H I G H - V O L T A G E MEASUREMENT

TECHNIQUES

by

Armand
B.E.E.,

Seattle

Gregoire |Halim

University,

Washington,

1978

A T H E S I S S U B M I T T E D I N P A R T I A L F U L F I L L M E N T OF
THE R E Q U I R E M E N T S FOR THE D E G R E E OF
M A S T E R OF A P P L I E D

SCIENCE

in
THE F A C U L T Y OF GRADUATE S T U D I E S
(Department

of

We a c c e p t

this

to

the

Electrical

thesis

required

as

Engineering)

conforming

standard

T H E U N I V E R S I T Y OF B R I T I S H C O L U M B I A
June,
(c)

1980

Armand G r e g o i r e

Halim,

1980

In

presenting

this

thesis

an advanced degree at
the
I

Library shall

f u r t h e r agree

for

scholarly

by h i s
of

this

written

make i t

freely available

t h a t permission

for

I agree

reference and
this

It

i s understood that copying or

for f i n a n c i a l gain shall

permission.

U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h

Columbia

for

that

study.
thesis

purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department

2075 Wesbrook P l a c e
V a n c o u v e r , Canada
V6T 1W5

r.

the requirements

f o r e x t e n s i v e copying o f

Depa rtment
The

fulfilment of

the U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h Columbia,

representatives.
thesis

in p a r t i a l

or

publication

not be allowed without my

-11

ABSTRACT

The Department of E l e c t r i c a l Engineering at the University of B r i t i s h

Columbia acquired a high-voltage test set i n 1979 f o r teaching and r e search purposes.
dergraduate

To make t h i s test set useful f o r experiments which un-

students can do themselves, various additions and modifications

had to be made.
This thesis describes these additions and modifications.

First, a

Faraday cage had to be constructed with interlocking safety c i r c u i t s .

periments were then developed

Ex-

to show basic high-voltage phenomena with

AC voltage, with DC voltage, and with impulse voltages.

Considerable

modifications were required to eliminate noise i n the impulse measuring

system.

iii

T A B L E OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT.

T A B L E OF CONTENTS

LIST

OF T A B L E S

LIST

OF I L L U S T R A T I O N S

2.

3.

INTRODUCTION

1.1

Significance

1.2

Test

1.3

Scope of

equipment
this

Thesis

2.1

Introduction

2.2

Alternating

2.3

Direct

2.4

Impulse

3
Voltage

Voltage

Voltage

10

MEASUREMENTS

3.1

Introduction.

3.2

AC v o l t a g e

3.4

Objective

3.2.2

Measuring

measurements

3.2.1

DC v o l t a g e

GENERATION OF H I G H VOLTAGES

3.3

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

1.

14

Devices

measurements

14

14
23

3.3.1

Objective

23

3.3.2

Measuring Devices

23

Impulse

voltage

measurements

29

3.4.1

Objective

29

3.4.2

Setup

of

Measuring

System

30

3.4.3

Noise

in

Measuring

Systems

42

iv

4.

EXPERIMENT

EXERCISES

4.1

Introduction

4.2

AC t e s t

48

. . . . . . . . . .

48
49

4.2.1

Breakdown v o l t a g e

of

4.2.2

Corona voltage

of

sphere gaps
single

conductor

and a

49

bundle

conductor
A3

4.4

5.

LIST

DC t e s t

50

> * >

>

a P o i n t - P l a n e gap

>

51
51

53
54

4.4.1

Preliminary

4.4.2

Noise Reductions

OF R E F E R E N C E S

'

Polarity

CONCLUSIONS

4.3.2

test

Impulse

R i p p l e measurement
in

4.3.1

effect

>

Preparations

54
57

60

61

APPENDIX

62

APPENDIX

II

66

LIST OF TABLES

Table
1.

2.
3.
4.

Page
F l a s h o v e r v o l t a g e s f o r AC v o l t a g e s , f o r DC v o l t a g e s o f
e i t h e r p o l a r i t y , and f o r f u l l n e g a t i v e s t a n d a r d
impulses and i m p u l s e s w i t h l o n g e r t a i l s . . .

16

Breakdown v o l t a g e s o f a sphere gap o f 10 cm

f o r d i f f e r e n t gap s p a c i n g s . . .

49

Corona onset v o l t a g e s o f a s i n g l e conductor

bundle conductor.

diameter
and a
51

P e r c e n t r i p p l e s f o r d i f f e r e n t v a l u e s o f DC v o l t a g e s . ? . . 52 .

LIST

OF

ILLUSTRATIONS

Figure

Page

1.

Effect

2.

Single-stage test

3.

Three-stage

4.

of

Series

on w i t h s t a n d

test

resonant

reactor
5.

time

voltage

transformer
transformer

circuit

for

circuits

cascade
single

5
transformer/

unit

Half-period

6
rectification

with

ideal

circuit

elements

6.

