500 NATIONAL POWER SYSTEMS CONFERENCE, NPSC 2002

Practices of Insulating Materials in Instrument

Transformers
A.Masood, M.U.Zuberi, M.S.Alam, E.Husain, M.Y.Khan

I. INTRODUCTION TABLE I
Type of Test Applied on
The study of insulating material selection, behavior and Type Test CT PT
performance are important aspects to be considered for Short Time Current Test Yes No
designing any electrical instrument, machine or device. Temperature Rise Test Yes Yes
Apart from conductors, insulator forms the backbone of Lightning Impulse Voltage Withstand
any electrical system. Though insulators form the Yes Yes
Test
backbone, they are also the weakest link in the system. H.V.Power Frequency Wet Withstand Yes Yes
Hence, maximum care and attention is needed while Test
choosing insulating materials for a given application so Routine Test
that it gives the desired performance under worst working
conditions. This paper addresses the problem of selection H.V. Power Frequency Dry Withstand Yes Yes
criteria, test specifications and material treatment to justify Test on Primary Winding
the use of various dielectrics/insulating materials used for H.V. Power Frequency Dry Withstand Yes Yes
insulating high voltage instrument transformers i.e. CTs Test on Secondary Winding
and PTs. Over-Voltage Inter-turn Test
While in use, insulating materials are subjected to Partial Discharge Test Yes No
various electrical, mechanical, thermal stresses and partial Yes Yes
discharges. Therefore, criteria for selection of these
materials is, that, they must withstand these stresses The temperature rise of winding when subjected to
without or with such rate of deterioration such that their continuous thermal current or voltage as applicable to
performance is not affected throughout the life expectancy instrument transformer at the rated frequency and
of the equipment, which is considered approximately 25- current/voltage output determines the class of insulation or
30 years.[1] dielectric surrounding the winding. Having determined the class
For instrument transformers, selection and tests for of insulation or dielectric, the consideration is based on the
insulating materials are major considerations. The mechanical/electromagnetic stress generated in windings and in
governing standards of the current transformer is IS: 2705 ,
the dielectrics surrounding it, due to dynamic short time current
IEC:185 and for the voltage transformer is IS:3156, IEC: condition. Mechanical stress may occur during normal handling
186. The requirements of instrument transformer are during manufacture, transportation and erection in case of CT
specified in terms of service conditions, ratings and special and PT.
features such as limiting dimensions etc. Performance is Besides, mechanical stress, the dielectric has also to
evaluated by various type tests, routine tests and some withstand electrical stress during lightning impulse and power
optional tests for checking special features not generally frequency voltage applications under wet as well as dry
covered by type test or routine tests conditions. Partial discharge test is an indicator of i) presence of
The various types of tests carried out on both CTs and
air pocket in dielectric and/or ii) loose electric contact and/oriii)
PTs affecting their dielectric medium are given in Table I. external corona discharge. This is subject to the condition that
the properties of insulating material are in conformance to the
specifications/ requirements.
_____________________________________________ One basic requirement for all materials used in oil immersed
transformers is that they should be compatible with insulating
1. A.Masood is a Lecturer in Electrical Engineering Department, AMU,
Aligarh. [email protected] oil and should not react with or deteriorate the oil. Out of the
2. M.U.Zuberi is a Senior Lecturer in Electrical Engineering Department, three broad categories of insulation, namely, solid, liquid and
AMU, Aligarh. [email protected] gaseous; solid and liquid insulation materials have been
3. M.S.Alam is a M.Tech student in Electrical Engineering Department,
AMU, Aligarh, [email protected]
discussed.
4. E.Husain is a Professor in Electrical Engineering Department, AMU, Tests for different insulation components used in CT/PT are
Aligarh. [email protected] performed according to Indian Standards as mentioned in Table
5. M.Y.Khan, is Managing Director, SCT Ltd. Ghaziabad., II.
[email protected]
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, KHARAGPUR 721302, DECEMBER 27-29, 2002 501

