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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 PREAMBLE
Outdoor insulating bodies have traditionally been made out of glass of
porcelain materials. The development and use of polymeric insulators started
during the 1960s. Since the early 1990s, they can be considered a mature
product, with a good service record. This has been accompanied by an
increased commercial interest and increased research activities. However, as
always, bad news travels faster, spreads wider and lives longer than good
news. Therefore failures in the earliest designs are still a holdback for
polymeric insulators and lacks of service experiences are often listed as the
reason not to purchase polymeric insulators.
The 1930s and ‘40s saw the appearance of the first insulators to replace
inorganic materials with organic, but these suffered problems of weather
resistance, and their characteristics were unsatisfactory for outdoor use. In the
1950s epoxy resin insulators were developed, but they were heavy, suffered
from UV degradation and tracking, and were never put into actual service.
Worldwide composite insulators have been developed for outdoor application
since the 1960’s. By the mid-1970s a number of new insulating materials had
been developed, and the concept of a composite structure was advanced, with
an insulator housing made of ethylene propylene rubber (EPR), ethylene
propylene diene methylene (EPDM) linkage, Poly Tetra Fluoro ethylene
(PTFE), silicone rubber (SIR) or the like, and a core of fibre-reinforced plastic
(FRP) to bear the tensile load. Since these materials were new, however, there
were many technical difficulties that had to be remedied, such as adhesion
between materials and penetration of moisture, and the end-fittings, which
transmit the load, had to be improved. Since the 1980s, greater use has been
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made of SiR due to its weather resistance, which is virtually permanent, and
its hydrophobic properties, which allow improvement in the maximum,
withstand voltage of pollution, and this had led to an explosive increase in the
use of composite insulators.
The need for non-ceramic composite insulators having characteristics
such as light weight and good electrical and mechanical properties, for use in
transmission lines, was greatly felt about 40 years ago. Today composite
insulators have adequately replaced porcelain and glass insulators and are
extensively used in high voltage lines. The use of composite insulators, with a
20% lower weight than their porcelain counterparts has become possible in
lines. The principle of composite insulators, manufacturing is based on a
composite rod that should resist the mechanical stress applied by the cable
and transfers this load to the tower. In order to protect this rod against
weathering and environmental effects and also to increase the bearable
creepage voltage, the rod is covered with SIR and the end-fittings are then
joined at both ends with a special process. A range of adhesives, curing agents
and sealers are also used for this purpose.
1.2 ABOUT INSULATORS
An electrical insulator is a material in which the electron does not flow
freely or the atom of the insulator have tightly bound electrons whose internal
electric charges do not flow freely; very little electric current will flow
through it under the influence of an electric field. This contrasts with other
materials, semiconductors and conductors, which conduct an electric current
more easily. The property that distinguishes an insulator is its resistivity;
insulators have higher resistivity than semiconductors or conductors. The
most common examples are non-metals. An electrical insulator (also referred
to as an insulator) is used in an electrical system to prevent unwanted flow of
current to the earth from its supporting points. The insulator plays a vital role
in the electrical system. An electrical insulator is a very high resistive path
through which practically no current can flow.
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A perfect insulator does not exist because even insulators contain small
numbers of mobile charges (charge carriers) which can carry current. In
addition, all insulators become electrically conductive when a sufficiently
large voltage is applied that the electric field tears electrons away from the
atoms. This is known as the breakdown voltage of an insulator. Some
materials such as glass, paper and Teflon, which have high resistivity, are
very good electrical insulators. A much larger class of materials, even though
they may have lower bulk resistivity, are still good enough to prevent
significant current from flowing at normally used voltages, and thus are
employed as insulation for electrical wiring and cables. Examples include
rubber-like polymers and most plastics which can be thermoset or
thermoplastic in nature.
Insulators are used in electrical equipment to support and separate
electrical conductors without allowing current through themselves. An
insulating material used in bulk to wrap electrical cables or other equipment is
called insulation. The term insulator is also used more specifically to refer to
insulating supports used to attach electric power distribution or transmission
lines to utility poles and transmission towers. The towers and poles both are
properly grounded. So there must be an insulator between tower or pole body
and current-carrying conductors to prevent the flow of current from conductor
to earth through the grounded supporting towers or poles. They support the
weight of the suspended wires without allowing the current to flow through
the tower to ground.
Insulators are the elements which provide the insulation between the
two different voltages levels, i.e. insulation between the line conductors and
other metallic structure. Insulators are playing major roles in electrical power
system. In overhead transmission lines the conductor will be supported with
the help of insulators. The insulators protect the current flow between the
conductor and earth point. Mostly glazed porcelain insulator and polymeric
insulators are used.
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 Porcelain Insulator: Preferable for low voltage and high voltage.

 Polymeric insulators: Only used to high voltage transmission line (HV
and EHV)
1.3 MATERIALS USED AS INSULATORS
Insulators used for high-voltage power transmission are made from
glass, porcelain or composite polymer materials. Porcelain insulators are
made from clay, quartz or alumina and feldspar, and are covered with a
smooth glaze to shed water. Insulators made from porcelain rich in alumina
are used where high mechanical strength is a criterion. Porcelain has a
dielectric strength of about 4–10 kV/mm. 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. Some insulator
manufacturers stopped making glass insulators in the late 1960s, switching to
ceramic materials.
The main cause of failure of the overhead line insulator is flashover,
which occurs between line and earth during abnormal overvoltage in the
system. During this flashover, the huge heat produced by arcing causes
puncher in the insulator body. Viewing this phenomenon the materials used
for electrical insulator has to possess some specific properties.
Recently, some electric utilities have begun converting to polymer
composite materials for some types of insulators. These are typically
composed of a central rod made of fibre reinforced plastic and an outer
weather shed made of silicone rubber or ethylene propylenediene monomer
rubber (EPDM). Composite insulators are less costly, lighter in weight, and
have excellent hydrophobic capability. This combination makes them ideal
for service in polluted areas. However, these materials do not yet have the
long-term proven service life of glass and porcelain.
1.4 DI-ELECTRIC PROPERTIES OF INSULATING MATERIALS
The description of dielectric materials is that, It actually does not
conduct electricity. They are insulators having very low electrical
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conductivity. So we have to know the difference between dielectric material

and insulating material. The difference is that insulators block the flow of
current but the dielectrics accumulate electrical energy. In capacitors, it
performs as electrical insulators.
Next, we can come to the topic. The dielectric properties of insulation
include breakdown voltage or dielectric strength, dielectric parameters like
permittivity, conductivity, loss angle and power factor. The other properties
include electrical, thermal, mechanical and chemical parameters.
The dielectric material has only some electrons in normal operating
condition. When the electric strength is increased beyond a particular value, it
results in breakdown. That is, the insulating properties are damaged and it
finally becomes a conductor. The electrical field strength at the time of
breakdown is called breakdown voltage or dielectric strength. It can be
expressed in minimum electrical stress that will result in breakdown of the
material under some condition. It can be reduced by ageing, high temperature
and moisture. It is given as
Dielectric strength or Breakdown voltage =

(1.1)
Where,
V→ Breakdown Potential.
t → Thickness of the dielectric material.

1.5 PROPERTIES OF GOOD INSULATORS

The materials generally used for the insulating purpose is called
insulating material. For successful utilization, this material should have some
specific properties as listed below:
1. It must be mechanically strong enough to carry the tension and weight of
conductors, thus have high mechanical strength.
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2. It must have a very high dielectric strength to withstand the voltage

stresses in High Voltage transmission systems.
3. It should withstand over voltages such as transient over voltage, lightning
voltage and other fault over voltages.
4. It must possess high Insulation Resistance to prevent leakage current to
the earth.
5. Zero leakage current flow. The insulator should offer high resistance for
the leakage current.
6. The insulating material must be free from unwanted impurities as well as
imperfections like holes, cracks, etc.
7. It should not be porous.
8. There must not be any entrance on the surface of the electrical insulator so
that the moisture or gases can enter it.
9. There physical as well as electrical properties must be less affected by
changing temperature.
10. It should be able to withstand high temperatures.
11. It should be able to withstand high puncture voltages to flash over voltage.
1.6 TYPES OF INSULATORS
These are the common classes of insulators:
 Pin insulator
Pin insulators are the earliest developed overhead insulator, but are still
commonly used in power networks up to 33 kV systems. Pin type insulator
can be one part, two parts or three parts type, depending upon application
voltage. In a 11 kV system we generally use one part type insulator where
whole pin insulator is one piece of properly shaped porcelain or glass.
As the name suggests, the pin type insulator is mounted on a pin on the
cross-arm on the pole. There is a groove on the upper end of the insulator.
The conductor passes through this groove and is tied to the insulator with
annealed wire of the same material as the conductor. Pin type insulators are
used for transmission and distribution of communications, and electric power
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at voltages up to 33 kV. Insulators made for operating voltages between 33