Villard

circuit

7.

Greinacher doubler-circuit

8.

Zimmermann-Wittka

9.

Greinacher cascade

circuit

10.

Example of

rectifier

11.

Basic

12.

Multiplier

cascade

circuit

impulse-voltage

circuit

circuit

lib

circuits

10

circuits

after

connection

Marx

11
for

3 stages

in

>

voltage

12

13.

Sphere gaps

14.

B r e a k d o w n v o l t a g e U^Q
of sphere gaps as a f u n c t i o n
o f gap s p a c i n g s , f o r v a r i o u s s p h e r e d i a m e t e r s D.
P e a k v o l t a g e measurement a c c o r d i n g to Chubb and
Fortescue

15.

for

measurement

16.

Peak voltage

17.

Basic

18.

M e a s u r e m e n t o f DC v o l t a g e
voltage resistor

19.

measurement

circuits

of

voltage

with

Electrostatic

21.

Voltmeter

with

configuration

voltmeters
the

capacitive

divider-

transformers
by means o f

17
18

20
22

high24

M e a s u r e m e n t o f a DC v o l t a g e
resistive divider

20.

17

for

by means o f

a
25

high

sphere-plate

voltages

26

electrode
27

vii

22.

C i r c u i t f o r measuring r i p p l e v o l t a g e s

. .

28

23.

Jumping p o t e n t i a l i n i m p u l s e g e n e r a t o r

24.

B l o c k diagram of i m p u l s e t e s t f a c i l i t y

34

25.

D i s p l a y of a wedge-shaped i m p u l s e v o l t a g e

36

26.

Impulse waveshapes o b t a i n e d w i t h the c a p a c i t i v e

d i v i d e r of 4.14 yF l o w e r c a p a c i t a n c e v a l u e

system . . . .

.37

27.

Impulse v o l t a g e measuring system w i t h

divider

28.

C o n n e c t i o n of the c a p a c i t i v e v o l t a g e d i v i d e r t o a
cathode-ray o s c i l l o s c o p e

40

Compensation o f s i g n a l c a b l e c a p a c i t a n c e by a
complex c a b l e t e r m i n a t i o n

41

Impedance matching f o r damped c a p a c i t i v e v o l t a g e

dividers

41

29.
30.

resistive

31

39

31.

Impulse v o l t a g e g e n e r a t i n g and measuring systems. . . 42

32.

C u r r e n t s i n d u c e d i n the c a b l e s h i e l d s by q u a s i s t a t i o n a r y magnetic f i e l d s

45

C o r r e c t measurement c i r c u i t l a y o u t , a v o i d i n g
b r a i d and c a b i n e t c u r r e n t i n t e r f e r e n c e

46

33.
34.

cable

O v e r a l l c i r c u i t o f the r i p p l e measurement
experiment. .

52

35.

P o l a r i t y e f f e c t i n a p o i n t - p l a n e gap

53

36.

Output of a compensated a t t e n u a t o r f o r d i f f e r e n t
degrees of compensation

55

37.

Impulse v o l t a g e waveform o b t a i n e d by u s i n g EMTP . . .

56

38.

a.
b.

39.

Impulse o s c i l l o g r a m of the c i r c u i t w i t h ground

l o o p s and an o r d i n a r y c o a x i a l c a b l e

58

Impulse o s c i l l o g r a m of the c i r c u i t w i t h reduced

ground l o o p s and a s h i e l d e d c a b l e

58

Impulse o s c i l l o g r a m of the c i r c u i t w i t h reduced

ground l o o p s and a s h i e l d e d c a b l e . O s c i l l o s c o p e
i s i n s i d e a m e t a l box

59

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APPENDIX I
SAFETY REGULATIONS FOR

HIGH-VOLTAGE EXPERIMENTS

Experiments w i t h h i g h v o l t a g e s c o u l d become p a r t i c u l a r l y
dous f o r the p a r t i c i p a n t s should

the s a f e t y p r e c a u t i o n s be

hazar-

inadequate.

To g i v e an i d e a of the r e q u i r e d s a f e t y measures, as an example the

s a f e t y r e g u l a t i o n s of the High-Voltage

I n s t i t u t e of The

Technical

2
U n i v e r s i t y o f Braunschweig s h a l l be d e s c r i b e d below.
the a p p r o p r i a t e s a f e t y r e g u l a t i o n s and
to p e r s o n s .