TABLE II fresh insulating oil, it is desirable to have more of nephthenes or

paraffins, less of aromatics and none of olefines. Such an
MATERIAL APPLICABL APPLICATION
E optimum balance is achieved by a carefully controlled refining
STANDARD process. An oil is known as nephthenic base or paraffin base oil
Liquid dielectric depending upon the dominance of nephthenes or
Transformer Oil IS:335 Liquid dielectric and paraffins.Nephthenic base oils are more in use as dielectrics in
coolant
colder countries since they do not consist of wax type
Solid dielectric
Electric Grade insulating paper
constituent which increases their viscosity at very low
i.Kraft insulating paper IS:9335(Pt- Layer Winding temperatures. Due to cost consideration, in a country like India
of medium air permeability 3/Sec.1) insulation. having moderate climate, it is advisable to use paraffin base oil.
Major Insulation Insulating paper being hygroscopic [5], the incipient moisture
ii.Crepe Paper IS:9335(Pt- Additional strength to is dried in heated vacuum chambers. The degree of dryness is
3/Sec.1) insulation
iii.Press Paper IS : 8570 Inter-wound core
monitored by measurements of loss tangent on the major
insulation , Former in insulation. When optimum values of measurements are obtained
PT’s during the drying cycle, instrument transformers are
Insulating Tapes impregnated with dried and degassed transformer oil or else the
i.Cotton tapes IS:1923 Various taping design and operation of the equipment is limited by the
purposes
ii.Self-adhesive polyester IS:7809 Taping purposes
occurrence of partial discharges either at the interface or in
film tape requiring higher voids. It is possible that under electrical stress and working
mechanical and condition, a slow change in material may lead to localized
electrical strength variations in physical properties, generally towards their
iii.PVC tape Banding of LT CT. degradation [4].
Bakelite Insulating wound core
supports.
Un-impregnated densified Core Coil support IS:335, gives various min./max. va lues of characteristics
laminated wood in PT ensured by oil manufacturers. Test certificate is furnished along
Insulated Copper with the supply stating the exact values. These sixteen
Conductor and Cables characteristics are - appearance, density, kinematic viscosity,
i. PVC Insulated Copper IS:1554 Control wiring/
interfacial tension, flash point, pour point, neutralization value,
Cable leads
ii.Enameled round IS:4800 LT winding in CT. corrosive sulphur, electric strength, tanδ, specific resistance,
winding wire HT/LT windings in oxidation stability, ageing characteristics after accelerated
PT ageing, presence of oxidation inhibitor, water content and SK
iii.P.T.F.E.Insulated Leads for LT
values.
Copper Cable terminations.
Hollow Insulator On receipt of oil at the works, few quality tests are performed,
i .Quartz/ Silica porcelain IS:2099 Insulating washer in namely, electric strength (BDV), tanδ, specific resistance and
IS:5621 primary terminals water content. If the test reveal the need of filtration, it is done
ii .Alumina porcelain IS:2099 Main insulator along with degassing. When results are satisfactory, oil is
IS:5621 isolating live part from impregnated in transformers under vacuum at 60°C to avoid
dead part.
Thermoset Polymer
undue thermal stress.
i. Epoxy Resin system Various components However, ageing is an unavoidable phenomenon and
like terminal deterioration is a continuous process owing to several reasons.
encapsulation. Ingress of moisture and oxygen from the atmosphere may take
Insulation between LT
and HT windings in
place in service. Oxidation at high wo rking temperatures is
dry type transformer. accelerated due to catalytic effects of metal ions of copper,
aluminum and others. It gives rise to formation of acids, sludge,
II. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF INSULATING peroxide, etc. which affect the physical, electrical and insulating
MATERIALS properties of oil. Therefore, periodical condition monitoring of
oil is recommended by IS: 1866 under strict sampling procedure
A. TRANSFORMER OIL as per IS: 6855. Thus oil, if maintained properly, can give
Petroleum based mineral insulating oil is used in reliable service rendering the equipment -desired life expectancy.
transformer as a dielectric medium as well as a coolant.
Transformer oil [1] which belongs to Class A insulation B. INSULATING KRAFT/CREPE PAPER
mainly consists of four generic classes of organic Insulating Kraft & Crepe Paper, Class Y insulation, are one of
compounds, namely, paraffins, nephthenes, aromatics the earliest forms of composite dielectrics used in high voltage
and olefines. Paraffins and nephthenes are saturated engineering since the end of the 19th century. Paper as such has
hydrocarbons while aromatics and olefines are unsaturated very poor dielectric properties, but when impregnated with oil,
hydrocarbons. For better stability of low viscosity type the properties of the composite dielectric improve considerably.
Paper is a product of 'Cellulose’ obtained from soft wood pulp
502 NATIONAL POWER SYSTEMS CONFERENCE, NPSC 2002

of mainly pine or spruce found in Scandinavia[1]. E. UNIMPREGNATED DENSIFIED LAMINATED WOOD