kV and 69 kV tend to be very bulky and have become uneconomical in recent
years.
As the leakage path of insulator is through its surface, it is desirable to
increase the vertical length of the insulator surface area for lengthening
leakage path. We provide one, two or more rain sheds or petticoats on the
insulator body to obtain long leakage path.
In addition to that rain shed or petticoats on an insulator serve another
purpose. We design these rain sheds or petticoats in such a way that while
raining the outer surface of the rain shed becomes wet but the inner surface
remains dry and non-conductive. So there will be discontinuations of
conducting path through the damp pin insulator surface.
In higher voltage systems – like 33KV and 66KV – manufacturing of
one part porcelain pin insulator becomes more difficult. The higher the
voltage, the thicker the insulator must be to provide sufficient insulation. A
very thick single piece porcelain insulator is not practical to manufacture, as
the pin type insulators become too bulky and hence uneconomical. As well as
the replacement of pin insulators are very difficult. The insulators are its pin
should be mechanically strong to with stand the conductor weight, Wind
pressure, ice loading and other environmental aspect.
In this case, we use multiple part pin insulator, where some properly
designed porcelain shells are fixed together by Portland cement to form one
complete insulator unit. We generally use two parts pin insulators for 33KV,
and three parts pin insulator for 66KV systems.
 Post insulator
A type of insulator in the 1930s that is more compact than traditional
pin-type insulators and which has rapidly replaced many pin-type insulators
on lines up to 69 kV and in some configurations, can be made for operation at
up to 115 kV.
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Post insulators are similar to pin insulators, but post insulators are
more suitable for higher voltage applications.
Post insulators have a higher number of petticoats and a greater height
compared to pin insulators. We can mount this type of insulator on supporting
structure horizontally as well as vertically. The insulator is made of one piece
of porcelain and it has clamp arrangement are in both top and bottom end for
fixing.
 Suspension insulator
In higher voltage, beyond 33KV, it becomes uneconomical to use pin
insulator because size, weight of the insulator become more. Handling and
replacing bigger size single unit insulator are quite difficult task. For
overcoming these difficulties, suspension insulator was developed.
In suspension insulator numbers of insulators are connected in series to
form a string and the line conductor is carried by the bottom most insulator.
Each insulator of a suspension string is called disc insulator because of their
disc like shape.
For voltages greater than 33 kV, it is a usual practice to use suspension
type insulators, consisting of a number of glass or porcelain discs connected
in series by metal links in the form of a string. The conductor is suspended at
the bottom end of this string while the top end is secured to the cross-arm of
the tower. The number of disc units used depends on the voltage.

 Strain insulator
Shackle insulators are nothing but a combination of two suspension
type insulators. These insulators are used to take the tension of the conductors
at terminations of the line and at angle positions of the line. Strain Insulators
are preferred where the line is subjected to greater tension. In order to relieve
the line of excessive tension, when the tension in lines is exceedingly high,
where the distance between the towers is high, therefore single insulator
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carries the entire weight of the conductor, therefore two or more strings are
used in parallel.
You can see that the disc insulators are used in vertical plane due to
high line tension. Therefore, two number or more number strings are
preferred to relieve the line tension. Example, you can see them in electric
railways power distribution.
When suspension string is used to sustain extraordinary tensile load of
conductor it is referred as string insulator. When there is a dead end or there is
a sharp corner in transmission line, the line has to sustain a great tensile load
of conductor or strain. A strain insulator must have considerable mechanical
strength as well as the necessary electrical insulating properties.
A dead end or anchor pole or tower is used where a straight section of
line ends, or angles off in another direction. These poles must withstand the
lateral (horizontal) tension of the long straight section of wire. To support this
lateral load, strain insulators are used. For low voltage lines (less than 11 kV),
shackle insulators are used as strain insulators.
However, for high voltage transmission lines, strings of cap-and-pin
(suspension) insulators are used, attached to the cross arm in a horizontal
direction. When the tension load in lines is exceedingly high, such as at long
river spans, two or more strings are used in parallel.
 Shackle insulator
The shackle insulator (also known as a spool insulator) is usually used
in low voltage distribution network. It can be used in both the horizontal or
vertical positions. The use of such insulator has decreased recently after
increasing the using of underground cable for distribution purpose.
The tapered hole of the spool insulator distributes the load more evenly
and minimizes the possibility of breakage when heavily loaded. The
conductor in the groove of shackle insulator is fixed with the help of soft
binding wire.
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In early days, the shackle insulators were used as strain insulators. But
nowadays, they are frequently used for low voltage distribution lines. Such
insulators can be used either in a horizontal position or in a vertical position.
They can be directly fixed to the pole with a bolt or to the cross arm.
Shackle insulators are quite interesting insulators; they can be fixed
directly on the poles with the help of mounting bolts or to the cross arm. You
can see them at our street 230 volts’ transmission system. The line conductor
is fixed in the groove with a soft binding wire. They are preferred for indoor
applications such as electrical panel board, small over transmission line etc.
 Stay insulator
For low voltage lines, the stays are to be insulated from ground at a
height. The insulator used in the stay wire is called as the stay insulator and is
usually of porcelain and is so designed that in case of breakage of the
insulator the guy-wire will not fall to the ground.
The poles are supported with the help of stay wire. The stay insulator is
used to hold the electrical pole with the stay wire refer the diagram. They are
in egg shape, that’s why it’s called as egg insulators. They are preferred to
avoid leakage current through the stay wire.
 Bushing
Enables one or several conductors to pass through a partition such as a
wall or a tank, and insulates the conductors from it.
 Line post insulator
 Station post insulator
 Cut-out
1.6.1 SUSPENSION INSULATORS
Suspension Types insulators are also called as string insulator or disc
insulators. As the pin insulators cannot be used if the voltage is more than
50kV. Hence the transmission voltage is more than 50 kV; the suspension
type insulators are preferred. The cost of the suspension type insulators is
very less as the voltage rating is high. They consist of porcelain disc and each
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disc is valued to withstand up to 11 kV. The number of voltage is depending

on the voltage level of the transmission line, i.e. if you are going to put
suspension type insulator for 110 kV means, you should use at least 7 to 8
number of disc. Because the insulator will be fixed in the structure, hear the
structure to conductor voltage will be 63.5kV. Therefore, we can put only 7 to
8 disc. Conductors are bound at the bottom of the insulator.
Pin-type insulators are unsuitable for voltages greater than about 69kV
line-to-lines. Higher transmission voltages use suspension insulator strings,
which can be made for any practical transmission voltage by adding insulator
elements to the string.
Higher voltage transmission lines usually use modular suspension
insulator designs. The wires are suspended from a 'string' of identical disc-
shaped insulators that attach to each other with metal clevis pin or ball and
socket links. The advantage of this design is that insulator strings with
different breakdown voltages, for use with different line voltages, can be
constructed by using different numbers of the basic units. Also, if one of the
insulator units in the string breaks, it can be replaced without discarding the
entire string.
Each unit is constructed of a ceramic or glass disc with a metal cap and
pin cemented to opposite sides. To make defective units obvious, glass units
are designed so that an overvoltage causes a puncture arc through the glass
instead of a flashover. The glass is heat-treated so it shatters, making the
damaged unit visible. However the mechanical strength of the unit is
unchanged, so the insulator string stays together.
Standard suspension disc insulator units are 25 centimetres (9.8 in) in
diameter and 15 cm (6 in) long, can support a load of 80-120 kN (18-27 klbf),
have a dry flashover voltage of about 72 kV, and are rated at an operating
voltage of 10-12 kV.
However, the flashover voltage of a string is less than the sum of its
component discs, because the electric field is not distributed evenly across the
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string but is strongest at the disc nearest to the conductor, which flashes over
first. Metal grading rings are sometimes added around the disc at the high
voltage end, to reduce the electric field across that disc and improve flashover
voltage.
In very high voltage lines the insulator may be surrounded by corona
rings. These typically consist of trusses of aluminium (most commonly) or
copper tubing attached to the line. They are designed to reduce the electric
field at the point where the insulator is attached to the line, to prevent corona
discharge, which results in power losses.
1.6.2 ADVANTAGES OF SUSPENSION INSULATOR
 Each suspension disc is designed for normal voltage rating 11KV
(Higher voltage rating 15KV, so by using different numbers of discs, a
suspension string can be made suitable for any voltage level.
 More economical for the voltage above 33Kv.
 High mechanical strength
 If any one of the disc insulators in a suspension string is damaged, it
can be replaced much easily.
 Mechanical stresses on the suspension insulator are less since the line
hanged on a flexible suspension string.
 The suspension type insulators are generally used with steel towers. As
the current carrying conductors are suspended from supporting
structure by suspension string, the height of the conductor position is
always less than the total height of the supporting structure. As the
conductors run below the earthed cross-arm of the tower, therefore, the
conductors may be safe from lightening.
1.6.3 DISADVANTAGES OF SUSPENSION INSULATOR
 Suspension insulator string costlier than pin and post type insulator.
 Suspension string requires more height of supporting structure than
that for pin or post insulator to maintain same ground clearance of
current conductor.
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 The amplitude of free swing of conductors is larger in suspension

