimens such as Dry Type
Transformer, rotating machinery, and cables.

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Power Factor Tip-Up:

Power Factor Tip-Up

1.2 10Years Later

1
% Power Factor 5 Years Later
0.8
Tip-Up
0.6

0.4 S3

02
0.2 S2 Age
Initial Test
0
2 S1
4
6
8
10
Test Voltage

63

Acceptance of New Apparatus

•Verify that new apparatus meets purchased

specification and agrees with factory test reports.
•Assures proper field assembly.

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Factors that Contribute to the Aging &

Deterioration of Insulation

•Environmental Conditions -- exposure to

oxidation ozone
oxidation, ozone, radiation & chemicals
•Moisture -- in the form of water or high humidity.
•Voids & Contaminants -- provides the location
for initiation of destructive action by electrical
discharge, moisture & contaminant reaction w/
the base material.

65

Factors that Contribute to the Aging &

Deterioration of Insulation

Thermal Stresses -- caused by internal heating

due to current overloads plus ambient
temperatures.
•Electrical Stresses -- caused by the voltage
gradient in the material.
•Mechanical Stresses -- caused by assembly
configurations, manufacturing techniques,
centrifugal forces
forces, vibration & through-faults
through-faults.

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Rate of Degradation
•Usually, the degradation process does not progress linearly
w/ time.
•Once
Once begun,
begun the process may move w/ progressively
increasing seed, aided by the fact that insulating materials
generally have negative temperature coefficients.
•A negative temperature coefficient means that the material
resistivity decreases w/ an increase in temperature.

•A localized “runaway” condition can develop in electrical

insulation whereby a region of decreased resistivity develops
higher losses & temperature which, in turn, further decreases
the resistivity, and so on.

67

Knowledge Is Power SM
Apparatus Maintenance and Power Management
for Energy Delivery

AC versus DC
Doble versus Megger Tests

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DC Testing on Series Insulation

BAD
Test DC Voltage

Stop

Test Results: Good

Insulation
su at o System:
Syste : Bad
ad

• If the first dielectric is good. The DC Test will indicate good; any
remaining dielectrics will not be tested.

69

DC Testing on Series Insulation

BAD
DC Test Voltage

Short
Stop

Test Results: Good

y
Insulation System: Bad

• For a DC test to be good, only one dielectric needs to be in good condition

During an AC Test the power factor will change as each dielectric fails.

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DC Testing on Series Insulation

DC Test Voltage
g
Short Short

Test Results: Bad

Insulation System: Bad

For a DC Test to indicate an unsatisfactory result, all dielectrics must

be in poor condition.

71

DC Testing on Parallel Insulation

DC Test Voltage

• If one dielectric fails in a parallel dielectric, the test will fail.

• There is no way to tell if the other dielectrics are good or bad.

During an AC Test the power factor will change as each

dielectric fails.

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Advantages of AC Vs. DC Tests

 The AC test has a common denominator in the form of a
ratio (% Power Factor), which is independent of the
amount of insulation.
 The AC test is not hindered by a layer of “good” insulation
in series with a “bad” insulation, since it merely requires
a capacitance coupling.
 The AC test provides a direct measure of dielectric loss
and capacitance, both of which are useful in the
diagnosis of the deterioration of many forms of insulation.
insulation
 The DC test measurement depends on the length of time
the voltage is applied. (PI)
 The DC test does not simulate real operating conditions
and the voltage distribution is different to AC conditions
73

PI Transformers ?
(Ref: A guide to diagnostic insulation testing by Megger)

•It is also interesting to note that many people have

tried to use the PI test on oil-filled transformers and
cannot understand why a known good transformer
gives them results close to 1. The answer is simple.
PI testing is not appropriate for oil-filled
transformers. The concept depends on the relatively
rigid
g structures of solid insulatingg material,, where
absorption energy is required to reconfigure the
electronic structure of comparatively fixed
molecules against the applied voltage field.

74

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PI Transformers ?

•Because this process can go to a theoretical state of

completion (at “infinite
infinite time
time”, which obviously cannot
be achieved in the practical field, but can be reasonably
approximated), the result is a steady diminution of
current as molecules reach their “final” alignment.
Because the PI test is defined by this phenomenon, it
cannot be successfully applied to fluid materials since
the ppassage
g of test current throughg an oil-filled sample
p
creates convection currents that continually swirl the
oil, resulting in a chaotic lack of structure that opposes
the basic premise upon which the PI test rests”.

75

Limitations of the AC Dielectric-

Dielectric-Loss and
Power Factor Test method
 The ability to detect localized defects decreases
as the inherently normal dielectric-
dielectric-loss and
capacitance of the insulation systems increases.

 Defects which are voltage dependent may not be

detected if the initiation voltage of the defect is
greater than the test voltage.

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Use of DC method to detect surface

contamination

 The DC method is often used to quickly identify if

surface contamination is present

77

Insulation Resistance Testing -

Guarding
• If IR results are lower than expected perform
guarded
d d measurementt

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Insulation Resistance Testing

• If reading with guard is much higher than without guard

surface contamination is present

Conductive
band or fuse
2 wire

79

AC (Doble) and DC (Megger)

Techniques should and are
used in combination

80

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Knowledge Is Power SM
Apparatus Maintenance and Power Management
for Energy Delivery

Safety in Testing
Doble Guidelines

Safety in Connection with Testing

 You are working with and around high voltage

 Strictly observe all safety company rules and
procedures
 Specimen under test should be completely de-
energized and isolated from power system, and
must be properly grounded
 Safety
y grounds
g should be applied
pp to all apparatus
pp
terminals before doing any work on them

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Safety in Connection with Testing

 Grounds should be connected first and

disconnected last when connecting the Doble test
set test leads

 Doble testing requires a minimum crew of two

 Before proceeding, design a test plan and discuss

precautions to be observed

83

Safety Considerations

Test Leads
 Do not disconnect any of the test leads during a test
 Do not contact any of the test leads during a test
 Treat the ground lead as any test lead. It does carry
current during a test

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Safety Considerations
JSA/JHA/Take 5, Step back, Stop etc

85

Safety Considerations
Detailed Instructions for each type of plant

86

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Safety Considerations ...

 Ground Permissive Circuit

This circuit will allow the high voltage circuit to be
energized if it detects connections of an Earth ground and
a supply cord ground. This circuit also detects and
requires the resistance between these two grounds to be
less than 30 - 100 
 Safety Switch Scheme
This circuit requires the operation of the two safety
switches. The extension safety switch should be operated
by the personnel handling the test leads or a safety
supervisor.

87

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