Cellulose is a complex carbohydrate, which forms the Wood based laminates, Class A insulation, are manufactured
chief constituent of the cell walls of plants. The cell walls from selected veneers (mostly 2 mm thick) obtained from
contain lots of contaminants like lignin and resins which various timbers. The veneers are dried and partially impregnated
are removed by the sulphate process treatment and careful with neutral phenol formaldehyde and then densified under heat
water washing. and pressure. Alternate veneers with grain orientation at right
Normal thickness of paper available in the market are angles to each other are placed so as to obtain high mechanical
15, 20, 25, 50, 65, 75, 100, 125, 160, 200 or 250 micro- strength.
meters. It forms an excellent insulation between primary In areas, which require higher mechanical and moderate
and secondary windings. Additional strength is provided electric strength, this material is used extensively, for example,
during taping process so as not to allow presence of air in core clamps and vertical supports. As its moisture absorption
pockets, which are trapped between layers. This additional capacity is high, wood is assembled with core and coil etc. and
strength is provided by use of crepe paper. Crepe paper is then dried, degassed and impregnated with transformer oil so
made of Kraft insulating paper by a process, which imparts that moisture is replaced with the oil. Wood yields compressive
irregular close crimps to it , thus increasing its thickness as strength as high as 185 MPa and electric strength as high as 60
well as extensibility in the machine direction[2]. Crepe kV/mm edge wise.
paper normally available has nominal values for elongation
break at 50%, 80%, 120% and 200% etc. with coarse, F. COTTON TAPE
medium or fine creeping. Cotton tape, Class Y insulation, is manufactured from cotton
On impregnating the paper with transformer oil after yarn, which is reasonably free from reps, slubs, knots and kinks
drying and degassing, the voids in paper are filled-up with etc. Tapes are evenly woven. They are singed, brushed and
oil expelling the air. Drying process of paper takes place in calendered. Its use is limited to low tension areas, like taping
a warm vacuum chamber. In order to avoid damage to core etc. It is available in 20-30 mm width of 50 – 100 meter
cellulose, slow drying is performed within a temperature of roll lengths. As its breaking load is approx. 10 Kg, it can
120° C on achieving vacuum of 0.01 Torr, oil is provide moderate clamping strength. Its pH value is between 6.0
impregnated at the reduced temperature of about 60° C. and 8.5, chloride content is 10 ppm (max.) and conductivity of
In the composite insulation, the dielectric properties are aqueous extract is 50 micro-mhos/cm. Therefore, it should be
improved considerably. Electric strength improves from 10 dried alongwith the assembly and then impregnated with resin in
or 11 kV/mm to 60 or 70 kV/mm. tanδ, decreases from 0.1 dry type transformers or with oil in oil immersed transformers.
or 0.2 to 0.004 to 0.006 at approximately 90°C. Standard
values of relative permittivity, loss tangent and electric G. SELF ADHESIVE POLYESTER FILM TAPE
strength of paper impregnated with oil at 20° C are 3.5 - This tape, Class B insulation, is available with backing of
3.9, 0.0026 – 0.003 and 60 - 70 kV/mm. polyester film in two thickness of 50 and 80 micro-meter with
Above results are considerably affected by the presence non corrosive thermosetting adhesive coating. It provides
of moisture and ‘Service electric stress’. To give trouble excellent service in areas requiring adhesive strength of 3.0
free life to equipment, it is advisable to process and N/cm as well as electric breakdown capability of 5 kV (for 50
impregnate the paper with transformer oil carefully and micro- meter thick tape)/8 kV (for 80 micro-meter thick tape). It
keep the maximum 'Service stress' under 2 kV/mm. withstands temperature upto 130° C with ease. It is also oil
resistant. The firmness of the tape increases on heating at 150°
C. PRESS PAPER C for 1 hour or 130° C for 2 hours and remains so on cooling; it
Press paper, Class E insulation, is made of insulating does not soften appreciably on subsequent re-heating. The initial
Kraft paper. A large no. of thin papers having thickness of heating of the thermoset adhesive improves the solvent resistant
the order of 30 micro-meter are pressed together by a hot and increases the softening temperature.
press method in the desired form. A glossy finish is
provided to the surface. In the absence of binding material, H. PVC TAPE
electrical properties of these boards are near that of high PVC, Class Y insulation, is a polymer product of the
quality paper. When impregnated with oil, its dielectric monomer Vinylchloride derived from ethylene. PVC, a polar
properties become equivalent to those of insulating Kraft dielectric, is very hard, brittle and thermally unstable product.
paper. Therefore, other substances are added to make it suitable for the
use. Tanδ of PVC compounds is high, which restricts its use
D. BAKELITE only for low voltage application. 'Working stress' is limited to 3
Bakelite, Class E insulation, is available in the form of a kV/mm[1]. It works safely upto 90° C beyond which it begins
board. It is produced by polymerization of phenol and softening. It is available in various colors, various tape width 15
formaldehyde resins, [1] which are subsequently cross- mm to 30 mm and roll lengths of 25 meters to 50 meters.
linked under pressure. When dried, degassed and
impregnated with oil, its relative permittivity becomes 4.2
and electric strength becomes 40 - 50 kV/mm.
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, KHARAGPUR 721302, DECEMBER 27-29, 2002 503