insulator system, hence, more spacing between conductors should be
provided.
1.7 BREAKDOWN OCCURANCE IN INSUATORS
The electrical breakdown of an insulator due to excessive voltage can
occur in one of two ways:
 A puncture arc is a breakdown and conduction of the material of the
insulator, causing an electric arc through the interior of the insulator.
The heat resulting from the arc usually damages the insulator
irreparably. Puncture voltage is the voltage across the insulator (when
installed in its normal manner) that causes a puncture arc.
 A flashover arc is a breakdown and conduction of the air around or
along the surface of the insulator, causing an arc along the outside of
the insulator. Insulators are usually designed to withstand flashover
without damage. Flashover voltage is the voltage that causes a flash-
over arc.
Most high voltage insulators are designed with a lower flashover
voltage than puncture voltage, so they flash over before they puncture, to
avoid damage.
Dirt, pollution, salt, and particularly water on the surface of a high
voltage insulator can create a conductive path across it, causing leakage
currents and flashovers. The flashover voltage can be reduced by more than
50% when the insulator is wet. High voltage insulators for outdoor use are
shaped to maximise the length of the leakage path along the surface from one
end to the other, called the creepage length, to minimise these leakage
currents.
To accomplish this surface is moulded into a series of corrugations or
concentric disc shapes. These usually include one or more sheds; downward
facing cup-shaped surfaces that act as umbrellas to ensure that the part of the
surface leakage path under the 'cup' stays dry in wet weather. Minimum
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creepage distances are 20–25 mm/kV, but must be increased in high pollution
or airborne sea-salt areas.
1.8 CLASS I & II INSULATORS
All portable or hand-held electrical devices are insulated to protect
their user from harmful shock.
Class I insulation requires that the metal body and other exposed metal
parts of the device be connected to earth via a grounding wire that is earthed
at the main service panel—but only needs basic insulation on the conductors.
This equipment needs an extra pin on the power plug for the grounding
connection.
Class II insulation means that the device is double insulated. This is
used on some appliances such as electric shavers, hair dryers and portable
power tools. Double insulation requires that the devices have both basic and
supplementary insulation, each of which is sufficient to prevent electric
shock. All internal electrically energized components are totally enclosed
within an insulated body that prevents any contact with "live" parts. In the
EU, double insulated appliances all are marked with a symbol of two squares,
one inside the other.
1.9 PORCELAIN INSULATOR
Porcelain is the most frequently used material for insulators. Insulators
are made of wet, processed porcelain. The fundamental materials used are a
mixture of feldspar (35%), china clay (28%), flint (25%), ball clay (10%), and
talc (2%).The ingredients are mixed with water. The resulting mixture has the
consistency of putty or paste and is pressed into a mould to form a shell of the
desired shape.
The alternative method is formation by extrusion bars that are
machined into the desired shape. The shells are dried and dipped into a glaze
material. After glazing, the shells are fired in a kiln at about 1200 8C. The
glaze improves the mechanical strength and provides a smooth, shiny surface.
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After a cooling-down period, metal fittings are attached to the porcelain with
Portland cement.
Porcelain is the most commonly used material for overhead insulators
in the present day. The porcelain is aluminium silicate. The aluminium
silicate is mixed with plastic kaolin, feldspar, and quartz to obtain final hard
and glazed porcelain insulator material.
The surface of the insulator should be glazed enough so that water
should not be traced on it. Porcelain also should be free from porosity since
porosity is the main cause of deterioration of its dielectric property. It must
also be free from any impurity and air bubble inside the material which may
affect the insulator properties.
The lower part is corrugated, which prevents wetting and provides a
longer protected leakage path. Portland cement attaches the cup and pin.
Before the application of the cement, the porcelain is sandblasted to generate
a rough surface.
 Dielectric Strength 60 kV / cm
 Compressive Strength 70,000 Kg / cm2
 Tensile Strength 500 Kg / cm2
1.9.1 ADVANTAGES OF PORCELAIN INSULATOR
 Porcelain insulators are Environmental friendly. At its disposal, the
porcelain insulator is not dangerous waste.
 In comparison to the polymer, electrical strength of porcelain is higher:
25+ kV/mm vs. 20 kV/mm at the polymer.
 The ceramic material is resistant to rodents, termites, birds and other
animals capable of compromising the integrity of polymers.
 The porcelain insulator is suitable for extreme hot/cold changes in the
environment. It is suitable for environments with dust, salt and high
moisture, or for combination of all of the above.
 The porcelain insulator is more resistant to UV Radiations from the
Sun, when compared to polymer insulators.
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1.9.2 DISADVANTAGES OF PORCELAIN INSULATORS

 Its highly fragile to shock and vibrations, when compared to other
insulator materials.
 The packing as well as the transportation is difficult since it is highly
susceptible to shipping damages.
 Workability in porcelain is very low when compared to other insulator
materials, due to its heavy weight.
 The maintenance cost is high when compared to other insulators.
1.10 GLASS INSULATOR
Nowadays glass insulators have become popular in transmission and
distribution systems. Annealed tough glass is used for the insulating purpose.
Glass insulator has numbers of advantages over conventional porcelain
insulator.
Toughened glass is also frequently used for insulators. The melted
glass is poured into a mould to form the shell. Dipping into hot and cold baths
cools the shells. This thermal treatment shrinks the surface of the glass and
produces pressure on the body, which increases the mechanical strength of the
glass. Sudden mechanical stresses, such as a blow by a hammer or bullets,
will break the glass into small pieces. The metal end-fitting is attached by
alumina cement.
 Dielectric Strength 140 kV / cm
 Compressive Strength 10,000 Kg / cm2
 Tensile Strength 35,000 Kg / cm2
1.10.1 ADVANTAGES OF GLASS INSULATOR
 It has a very high dielectric strength compared to porcelain.
 Its resistivity is also very high.
 It has a low coefficient of thermal expansion.
 It has a higher tensile strength compared to porcelain insulator.
 As it is transparent in nature, it is not heated up in sunlight as that of
porcelain.
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 The impurities and air bubbles can be easily detected inside the glass
insulator body because of its transparency.
 Glass has a very long service life because the mechanical and electrical
properties of glass do not be affected by aging.
 After all, glass is cheaper than porcelain.
1.10.2 DISADVANTAGES OF GLASS INSULATOR
 Moisture can easily be condensed on the glass surface and hence air
dust will be deposited on the wed glass surface which will provide a
path to the leakage current of the system.
 For higher voltage glass cannot be cast in irregular shapes since due to
irregular cooling internal strains are caused.
1.11 POLYMER INSULATOR
A polymer insulator has two parts, one is glass fibre reinforced epoxy
resin rod-shaped core and the other is silicone rubber or EPDM (Ethylene
Propylene Di-ene Monomer) made weather sheds. The rod-shaped core is
covered by weather sheds. Weather sheds protect the insulator core from the
outside environment. As it is made of two parts, core and weather sheds,
polymer insulator is also called a composite insulator. The rod-shaped core is
fixed with Hop dip galvanized cast steel made end fittings on both sides.
1.11.1 ADVANTAGES OF POLYMER INSULATOR
 It is very lightweight compared to porcelain and glass insulator.
 As the composite insulator is flexible the chance of breakage gets
minimized.
 Because of lighter in weight and smaller in size, this insulator has
lower installation costs.
 It has a higher tensile strength compared to a porcelain insulator.
 Its performance is better, particularly in polluted areas.
 Due to lighter weight polymer insulator imposes fewer loads to the
supporting structure.
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 Less cleaning is required due to the hydrophobic nature of the

insulator.
1.11.2 DISADVANTAGES OF POLYMER INSULATORS
 Moisture may enter in the core if there is any unwanted gap between
core and weather sheds. This may cause the electrical failure of the
insulator.
 Over crimping in end fittings may result in cracks in the core which
leads to mechanical failure of polymer insulator.
In addition to this, some other practical disadvantages might be experienced,
they are:
 Subject to bird attack by Parrots and other wildlife.
 Not resilient to bushfire temperatures.
 Not recommended for a location near surf beaches due to salt spray.
1.12 CONCLUSION
In this chapter we were able to analyse the overall aspect of the air
breaking switch, and also about the materials used in the making of insulators
and their types. Thus, gaining the general idea of working as well as the
constraints faced in manufacturing of air breaking switch and newer
technologies that can be implemented in this field.

CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

India is also following a world-wide trend toward replacing ceramic

and glass insulators with composite insulators that are lighter in weight, as
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well as being superior in pollution withstand voltage characteristics and

resistance to impact (to counter vandalism). In the early 1990s, Furukawa
Electric developed composite insulators for use as 66/77-kV inter-phase
spacers, and subsequently has extended applications to include 275-kV inter-
phase spacer insulators and 154-kV and 66/77-kV class transmission line
suspension insulators. The IEC, an international standards organization, has
tested this kind of composite insulators for electrical and mechanical
performance and has confirmed their reliability, but the use of organic
material as the insulating material has aroused reservations about long-term
aging. Accordingly work has been going forward on outdoor long-term
loading cycle exposure tests and indoor accelerated aging tests.
Overhead power transmission lines require both cables to conduct the
electricity and insulators to isolate the cables from the steel towers by which
they are supported. The insulators have conventionally been made of ceramics
or glass. These materials have outstanding insulating properties and weather
resistance, but have the disadvantages of being heavy, easily fractured, and
subject to degradation of their withstand voltage properties when polluted.
There was therefore a desire to develop insulators of a new structure using
new materials that would overcome these drawbacks. The 1930s and '40s saw
the appearance of the first insulators to replace inorganic materials with
organic, but these suffered problems of weather resistance, and their
characteristics were unsatisfactory for outdoor use. In the 1950s epoxy resin
insulators were developed, but they were heavy, suffered from UV
degradation and tracking, and were never put into actual service. By the mid-
1970s a number of new insulating materials had been developed, and the
concept of a composite structure was advanced, with an insulator housing
made of ethylene propylene rubber (EPR), ethylene propylene Diene
methylene (EPDM) linkage, poly tetro fluoro ethylene (PTFE), silicone
rubber (SR) or the like, and a core of fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) to bear the
tensile load. Since these materials were new, however, there were many
 20

technical difficulties that had to be remedied, such as adhesion between

materials and penetration of moisture, and the end-fittings, which transmit the
load, had to be improved. Since the 1980s, greater use has been made of
silicone rubber due to its weather resistance, which is virtually permanent,
and its hydrophobic properties, which allow improvement in the maximum,
withstand voltage of pollution, and this had led to an explosive increase in the
use of composite insulators. In 1980, Furukawa Electric was engaged in the
development of inter-phase spacers to prevent galloping in power
transmission lines, and at that time developed composite insulators that had
the required light weight and flexibility. In 1991 the first composite insulators
having silicone rubber housing were used as inter-phase spacers for 66- kV
duty, and in 1994 their use was extended to 275-kV service with a unit 7 m in
length--the worlds’ largest. Thus as composite insulators have established a
track record in phase spacer applications and their advantages have been
recognized, greater consideration has been given to using them as suspension
insulators with a view to cutting transportation costs, simplifying construction
work and reducing the cost of insulators in order to lower the costs of laying
and maintaining power transmission lines. Recently Furukawa Electric
developed composite insulators for suspension and delivered, for the first time
in Japan, 154-kV tension insulators and V-type suspension insulator strings.
Subsequently they were also used on a trial basis as tension-suspension
devices in 77-kV applications. Work is also under way on the development of
composite insulators for 1500-V DC and 30-kV AC railway service [1].
In Japan, Furukawa Electric's composite insulators are characterized by
a hermetically sealed structure made by integral moulding with a silicone
rubber sheath that covers up to the end fittings. Exposure tests on full-size
insulators were carried out in Okinawa at 77kV over a 5-year period to
evaluate them under the usage conditions prevailing in Japan. No
deterioration was observed, nor was any deterioration observed in accelerated
aging tests carried out on full-size insulators in accordance with IEC 61109
 21

Annex C, demonstrating ample reliability. Service life of the composite

insulators was estimated by charged exposure tests and accelerated aging tests
with leakage current as the parameter. A figure of not less than 34 years was
arrived at as the period within which slight deterioration would occur under
the severe sea salt contamination occurring in Okinawa, thereby confirming a
sufficiently long period of resistance.
The materials used in insulators for overhead transmission lines have
been ceramics and glass. Both offer good insulation characteristics and
excellent weather resistance, but they also have several disadvantages--they
are heavy, have poor resistance to impact, and suffer major deterioration in
terms of the voltage withstand characteristics under contamination. To
overcome these problems insulators have been proposed and adopted having a
composite structure--a sheath of silicone rubber, which is weather resistant
and has excellent voltage withstand characteristics when contaminated, and a
core of glass fibre reinforced plastic (FRP) to bear the tensile force. They
have not been in general use in countries worldwide, with the exception of
special applications such as interphase spacers or experimentally for purposes
of research. Interest in composite insulators has, however, increased in recent
years as they become more widely used overseas and social conditions favour
attempts to reduce costs. In response the Electric Technology Research
Association has established an investigative committee with a view to
conducting specialized studies, and its report 1), while recognizing the cost
advantages realized by the use of composite insulators overseas and offering
no objection to their use, points out that no method has been established for
estimating their service life. Since the development of Furukawa Electric's
composite insulators, which are characterized by a watertight end fitting
structure, research has brought about successive improvements in their
electrical and mechanical reliability. The above part described the process of
developing composite insulators for overhead transmission lines and the
 22

results of performance tests, and in this Part we report on our on studies of

their long-term reliability [2].
Non-ceramic/Polymer based insulators have been researched and
ceramic and composite insulators have been compared with respect to their
various characteristics. The composite insulators are being accepted
increasingly for use in outdoor installations by the traditionally cautious
electric power utilities worldwide. The tremendous growth in the applications
of non-ceramic insulators is due to their advantages over the traditional
ceramic and glass insulators. These include light weight, higher mechanical
strength to weight ratio, higher resistance, better performance in the presence
of heavy pollution in wet conditions, and better withstand voltage than
porcelain or glass insulators.
The need for non-ceramic composite insulators having characteristics
such as light weight and good electrical and mechanical properties, for use in
transmission lines, was greatly felt about 40 years ago. Today composite
insulators have adequately replaced porcelain and glass insulators and are
extensively used in high voltage lines. The use of composite insulators, with a
20% lower weight than their porcelain counterparts has become possible in
lines. The principle of composite insulators, manufacturing is based on a
composite rod that should resist the mechanical stress applied by the cable
and transfers this load to the tower. In order to protect this rod against
weathering and environmental effects and also to increase the bearable
creepage voltage, the rod is covered with SIR and the end-fittings are then
joined at both ends with a special process. A range of adhesives, curing agents
and sealers are also used for this purpose. The insulators have generally been
made of ceramics or glass. These materials have outstanding insulating
properties and weather resistance, but have the disadvantages of being heavy,
easily fractured, and subject to degradation of their withstand voltage
properties when polluted. There was therefore a desire to develop insulators
of a new structure using new materials that would overcome these drawbacks.
 23

Non-ceramic insulators, also referred to as composite insulators, polymer or

polymeric insulators are used in power transmission lines [3].
High voltage insulator has to withstand severe electrical stresses.
Higher electrical stresses lead to erosion of the insulator surface. Degradation
of insulating properties leads to flashover and in some extreme cases it may
cause to puncture. For analysing these electrical stresses and implement
necessary actions to diminish the electrical stresses, numerical methods are
best. By minimizing the electrical stresses, reliability of the power system will
improve. In this paper electric field intensity at critical regions of 400kV
silicone composite insulator is analysed using finite element method. Insulator
is designed using FEMM-2D software package. Electric Field Analysis (EFA)
results are analysed for five cases i.e. Only insulator, insulator with two sides
arcing horn, High Voltage(HV) end grading ring, grading ring-arcing horn
arrangement and two sides grading ring. These EFA results recommended
that two sides grading ring is better for minimization of electrical stresses and
improving life span of insulator. Insulators play an imperative role in
electrical transmission and distribution.
At present polymer insulators are gaining importance due to their
enhanced advantages. Silicone is having better temperature resistivity
compared to Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer (EPDM). Due to
lightweight and hydrophobic property, silicone composite insulators are
superior compared porcelain and other polymer insulators. Due to continuous
energy on insulators, insulators need to face higher electrical stresses mainly
at HV end. In porcelain disc insulator string we can replace the disc whenever
it was damaged. But in silicone composite insulators, sheds cannot be
removed and replaced. Hence additional care needs to be taken in case of
silicone composite insulators regarding electrical stresses. There are so many
ways to recognize and diminish the electrical stresses. Numerical methods
(like Finite Difference Method (FDM), Finite Element Method (FEM),
Charge Simulation Method (CSM) and Boundary Element Method (BEM)
 24