Strict

Fundamental Rule:

as f a r as p o s s i b l e prevent

risk

observance i s t h e r e f o r e the duty of everyone

working i n the l a b o r a t o r y .
e a r t h i s understood

These supplement

Here any v o l t a g e g r e a t e r than 250 V a g a i n s t

to be a:.high v o l t a g e .
Before e n t e r i n g a high-voltage
convince

h i m s e l f by p e r s o n a l o b s e r v a t i o n t h a t a l l

the conductors
lie

setup everyone must

which can assume h i g h p o t e n t i a l

i n c o n t a c t zone a r e e a r t h e d , and

and

that a l l

the main l e a d s a r e i n t e r r u p t e d .

Fencing
A l l high-voltage

setups must be p r o t e c t e d a g a i n s t u n i n t e n t i o n a l

e n t r y of the danger zone.

m e t a l l i c fences.

T h i s i s a p p r o p r i a t e l y done w i t h the a i d of

When s e t t i n g up

the fences

f o r v o l t a g e s up

the f o l l o w i n g minimum c l e a r a n c e s to the components at

should not be

high-voltage

reduced:

f o r a l t e r n a t i n g and

direct voltages

f o r impulse v o l t a g e s
However, f o r v o l t a g e s l e s s than 100
50 cm has

to 1

to be m a i n t a i n e d ,

KV

50 cm

f o r every 100

KV

20 cm

f o r every

KV

100

a minimum c l e a r a n c e of

independent o f the type o f v o l t a g e .

MV

63

For voltages over 1 MV, i n p a r t i c u l a r f o r switching impulse voltages,

the values quoted could be inadequate;

special protective measures must

then be introduced.
The fences should be r e l i a b l y connected with one another conduct i v e l y , earthed and provided with warning boards inscribed: "High-voltage!

Caution!

Highly dangerous!"

I t i s forbidden to introduce conduc-

tive objects through the fence whilst the setup i s i n use.

Safety-Locking
In high-voltage setups each door must be provided with safety
switches; these allow the door to be opened only when a l l the main leads
to test setup are interrupted.
Instead of direct interruption, the safety switches may also operate
the no-voltage relay of a power c i r c u i t breaker, which, on opening the
door, interrupts a l l the main leads to the setup.

These power c i r c u i t

breakers may only be switched on again when the door i s closed. For
direct supply from a high-voltage network (e.g. 10 KV c i t y network), the
main leads must be interrupted v i s i b l y before entry to the setup by an
additional open i s o l a t i n g switch;
The switched condition of a setup must be indicated by a red lamp
"Setup switched on" and by a green lamp "Setup switched o f f " .

Earthing
A high-voltage setup may be entered only when a l l the parts which
can assume high-voltage i n the contact zone are earthed.
only be effected by a conductor earthed inside the fence.

Earthing may
Fixing the

.64

e a r t h i n g l e a d s onto t h e p a r t s t o be e a r t h e d s h o u l d be done w i t h t h e a i d
of i n s u l a t i n g r o d s .

Earthing switches w i t h a c l e a r l y v i s i b l e operating

position, are also permissible.

I n high-power setups w i t h d i r e c t

supply

from t h e h i g h - v o l t a g e network, e a r t h i n g i s a c h i e v e d by e a r t h i n g i s o l a t o r .
E a r t h i n g may o n l y f o l l o w a f t e r s w i t c h i n g t h e c u r r e n t s o u r c e o f f , and may
be removed o n l y when t h e r e i s no l o n g e r anyone p r e s e n t w i t h i n t h e fence
o r i f t h e setup i s v a c a t e d a f t e r removal o f e a r t h .

A l l metallic parts

of t h e setup w h i c h do n o t c a r r y p o t e n t i a l d u r i n g normal s e r v i c e must be

o

e a r t h e d r e l i a b l y and w i t h an adequate c r o s s s e c t i o n o f a t l e a s t 1.5 mm .

C i r c u i t and Test Setup

Inasmuch as t h e setup i s not s u p p l i e d from ready w i r e d d e s k s ,

clearly

marked i s o l a t i n g s w i t c h e s must be p r o v i d e d i n a l l l e a d s t o t h e l o w - v o l t a g e
c i r c u i t s o f h i g h - v o l t a g e t r a n s f o r m e r s and a r r a n g e d a t an e a s i l y
f i a b l e p o s i t i o n outsider.the fence.

identi-

These must be opened b e f o r e e a r t h i n g

and b e f o r e e n t e r i n g t h e s e t u p .
A l l l e a d s must be l a i d so t h a t t h e r e a r e no l o o s e l y hanging

ends.