I. ENAMELED ROUND WINDING WIRE application, it is important that the cast or encapsulation should
not contain voids and humidity and the material is desired to be
High conductivity annealed round copper conductor has homogeneous. Accordingly, drying and degassing of the
uniform covering of durable and flexible synthetic enamel individual components of the mixture is advised. It has excellent
suitable for elevated temperatures [1]. The enamel mechanical properties as it withstands tensile stress of 70-80
(Terephthalate polyester based) has a smooth surface free N/mm 2 (max.), compressive stress of 200 - 220 N/ mm2 (max.)
from embedded particles of dust and other deleterious and bending stress of 110 - 120 N/ mm 2 (max.). Besides this,
material. This enamel , Class H insulation, shows no electric strength is 18 - 20 kV/mm, Tanδ is 0.02-0.03 at 23° C,
cracks even at working temperatures upto 180° C. The which decreases to 0.08 - 0.10 at 100°C.
wire is available in fine and medium covering from 0.02
mm upto 5.00 mm. Wire showing abrasion resistance from In any composite insulation system due care is taken that the
load 5 N to 8 N on nominal conductor diameter from 0.8 basic ingredient of the insulation system do not react chemically
mm to 2.5 mm makes it ideal to wind on a former or core and must not deteriorate under prolonged exposure to humid air
either manually or by machine. Electric breakdown voltage solid long as the temperature rise is not beyond permissible
of approximately 4 to 5 kV on medium covering wires limits.
makes it safe to employ in suitable layer windings in high
voltage applications in PTs and CTs. III. MAJOR INSULATION LAYING AND PROCESSING