etc.) are one of the best ways to analysis the electric field. To improve the
power system reliability, it is required to increase the life time by proper
design and maintenance. Partial discharge is one of the problems that result
from excessive high electric field stress at the insulator surface. The electric
field norm is higher at the HV end side and null earth side which will make
the electric field distribution non uniform in the absence of grading ring.
Grading ring will make the electric field distribution uniform by varying
parameters. Results proved that CSM is better and accurate compared to
methods of moment. Electric fields of 11 kV and 33 kV silicone composite
insulators are analysed for various geometrical configurations as per
International Electro-technical Commission (IEC) standards by FEM [4].
The principal object of this paper is to provide a comprehensive
approach for parallel processing of potential and electric field calculations.
The approach investigated under dry and wet conditions for two types of
insulators, the ceramic cap and pin and the polymeric, in three different high
voltages: 230 kV, 400 kV, and 765 kV account for the two design factors:
towers and bundled conductors. Moreover, corona is an important
phenomenon associated with all transmission lines that causes the
surrounding air molecules to ionize, or undergo a slight localized change of
electric charge. As such, the effects of the corona rings on the insulators
considering potential and electric field distribution are other objects of this
paper. Decisively, this requires accurate and efficient modelling of the
proposed insulators on the tower conductors of the transmission lines which is
derived by a detailed localized potential and electric field distribution
approach that combines the different aspects of the transmission high
voltages. The corona rings' optimization for six individual insulators is
another object of this study.
Computation of the electric field and potential distribution along
insulators play an important role in designing and manufacturing electrical
equipment and transmission lines. The Polymeric and the ceramic insulators
 25

each have special features in terms of the electric field and the potential
distribution, which can cause corona and flashover problems. Adjusting
corona rings and adding bundled conductors can prevent flashover and
decrease corona under dry and wet circumstances by considering the system
voltage, which can enhance reliability, productivity, and economic efficiency.
Features like reduced weight, ease of installation, cost reduction, and better
performance against environmental pollution are benefits of polymeric
insulators. However, they might erode when subjected to sustained electrical
discharge. In addition, the distribution of their internal electric field is more
nonlinear than ceramic insulators, which can lead to corona and increase
various failure modes. One of the significant design factors in transmission
lines is corona discharge, due to the losses that the discharge imposes on the
system along with radio interferences. To control this phenomenon, corona
rings are widely used in high voltage transmission lines. At 230 kV and
higher, though some cases under 230 kV, adjusting the ring size is effectively
deconcentrates the electric field and decreases the radio interference and loss.
In High Voltage (HV) and Extra high Voltage (EHV) applications,
transmission lines use bundled conductors to prevent high electric field
concentrations and reduce current losses in conductors. Bundling conductors
and its effects on the electric field and voltage distribution in insulators
depend on the number of bundles, which is used to decrease corona and radio
interferences [5].
The influence of long-term corona on the degradation of non-ceramic
composite insulator (NCI) housing materials was studied. Polymer samples
were obtained from full-scale NCI, employing three different housing
materials, namely silicone rubber (SIR), ethylene propylene diene monomer
(EPDM) rubber and a blend of EPDM with silicone rubber. The effect of
relative humidity and externally applied mechanical stress as acceleration
factors was assessed. Several modes of degradation were observed, namely,
cracking, roughening, and discoloration. In general, the severity of
 26

degradation increased with the relative humidity level and application of

mechanical stress. Periodic monitoring of corona discharge magnitude and
pulse repetition rate allowed for a simplistic computation of the energy
needed for initiation of surface changes. A comparison of these calculated
values with expected conditions in the field was made. It is postulated that
even under severe operating conditions over a period of many years,
degradation of the housing materials evaluated due to water droplet corona is
highly unlikely.
Recently, several experimental studies have focused on the evaluation
of NCI housing material degradation due to corona occurring under clean and
wet conditions. Conclusions drawn from such studies seem to indicate that
water droplet triggered corona can provoke degradation of the NCI surface,
especially on the shank of the insulator. Permanent loss of the NCI housing
hydrophobicity has also been reported to occur. From theoretical calculations
also, it was shown that the local enhancement of the electric field at the edges
of the water droplets can be high enough to generate corona. It is of practical
interest to quantify the energy required to cause water droplet corona material
degradation, and also to understand the mechanisms involved in such a
process. Information on these aspects is insufficient at this time. The work
performed hitherto, on the study of dynamics of water droplets subjected to
high ambient electric fields, serves as a basis from which some initial
inferences may be drawn. For instance, Windmar has identified that the
threshold value of the ambient electric field required for initiation of water
droplet corona lies between 5 to7 kV/cm for single and multiple droplets
aligned in the same direction as that of the applied electric field. Several other
processes related to water droplet triggered corona may also occur. It is
known that damage to a polymer surface from corona is dependent on both
the intensity and duration of the discharge. In the case of water droplet
triggered corona, these two discharge parameters are influenced by the water
 27

droplet size and shape. Therefore, the actual dynamic behaviour of aqueous
bodies on the NCI surface will play a major role on degradation [6].
In the late 1950s, the development of a line insulator with reduced
weight and improved electrical and mechanical I characteristics, relative to
conventional ceramic string insulators, was considered to be essential for
1000 kV transmission lines. Although interest in 1000 kV transmission
gradually faded, interest in the lightweight insulator continued, so much so
that the first non-ceramic insulator was introduced in North America in 19.59.
However, that early non-ceramic insulator, despite its promise, experienced
severe tracking and erosion failures that were related to the epoxy sheds. A
few years later, European manufacturers introduced the first generation of
present-day, non-ceramic line insulators. These insulators had a core
composed of a fiberglass rod covered by sheds made from non-ceramic
materials and attachment hardware that was connected to the core in various
ways. At that time, manufacturers utilized various types of basic polymer
shed materials. Some of these basic polymers were filled with inorganic fillers
such as silica, alumina tri hydrate, and zinc oxide as well as organic fillers to
obtain desired properties. The metal end fittings were attached to the rod in
different ways, which included gluing with epoxy resin, the insertion of
wedges or cones into the fiberglass rod, and compression of the metal to grip
the rod. During the evolutionary stage of development of the lightweight
insulators, and with their increased use, their advantages became increasingly
apparent. The chief advantage of these insulators, from a handling viewpoint,
was an up-to-90% weight reduction over their porcelain counterparts. This
significant advantage eased handling problems, reduced breakage and damage
during construction, and lowered the overall installed cost of the line. The
non-ceramic line insulator also offered improved resistance to vandal damage
and superior handling of mechanical shock loads. From an electrical
viewpoint, since these insulators could be produced with a smaller surface
area and a longer leakage path, their power frequency insulation strength
 28

under wet and contaminated conditions was thought to be greatly improved,

compared with conventional porcelain insulator strings. Ultimately, it was the
superior contamination performance of these insulators that further spurred
advances in the development of non-ceramic insulating materials and designs
that are in use today.
Over a 15-year period, a large number of utilities began to use these
insulators in trial applications, mostly in short sections of lines and at trouble
spots. Needless to say, the early experience was discouraging. Typical
problems that were encountered after a few years of operation were: tracking
and erosion of the sheds, which led to flashover and line drops; chalking and
crazing of the sheds, which led to increased contaminant collection; arcing
and flashover; bonding failures and electrical failure along the rod-shed
interface, which led to flashover; hardware separation, which led to line
drops; corona splitting of sheds and polymer voltage gradient control devices,
which led to electrical failure; and water penetration due to hot line water
washing, which also resulted in electrical failure. As a consequence of utilities
reporting failures, some manufacturers stopped producing non-ceramic
insulators for transmission and only produced these insulators for distribution.
Others stopped producing these insulators altogether; a few went on to
improve the technology by offering second and even third generation designs
[7].
Insulators comprise only 5% of the capital cost of transmission lines;
they are accountable for 70% of line interruptions and 50% of maintenance
costs of transmission lines. Major transmission lines situated in different parts
of the world were mostly all constructed 30 years ago. These lines have either
completed or are approaching the active life at 30 years. It is not possible to
replace all insulators at a time in any utility. From a standpoint of consistency,
it is quite important to locate insulators that require replacement prior to the
occurrence of failure. Recalling these issues, a replacement strategy was
modelled on insulator samples, operated at 154 kV, mechanical and electrical
 29

rating (M+E) 25,000 lbs. and within the 10–50 years (Y) age group, collected
in bulk for laboratory evaluation, based on the probability of mechanical
failure (P(F)) of insulators. For conducting these studies, tensile load test such
as combined electrical and mechanical failing load test was performed on
selected 30 new and aged porcelain insulator samples from bulk to access
recent condition. It was observed that insulators under service for 50 years
manifested a decrease of 89.3% in quality factor (K), as compared to
insulators within 10 years of service. A micro-structural study was carried out
by using an optical microscope (OM) and a scanning electron microscope
(SEM) for the further confirmation of previous evaluations. P (F) was derived
by implementing Weibull distribution on the experimental observations. It
was observed that insulators with an age of 50 years depicted a 2.7% increase
in P (F), as compared to insulators with an age of 10 years. This article
discussed a strategy for accessing the recent condition of new, aged bulk
samples and the criteria of the replacement of the insulator string based on P
(F).
Insulators serve the bi-fold function of supporting conductor and
provide isolation electrically from the ground. The mechanical strength is
dependent on the porcelain body and bonding between the hardware and
porcelain. Electrical strength depends on operating voltage and transient over
voltages that occur during lightning or switching operations. Major
transmission lines situated in different parts of the world have been mostly
constructed over 30 years ago. The performance of insulators has been
considerably successful up until now, in South Korea. The rate of failure is
lower than 5% annually. The reliability and durability of insulators are quite
essential for the efficient performance of lines. Although insulators comprise
only 5% of capital cost, they are accountable for 70% of line interruptions and
50% of maintenance costs of transmission lines. More than 90% of studies
have reported the active life of insulators to be approximately 30 years.
Transmission lines have either completed or are approaching active life at 30
 30

years. It is not possible to replace all insulators at a time in any utility.