Low v o l t a g e l e a d s which can assume h i g h p o t e n t i a l s d u r i n g breakdown o r

f l a s h o v e r s and l e a d o u t o f t h e fenced a r e a , e.g. measuring c a b l e , ^ c o n t r o l
c a b l e , s u p p l y c a b l e , must be l a i d i n s i d e t h e setup i n e a r t h e d s l e e v i n g .
A l l components o f the..setup must be e i t h e r r i g i d l y f i x e d o r suspended so
t h a t they cannot t o p p l e d u r i n g o p e r a t i o n o r be p u l l e d down by t h e l e a d s .
F o r a l l setups i n t e n d e d f o r r e s e a r c h p u r p o s e s ,

a circuit

s h a l l be f i x e d o u t s i d e t h e f e n c e i n c l e a r l y v i s i b l y

position.

diagram

A t e s t setup may be put i n t o o p e r a t i o n o n l y a f t e r t h e c i r c u i t

has been checked and p e r m i s s i o n t o b e g i n

work g i v e n

by an a u t h o r i z e d

65

person.

Conducting the Experiments

Everyone carrying out experiments i n the laboratory i s personally
responsible for the setup placed at h i s disposal and for the experiments performed with i t .

For experiments during working hours one

should t r y , i n the interest of personal safety, to make sure that a

second person i s present i n the testing room.

I f this i s not possible,

then at least the times of the beginning and end of an experiment should
be communicated to a second person.
When working with high-voltages outside working hours, a second
person familiar with the experimental setups must be present i n the
same room.

Explosion and Fire,..Risk, Radiation Protection

In experiments with o i l and other e a s i l y inflammable materials,
special care i s necessary owing to the danger of explosion and f i r e .
In each room where work i s carried out with these materials, suitable
f i r e extinguishers must be to hand, ready for use.

Easily

inflammable

waste products, e.g. paper or used cotton waste, should always be d i s posed of immediately i n metal cans.

Special regulations must be

observed when radioactive sources are used.

66

APPENDIX I I
FORMULA OF MODE OSCILLATIONS

The

f o r m u l a o f mode o s c i l l a t i o n s

i na rectangular

resonator

can be d e r i v e d from MAXWELL's e q u a t i o n s :

| I

V x E . - w f
A f t e r an e x t e n s i v e m a n i p u l a t i o n

of these d i f f e r e n t i a l

equations,

the e l e c t r i c and the magnetic f i e l d s o f TM modes and TE modes a r e

o b t a i n e d f o r t h e boundary c o n d i t i o n s x = 0, x = a and y = 0, y = b:
TM modes:
n
E

n
E

r
\
r -i 3mir
_ .mirx. . ,mry. i (wt-gz)
"
(x,y) = Re { - f h C
C o s ( ) SinC-r -) e
}a
h a
mn]_
a
b
x
2

ox-^
m

oyi

O Z i

( x

'

y )

T,
e

r - j 3mr _
.
,mT7x
_ /nTry. j (wt-gz) -, *
< h^b" Cmn-L S i n C ^ ) Cos(-^-) e
}a
x

o y i

( x , y ) = Re { C ^

Sin(^) Sin(^) e ^ " ^ } z

a

( x , y ) = Re ( ^ f f

where:

m n

S i n ( ^ ) C o s ( ^ ) J

m n i

m n i

Cos(=?)

S i n (52*)

c o r r e s p o n d s t o the p a r t i c u l a r

g i v e n c h o i c e o f m and n.

= yew

= ( -a )

( a r - (-;b-)

+ ( b^ )

e ^ " ^

} a

>a

mode d e f i n e d by a

(m, n a r e i n t e g e r s )

The e l e c t r i c f i e l d s t r a v e l i n g
n

O X 2

r
\
rt
(x,y) = R

-f ~j Bmn
i jC

i n the o p p o s i t e d i r e c t i o n a r e :

n
m n 2

T?
/
\
T>
-iBnir
Eoy (x,y) = R {
2
Cmn
J

/HITTX.
. /niry.
j (cot+Bz)
C o s ( ) Sin(-^-) e
J

/imrx.
/niry.
() C o s e

j (cot+Bz)

\ i ax

} ay

A p p l y i n g boundary c o n d i t i o n z = 0 and z = C , the f o l l o w i n g

is

obtained:
z=0:

O X l

(x,y)

(Mi + M ) Cos ( 2 ^ )
a
2

where:

Therefore,

l =

h^a

mni

M-^ = - M

C ;

+ E

O X 2

(x,y)

SinC ^)
b

= 0

S i n cot = 0

( 'y)
x

o x l

+ ox ( .y)
E

M.. C o s ( ) Sn(~^-) { S i n (tot - BC) - S i n (cot + BC) } = 0

1
a
b
- 2 Cos cot S i n BC

S i n BC = 0

where:

BC =

p i s an i n t e g e r

PTT

T>

But

rP-

yeco

,mi7.2
()

,1117.2
()

Therefore,

= U

()

/u7

(SE)

+ (1) +

or

f =

2i7/ye"

\ /

c ^ ) + <ir
2

+ c^-)

The same e x p r e s s i o n can d e r i v e d from E

TE modes.

) 2

( x , y ) and E

( x , y ) and from