J. HOLLOW INSULATOR Since partial discharge has been prescribed as a routine test
(Table I), on all CTs and PTs of 132 kV and above rating, the
Ceramics, Class C insulation, also known as porcelain in processing of insulation has to be done carefully to avoid any
one of its forms, are widely used for insulators and occurrence of discharge, which may affect the life as well as the
bushings in outdoor applications owing to their non - accuracy of measurements.
hygroscopic nature and high mechanical strength. It
constitutes of clay, aluminum oxide, feldspar and quartz. The primary winding is insulated with electrical grade kraft
Ceramics [1] requiring high mechanical strength and low insulation paper. The insulation is laid over the region
dielectric losses contain alumina. Tanδ values of porcelain enveloping the secondary cores and over the straight portion
is high i.e. 20x10-3 at 20° C, it increases with temperature leading to the primary terminals. In the region around the
and becomes 40x10-3 at 50° C, thereby, increasing the secondary cores, a shield is provided to protect the secondary
dielectric losses. Breakdown strength is also less compared from the high voltage system. Grading of insulation by using
to other materials, i.e. 20 kV/mm but remains stable upto metallic screens with shaped contours ensures a homogeneous
120° C. radial stress distribution, besides regulating the stress
distribution axially in the air porcelain system as well.
K. EPOXY RESIN
After laying of the insulation, the coil is conditioned under
The word epoxy refers to a compound containing more high humidity in a humidity chamber with a relative humidity of
than one epoxide group per molecule, i.e., an oxygen atom about 90%. The changes in electrical properties (capacitance C,
united with two carbon atoms joined already in some other insulation resistance R, and tanδ) are measured with time and
way. Resin is a substance obtained from plant, it is also the process is continued till these properties become practically
prepared by chemical processing of inorganic materials. constant. Figure 1 shows the measurement of C, R and tanδ for
Epoxy Resins, Class F insulation, being thermosetting a typical sample.
plastics exhibit hardening quality in their molecules and so
addition of plasticizer, filler, accelerator and coloring agent As soon as the conditioning is over, the coil is transferred to a
make it a distinguished flexible cast[1]. Long-term thermo- heated vacuum chamber connected to a sophisticated vacuum
mechanical properties play an important role in the system to achieve a very high degree of vacuum during
selection of casting systems for dry type transformers and processing. The degree of dryness is monitored by
switchgear applications. Most commonly used epoxy resin measurements of C, R and tanδ. Figure 2 shows the variation of
(solvent free and medium viscosity) is bisphenol-A (CY- the measured quantities during drying. When optimum values of
205). For hardening, acid anhydride (HY-905) is used. measurements are obtained during the drying cycle, the
They are blended at 60-80° C under vacuum to facilitate insulating paper is impregnated with dried and degassed
degassing. Pre-dried filler of consistent quality is then transformer oil.
added under vacuum followed by addition of premix of
plasticizer and accelerator also under vacuum prior to Finally, we keep in mind that no universal law is available to
casting operation. The complete mix is cast in pre-heated interpret and understand the insulating material behavior; each
moulds (containing the metal parts to be encapsulated) at one will fix the rule according to the stress condition[3-4].
70 - 100° C under vacuum of 5 m bar. Cure is effected for
8 hours at 80° C and 8 hours for 130°C. In high voltage
504 NATIONAL POWER SYSTEMS CONFERENCE, NPSC 2002

IV. REFERENCES

[1] Design Manual of Current Transformers and Potential Transformers,

Capacitance ( pF) , Resistance( Mohm),

SCT Limited, Ghaziabad.
10000000
[2] A.K.Shukla, B.E.Ramachandran, Raghuveera Rao, “Ageing studies
on Kraft insulation paper under thermal and mechanical stresses”, 6th
International Seminar on Elect. & Electronic insulating materials and 100000
systems, Hydrabad, India , pp IV-B-15-19, November 2000.

Tangent delta
[3] Nikolay Kolev, T.Genovski, F.Topalis, “Analysis And Investigation
of Electrical Breakdown Critical Areas Of High Voltage Current 1000
Transformers”, 12 th International Symposium on High Voltage Engg.
Vol.4, Bangalore, India, pp 809-812, August 2001.
[4] C.Mayoux, "Degradation of Insulating Materials under Electrical 10
Stress," IEEE Trans. on Dielectrics & Electrical Insulation, Vol. 7, No. 5,
pp 590-601, October 2000.
[5] Ekram Husain, Aejaz Masood & Mujib Ullah Zuberi " Insulating 0.1
Materials -A Study of Futuristic Trend ", Sixth International Seminar on
Electrical and Electronic Insulating Materials and Systems, (INSULEC-
2000) Hyderabad, lndia, pp-P-IV-45-51,23-24 November, 2000. 0.001
0 2 6 10 14 18 22 26 30
Number of hours of drying
Capacitance Resistance Tangent delta

10000 Fig. 2. Drying characteristics of coil sample

Capacitance(pF) , Resistance (M
Tangent delta

1000

100

10
ohm),

0.1
0 4 8 12 16 20 24 28 32
Number of hours
Capacitance Resistance tangent delta

Fig.1.Conditioning of coil sample at 92% relative humidity

and at 32o C.