Locating deteriorated insulators before failure has been proven to be quite
critical. Annual inspection of utilities is quite common. Only insulators with
external damages can be located through visual inspection. Internal damages
will increase with the aging of porcelain insulators, which lead to the final
failure of insulators. The intensity of damage nor provide any reference for
replacement of insulators. To deal with this problem, a replacement strategy
was outlined, based on the probability of mechanical failure (P (F)) of
insulators [8].
Currently, porcelain is the most popular material for insulators.
Japanese ceramic insulators hold a leading position in the world for
performance and quality This paper introduces the evolution of porcelain
insulator technology in Japan. Japanese ceramics technology has its own
traditional history. Earthenware manufactured in Japan about 12,000 years
ago is regarded as one of the oldest ceramic materials in the world. In the 18th
century, chinaware called ZMARI, exported to Europe from Japan, and had a
great influence on the famous Meissen's porcelain in Germany. In the 19th
century, ceramics technology in Japan was far behind that of western
countries (in America and Europe). The Industrial Revolution in the West
resulted in modern industrial techniques, which improved the manufacturing
processes of porcelain. Machine forming and high-performance coal furnaces
with temperatures high enough to sinter porcelain greatly improved the
quality of porcelain in the West On the other hand, porcelain in Japan at that
time was manufactured by traditional processes, such as manual forming and
firing by traditional type kilns using wood as fuel. The poor progress in
manufacturing technology affected the quality of porcelain in Japan. In 1868,
after the Meiji Restoration, Japan became receptive to the introduction of
modern industrial technology from western countries.
A great effort was made to modernize the manufacturing technology of
porcelain. The outline of the evolution of insulators in Japan is as follows: In
 31

1871, the first insulator was manufactured in Japan. With much effort in the
50 ensuing years, Japan caught up with the West in insulator quality, so that
by the middle of the 1920s, Japanese technology was equal to that of western
countries. Japanese technology continued to improve, and by the 1930s,
Japanese technology exceeded that of the West. Insulator quality has
continued to improve to reach its present status. Japan is a narrow, island
country. Many important power generation plants and transmission lines in
Japan are located near the sea coast. Also, most of the population lives near
the sea coast. Insulators are exposed to a wide variety of severe environmental
conditions, such as salt contamination, earthquakes, snow, ice, typhoons, etc.
The severe environmental conditions and higher social requirements have
resulted in the development of higher performance and higher quality
insulators. The main materials of porcelain insulators are china stone,
feldspar, and clay. High quality china stone is obtainable in Japan and is
suitable to make high quality porcelain. Japanese porcelain contains special
crystals called cristobalite. Japanese porcelain shows more homogeneity and
strength compared with conventional feldspathic porcelain and it is classified
as cristobalite porcelain. Japan has succeeded in making homogeneous and
high strength porcelain by pulverizing the raw materials into fine grains of the
micro-meter order. Porcelain insulators manufactured with finer particle
materials give superior mechanical and electrical strengths. The grain size of
raw materials in Japan is much smaller than in Europe. Fig. 1 shows the
microstructures of Japanese porcelain and conventional porcelain. The her
grain size of the raw materials causes higher viscosity slip, which requires
higher levels of manufacturing techniques in forming, drying, firing, and so
on. Japan has succeeded in establishing the higher level techniques required to
make higher quality porcelain [9].
The essential part of High Voltage (HV) power transmission system is
an insulator. Its unsatisfactory performance will result in considerable loss of
capital. The main aim of this paper is to compare the effect of pollution on
 32

flash over voltage (FOV) of 11 KV straight and alternate shed Silicone

Rubber (SiR) insulators under different scenarios. The different scenario
conditions are clean condition and various contamination conditions. These
scenarios are seen in the field with in-service insulators located near
industries. In the first case, two types of insulators were tested under clean
condition and in the second case the insulator samples were tested considering
only cement dust along their surfaces. In the remaining cases the insulators
were tested with plywood dust, cement dust water drops, water drops only and
plywood dust water drops. Above tests revealed that in polluted environments
alternate shed insulators have higher flash over voltages compare to straight
shed insulators. Hence in polluted environments alternate shed insulators are
to be used compared to straight shed insulators. So, we can predict the
scheduled maintenance or replacement of the SiR insulators under different
environments.
Electrical insulators support the conductors and they must withstand
normal voltages, various operating conditions and environments. Overhead
line insulators are being subjected to various operating conditions and
environments. So insulator surfaces were covered by pollutants due to natural
or industrial or even combination of both. Contamination on the surface of the
overhead line insulators enhances the chances of flashover. The
contamination is little important in dry conditions because the contaminated
surfaces do not conduct under dry periods. Because of the presence of ionic
solids the pollution layer becomes conductive as the insulator surface
becomes moist because of rain, dew or fog. The most important problem in
power transmission is flashover observed on insulators used in HV power
transmission. On the other hand, the flashover of polluted insulators can cause
transmission line outage. The flashover of polluted insulators was the
motivation for the installation of a test station in order to perform tests on
polluted insulators. The insulator begins to fail when the pollutants that exist
in the air settle on the surface of the insulator and combine with the humidity
 33

of the rain, fog or dew. The mixture of pollutants and humidity form a layer
that become conductor and allows passage of currents that will facilitate the
conditions of short circuit. This is due to decrease of the resistance of
insulator surface. Unless there is an adequate maintenance or natural cleaning,
the electrical activity will be affected by a flashover on the insulator [10].
Moisture absorption tests were performed on unidirectional
glass/polymer composite materials used in high voltage composite (non-
ceramic) insulators. The composites were based on E-glass, high seed count
ECR-glass and low seed count ECR-glass fibres with modified polyester,
epoxy and vinyl ester resins. The composites were exposed to a moist
environment with a relative humidity of 80% at 50 8C, and their resistance to
moisture absorption in terms of the rate of moisture absorption, maximum
moisture content and apparent diffusivities was determined. Moisture
absorption in unidirectional composite specimens was also studied
numerically in this work using finite element techniques. In particular, the
effects of specimen geometry (the edge effect) and specimen orthotropic on
moisture absorption by the composites were evaluated. Significant differences
in the moisture absorption properties of the composites were found indicating
that the effect of moisture on the mechanical and electrical properties of the
insulators will depend on the type of composite used. It was shown that the
vinyl ester based materials had the most favourable moisture diffusion
properties for use in high voltage composite insulator applications. The
modified polyester based composites exhibited the worst moisture absorption
performance. The epoxy-based materials had adequate rates of absorption;
however, these materials did not reach equilibrium and kept slowly taking on
more moisture in a non-Fickian manner.
Unidirectional glass reinforced polymer (GRP) composites have
become a popular alternative to porcelain in the manufacture of high voltage
insulators. Their mechanical and electrical properties are of great importance,
and both these factors will greatly depend on the presence of moisture in the
 34

composites. Under certain circumstances the GRP rods of composite

insulators can be exposed to moisture ingress. This can happen if the end
fittings of the insulators are not protected against moisture. Water can also
penetrate the rubber housing layer if the thickness of the rubber is insufficient,
especially if the rubber is damaged by erosion (cracks or abrasion). The GRP
rods of the insulators can also be damaged by gunshots which seem to be a
commonly occurring in-service phenomenon. Water inside can become nitric
acid causing brittle fracture. However, if the acid concentration is not high,
brittle fracture will not occur. Instead, the moisture will propagate along the
GRP rod leading to electrical failure. The brittle fracture process, which is
actually stress corrosion cracking (SCC) of the rod composites based on E-
glass fibres can occur in the insulators and the initiation of SCC is strongly
controlled by the water/acid diffusion through a polymer matrix. It has been
shown that brittle fracture of composite insulators can be prevented by the
proper design of the composite rod material. However, to prevent SCC of the
composites used in the insulators and thus brittle fracture, the water/acid
absorption properties of the composites must be well understood [11].

2.1 RESEARCH GAPS IDENTIFIED

Some of the gaps identified in this report are mentioned below:
 There hasn’t been any proper comparison between polymer/non-
ceramic and ceramic based insulators on cost factor.
 There is no comparison based on stress and strain test available.
 Comparison tests based on overvoltage has to be made specific.
 Newer materials have to be developed for the making of insulators.
 Introduction of Nano-materials in the field of insulators has yet to be
made.
2.3 CONCLUSION
 35

In this chapter, an overall idea regarding the insulators was formulated

up using the existing methodologies and experimental results from the above
mentioned research papers. These above mentioned information has provided
the basics for more research experiments to be conducted in this field such as
further individual comparative analysis of insulator materials. This will in
turn improve the overall efficiency of electrical transmission and distribution
system, by reducing the insulator losses.

CHAPTER 3

PROPOSED WORK

3.1 INTRODUCTION
 36

In this chapter, the detailed overview of the project including both the
porcelain and polymer based insulator air break switches as well as the
detailed description of the insulator materials like FGRP (Fibre Glass
Reinforced Polymer) and Porcelain in the above mentioned switches.
3.2 ABOUT AIR BREAK SWITCH (ABS)
The switch whose contacts open in the air and quenching of an arc
achieves by compressed air, such type of switch is called an air break switch.
The air acts as a dielectric medium for the air break switch. It is more
effective and reliable as compared to another switch. The air break switch is
usually operated manually where their handle is placed on a ground level.
The air break switches install in outdoor and mainly use for switching
and isolation. The air break switch is mostly installed in the distribution
network as a switching point. It interrupts the small excitation current of a
transmission line or the capacitive charging current. The maximum voltage
for the switches is up to 35kV. The air-break switches are classified into two
types. They are Single-Pole Air Break Switch and the Gang Operated Air
Break Switch.
Single Pole Air Break Switches are used for the opening of only one
conductor. And for the opening of more than one conductor at a time Gang
Operated Air Break Switch is used. The single pole air break switches
which are opened together are called the gang operated air break switch; these
switching devices are mainly used in overhead power lines. They are called
gang operated as they are operated in a gang, all three switches together,
using a single mechanism. They are also called air-break switches as they use
air as the breaking medium or G.O.D. (Gang operated Disconnector) switch.
The fig. 3.4 and fig. 3.5 shows the Gang Operated Air Break Switches.
The air break switches are installed in two ways, i.e. either horizontally
or vertically and it is placed on the pole top or in pad mounted metal
enclosure. They can also be motorized and operated remotely or manually
operated. The fig. 3.1 shows the schematic diagram of air break switch and
 37

fig. 3.2 and fig. 3.3 shows the air break switches with polymer based and
porcelain based insulators respectively.

Fig. 3.1 Schematic Air Break Switch

3.3 FINISHED VIEW OF THE AIR BREAK SWITCH

Fig. 3.2 Polymer Insulator based Air Break Switch Link

 38

Fig. 3.3 Porcelain Insulator based Air Break Switch Link

 39

3.4 FULL ASSEMBLY OF GANG OPERATED AIR BREAK

SWITCH

Fig. 3.4 Side view of the Gang Operated Air Break Switch setup

Fig. 3.5 Front view of the Gang Operated Air Break Switch setup

3.5 CONSTRUCTION AND WORKING OF AIR BREAK

SWITCHES
 40

In air break switches the air acts as the di-electric medium which
prevents the arcing by quenching the arc formed due to any faults/over
voltage.
The air break switch has both the blade and the contact furnished with
arcing horns. Arcing horn is the type of metal between which the arc induces
due to interrupt current. When the switch is open, the arc spreads farther and
farther apart, and the arc lengthens until it finally breaks.
Air break switches are of several designs. Some switches operate from
the ground by a holder on the end of an insulated stick; some others are
through a system of linkages and opens by a crank at the foot of the pole.
The air break switch consists of mainly a moving part and a fixed part. The
moving part consists of:
 Pantograph
 Male Contact/ Switching Blades
 Cast Iron Roller
 Braided wire
 Moving Arcing Horn

The fixed part consists of:

 Base C-channel
 Female Contact
 Insulators
 Spring and Stopping Bolt
 Fixed Arcing Horn
 I/O Contacts
When more than one conductor open, there may be several switches arrange
on the same pole. They may be opened singly or all together in a group. Some
switches are mounted so that the blade opens downwards and these may be
provided with latches to keep the knife blades from jarring open.
 41

3.6 VARIOUS PARTS IN AN AIR BREAK SWITCH

Some of the various parts/components in an air break switch are,
mentioned below:
 Base C-Channel
 Pantograph
 Arcing Horn
 Switching Blades
 Fixed Female Contact
 Terminal Contacts/Connectors
 Roller
 Braided Wire
 Insulator
3.6.1 BASE C-CHANNEL
This is the main part of the air break switch link as it acts as the base
for the other components to be placed upon for the construction of the air
break switch. MS Galvanized (hot dip galvanized) or Galvanized steel base
Channel & base support channel should be of min. size 75x40x6 mm. It
should support both horizontal and vertical mounting. The fig. 3.6 shows the
base c-channel.
 42

Fig. 3.6 Base channel

3.6.2 PANTOGRAPH
Pantograph is the component which is made up of cast iron, usually for
the supporting of the steel braided wire and providing smooth movement for
the wire as well as the contact during the ON/OFF operation of the air break
switch.
The centre part of the pantograph is the moveable part and the other ends are
usually fixed on the input contact and male copper contact respectively. The
fig. 3.7 shows the pantograph.

Fig. 3.7 Pantograph

3.6.3 ARCING HORN
It is usually made of cast iron or G.I. Rod. The main purpose of the
arcing horn is to provide a contact to prevent the arcing from happening at the
time of closing of the Air Break Switch, at the time of closing in over voltages
arcs begin to form which results in arc formation between the contacts and
causes damages to the structure and the parts. There are mainly two arcing
horns a moving one and fixed one respectively.
The arcing horn contacts shall open after the main contacts and should
close before the main contacts come into contact with each other. The fig. 3.8
shows the arcing horn.
 43

Fig. 3.8 Arc Horn

3.6.4 SWITCHING BLADES
It is be made out of tin plated electrolytic copper of 99.98% purity. The
contacts are silver plated to a thickness of not less than 30 microns. The
approximate size shall be 22 x 50 x 6 mm.
The Switch shall have such a spring mechanism so as to ensure that the speed
of the opening of contact is independent of speed of manual operation. It is
commonly known as the male contact. The fig. 3.9 shows the switching blade.
 44

Fig. 3.9 Switching Blade

3.6.5 FIXED FEMALE CONTACT
The fixed Jaw type female contacts shall be made of electrolytic
copper or from hard drawn copper strip (minimum 95% copper composition)
duly silver coated controlled by stainless steel high pressure spring housed in
robust G.I. Cover.
It is essential that provision shall be made in fixed female contacts to
take the shock arising from the closing of male contact blade without the
same being transmitted to the post insulator, by a spring mechanism in the
side plates. The fig. 3.10 shows the female contact.
 45

Fig. 3.10 Female Contact

3.6.6 TERMINAL CONTACTS/CONNECTORS
Terminal connectors shall be robust in design. The size of fixed
connector shall be (80 x 50 x 6 mm) and size of movable connector shall be of
(80 x 50) x (80 x 50) x 6 mm of copper casting with uniform machine
finishing duly silver plated made out of minimum 95% copper composition
with 2 nos. 12mm dia. holes provided with suitable brass bolts and double
nuts, flat washers & 2nos. bimetallic solder less sockets suitable up to 80 mm 2
conductor.
There are two terminal contacts at the ends of the Air Break Switch,
One for the input supply as well as the other for obtaining the output supply.
The fig. 3.11 shows the terminal contact.
 46

Fig. 3.11 Terminal Contact

3.6.7 ROLLER
The roller is made out of cast iron, by pouring the hot iron into the
sand mould in the specific shape required by the roller. The roller provides the
moving action to the moving male contact/switching blades for the ON/OFF
action of the Air Break Switch, as it is the one which enables the contact
between the plates required for the conduction.
The roller is kept in its place by two MS or GI Side Plates, the roller is
placed in between the brass bushes so as to enable smooth to and fro motion,
with least frictional losses. The roller is stopped from moving too much to the
forward by the spring bolt and prevented from going back using stopper bolt.
The fig. 3.12 shows the roller.
 47

Fig. 3.12 Cast iron roller, Brass bushes, Side plates

3.6.8 BRAIDED WIRE
Flat Braid un-insulated wire is a tinned copper braided wire where
strands are woven and rolled flat, and then connecting all these to a steel
plate. These wires are often use for grounding applications. The braided wire
provides the conduction from the input terminal contact to the male
contact/switching blade. The fig. 3.13 shows the braided wire.

Fig. 3.13 Braided Wire

3.6.9 INSULATOR
Insulator is one of the main components of the Air Break Switch; it is
usually made up of a dielectric material. Especially Porcelain or Glass or
Composite polymer like Fibreglass Reinforced Polymer, as these provide the
insulation needed for the 11kV Air Break Switch.
 48

Porcelain insulator has a dielectric strength of about 25kV/mm. The

insulators are manufactured with some weather shed type of structure to avoid
the adverse weather conditions as well as to provide hydrophobicity.
Polymer insulators have a dielectric strength of about 20kV/mm. The
insulators are covered with a silicon weather sheath to protect the insulator
from adverse weather conditions. The fig. 3.14 shows both porcelain and
polymer insulators respectively.

Fig. 3.14 Porcelain and Polymer post type Insulators

3.7 INSULATOR MATERIAL OVERVIEW
Insulators are mainly used for special insulation control, and can be
used in the overhead transmission lines. In the early years, insulators were
used for utility poles and slowly developed at the end of a high-voltage wire
connecting tower. A lot of disc-shaped inserts were made. It was designed to
increase the creepage distance, usually made of glass or ceramic. Insulators
should not be affected due to changes in the environmental and electrical load
conditions caused by a variety of electromechanical stress failure, otherwise
the insulator will not have a significant role, and it will damage the entire line
of use and operating life.
3.7.1 PORCELAIN INSULATORS
 49

In this type of insulators, the di-electric/insulating material used is

porcelain. Porcelain has a dielectric strength of 12 MV/m or 120kV/cm. The
insulator shall be a single piece, fully vitrified non-puncturable porcelain with
cap type end fittings in accordance with. The general colour coated on the
outside surface is Munsell grey or dark brown. The insulator shall be of
adequate mechanical strength class to withstand the loads applied during the
opening and closing cycles and also should have sufficient torsional strength.
The bottom part is fused with a metal cap, so that it can be properly
fixed in the Air Break Switch. These insulators have high longevity when
compared to other insulator materials. Maintenance of porcelain insulators is
really not required as the glaze coating on the exterior of the insulator keeps
dirt and pollutants from adhering to the porcelain insulator. The fig. 3.15
shows an 11kV porcelain insulator.

Fig. 3.15 11kV Porcelain Insulator

3.7.2 FIBREGLASS REINFORCED POLYMER INSULATOR

In this type of insulators the di-electric/insulating material used is
Fibreglass Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Composite. These materials have a
 50

dielectric strength of 20MV/m or 200kV/cm. It is made up of a fibre

reinforced core, the metal fittings and a silicone housing layer.
It is not possible to optimise mechanical and electrical performance
separately in conventional insulators (porcelain or glass), but these properties
can be considered individually when selecting materials for composite
insulators. The resultant structure can be divided into three parts:
 Rod of high mechanical strength for taking up the external loads.
 Polymeric, shed-like housing surrounding the rod, designed to provide
creepage distance and electrical insulation.
 Metal fittings at either end of the rod for transmission of the
mechanical loads.
It is particularly important to perfect the interfaces provided between the
different components of a composite insulator, since this is where electrical
and mechanical problems may often occur. Composite insulators, and in
particular their advantages under extreme pollution, have been discovered.
The fig 3.16 shows the cross-sectional view of the Fibreglass Reinforced
Polymer Insulator.

Fig. 3.16 Cross-sectional view of Fibreglass Reinforced Polymer Insulator

3.8 CONCLUSION
In this chapter, we were able to analyse the parts and components used
in the assembling of Air Break Switch along with the making of insulators
using the materials that are taken for comparison in this project.
 51

CHAPTER 4

TESTING AND RESULTS

 52

4.1 INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, we mainly focus on the testing’s that are to be
conducted as well as various comparison factors such as weight and cost, etc.
The tests we mainly focus in this thesis are the High Voltage test; other
comparison factors we take into consideration are cost and workability.
4.2 ABOUT HIGH VOLTAGE TEST
In this test the insulator is subjected to a high voltage of 33kV (three
times the voltage for which it is initially made) for 1 minute and is checked
whether the insulator is able to withstand the voltage without undergoing
flash-over or other adverse actions such as breakdown, crack formation,
melting etc.
The testing is conducted in an AC High Voltage testing set, commonly
known as High Voltage (HV) Tester. It consists of mainly two components,
they are:
 Component 1: AC voltage and current regulating/controlling part
 Component 2: AC High Voltage Transformer part.
The testing is done in a Faradays’ cage so as to provide a safety
protection in case of any unfortunate incidents or faults during the testing
period. The fig. 4.1 and 4.2 shows the components 1 and 2 respectively.

Fig. 4.1 AC voltage and current controlling part of the HV testing set
 53

Fig. 4.2 AC High Voltage Transformer part of the HV testing set

4.2.1 HIGH VOLTAGE TESTING
 STEP 1: The insulators to be tested are placed on the metal (iron) table
and connector clips from the transformer output are connected to the
metal caps of the insulator. The connections are checked for any faults.
The fig 4.3 shows the connection process.
 54

Fig. 4.3 Step 1 of testing process

 STEP 2: After checking the connections, the AC power source is
switched ON. Initially the voltage and current values are set to the least
value.
 STEP 3: The current is set to a fixed value, and then the voltage is
gradually increased up to 33kV and observed for 1 minute and results
are noted down. The fig 4.4 shows the AC voltage and current
controlling part of the HV testing set, during the working condition.

Fig. 4.4 Step 3 of the testing process

 55

 STEP 4: The voltage is gradually increased to the maximum limit of

50kV by keeping the current constant and is observed for the results
obtained, for the purpose of knowing the insulating capacity of both
the porcelain and FRP insulators respectively.
4.3 RESULTS OBTAINED
For the result, we are considering a case scenario of 1000 number of
both porcelain and FRP insulators respectively. The outcome is mentioned
below:
 PORCELAIN INSULATOR
Before testing
Initial number of insulators available = 1000 nos.
Defective ones that can be repaired = 60 nos.
Rejected ones = 25 nos.
Remaining ones = 940 nos.
After testing
Rejected ones due to flash over = 23 nos.
Rejected ones due to other faults = 10 nos.
Remaining ones = 907 nos.
 FIBREGLASS REINFORCED POLYMER INSULATOR
Before testing
Initial number of insulators available = 1000 nos.
Defective ones that can be repaired = 43 nos.
Rejected ones = 5 nos.
Remaining ones = 995 nos.
After testing
Rejected ones due to flash over = <1%.
Remaining Ones (Approx.) = 995 nos.
Other defects can be repaired in polymer insulator.
4.3.1 OUTCOME
 56

Out of 1000 nos. of FRP insulator tested only 995 nos. was deemed
useful.
Success rate = 99.5%
Out of 1000 nos. of porcelain insulator tested only 907 nos. was
deemed useful.
Success rate = 90.7%.
From this we can get the idea that FRP insulator has far better
withstanding capability as well as insulation properties than porcelain
insulators.
4.4 COST FACTOR
Regarding the economic aspect of the insulators, following data’s can
be considered.
 PORCELAIN INSULATOR
Amount spend on the insulator along
with transportation charge is = Rs.200/-

 FIBREGLASS REINFORCED POLYMER INSULATOR

Amount spend on the insulator along
with transportation charge is = Rs.160/-
4.4.1 OUTCOME
The FRP Insulator has an overall low cost due to low transportation
difficulties as well as due to the factor that large quantities of insulators can
be transported in a single transport itself when compare to large porcelain
insulators which minimizes the quantity per transport.
Even though the per piece rate of porcelain insulator is less than that of
FRP insulators.

4.5 WORKABILITY
Workability refers to the way by which the material can be handled during
an assembly or manufacturing of a component. Workability plays an
 57

important role in manufacturing since it is directly proportional to the overall

rate of the production. A material with low workability will result in low rate
of production and will affect the overall efficiency of the manufacturing unit.
Workability of a material depends upon its handling ability and its overall
weight, along with various other factors.
 PORCELAIN INSULATOR
The weight of a single insulator = 2.5kg.

 FIBREGLASS REINFORCED POLYMER INSULATOR

The weight of a single insulator = 985gm.
4.5.1 OUTCOME
The FRP insulator has higher workability when compared with
porcelain insulator due to the fact that it has lower weight as well as greater
handling capacity which gets increased with lower weight of the component.
4.6 CONCLUSION
In this chapter, we can conclude from the various testing’s conducted
on both the porcelain and FRP insulators that FRP insulators are far better
than porcelain insulators in 11kV, 200mA Air Break Switch.
 58

CHAPTER 5

CONCLUSION

5.1 INTRODUCTION
This chapter summaries the thesis by establishing the outcomes of the
research and proposes the recommendations for future research works.
5.2 SUMMARY OF OUTCOMES
From the tests and comparative analysis conducted in the chapter 4, we
can come into the conclusion that Fibreglass Reinforced Polymer insulator is
far better in terms of performance, workability and cost when compared to
porcelain insulators. Thus, we can conclude this thesis by stating that FRP
insulator is the better insulator material when compared to porcelain insulator,
in 11kV, 200 mA Air Break Switch.
5.3 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE WORKS
Some of the recommendations to improve the overall efficiency in
transmission and distribution by avoiding insulator losses are:
 By conducting a comparative analysis with other dielectric materials so
as to sort out the ideal one among them.
 By creating newer composite insulator materials using nanoparticles
and nanotechnology.
 By using carbon based fibre composites as insulator materials.
 By using HDPE material as insulator materials.
 59

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APPENDIX