The Official Publication of the InterNational Electrical Testing Association Fall 2005

Chemists Perspective

Gassing Characteristics of Transformer

Oil Under Thermal Stress

I
n June 2005, ASTM International adopted a new test method for test-
ing transformer oil. The aim of the test is to determine the gassing
pattern of an oil subjected to thermal stress under what is considered by Lance R. Lewand
to be low temperatures, i.e. 120C. The method is entitled ASTM D 7150, Doble Engineering
Company
Standard Test Method for the Determination of Gassing Characteristics
of Insulating Liquids Under Thermal Stress at Low Temperature.
Interest in the development of this test resulted from research that and
Doble performed in the early 1990s and more recently the research that
the CIGRE Task Force TF 15/12-01-11 (TF11) performed in trying to
discern the differences in gassing behavior of some transformer oils at
low temperatures. CIGRE has termed the unusual gassing behavior as Paul Griffin
stray gassing. Doble Engineering
The CIGRE research was mainly looking at the gassing behavior of new Company
oils in which transformers were exhibiting increasing hydrogen levels, yet
no apparent cause for the abnormal gassing could be determined. As a
result, the research centered on the oil and found that some oils produced
more gas (in this case hydrogen) than others when they were aged under
thermal conditions in both sealed transformers (gas blanketed, sealed or The reason that this information
bladder/diaphragm transformers) and free breathing transformers (open is so important is that it can signifi-
conservators). Doble had also observed a similar pattern and as a result cantly affect the results of the dis-
conducted a massive research study into the phenomenon that has lasted solved gas-in-oil (DGA) test. DGA
over three years and still goes on today. What was also determined was is one of the most widely used
the fact that not only could the refining process be partially responsible diagnostic tools for assessing the
for the abnormal production of dissolved gases, but different types of condition of electrical transform-
contamination in the oil, incompatible materials in the transformer, and ers and in more recent years load
the addition of additives such as metal passivators could also cause ab- tap-changers and bulk oil circuit
normal gassing to occur.

NETA WORLD Fall 2005 1

breakers. The test is very sensitive Early Studies on Gassing Behavior
to a wide range of problems and is In 1994, the Doble Oil Committee performed a study on the low
used to characterize incipient fault temperature gassing behavior of an oil manufactured in France that
conditions. Categories of abnormal was being used for the first time by a French transformer manufacturer.
conditions such as overheating, The transformer did not pass the dissolved gas-in-oil limits used by the
partial discharge, and arcing can purchaser. The manufacturer performed some tests which showed that
be further identified by the insu- the oil used (Shell Diala F) gassed much more than the oils they used
lating materials involved (paper or historically. To evaluate the gassing behavior of the Shell Diala F oil in
oil) or by the energy (high, moder- comparison to other products, air-saturated samples and some samples
ate, or low temperatures). DGA is that had been degassed (all gases removed except for small amounts of
ideally suited for condition-based oxygen and nitrogen) were aged in ground-glass matched barrel and
maintenance programs as it allows plunger syringes at 95C for 168 hours. The following oils were tested
early detection of problems and in the study:
can then be used to follow most
deterioration processes as they Shell Diala F, uninhibited, manufactured in France
evolve. Then, the decision can be Esso Univolt 52, uninhibited, manufactured in France
made as to when to perform more Exxon Univolt N61, inhibited, manufactured in US
definitive tests to identify the
specific problem or take remedial Shell Diala A, uninhibited, manufactured in US
action. Indeed, DGA is sensitive The results are provided in Table 1 (air saturated) and Table 2 after the
enough that it can be used to detect oil had been vacuum processed.
problems during factory testing of
new transformers helping manu- TABLE 1
facturers avoid shipping defective
units to the field. Gassing Characteristics of New Oils Aged at 95C, ppm vol./vol.
It is imperative that DGA results Oil Hydrogen Methane Ethane Ethylene Acetylene CO CO2 TCG
are interpreted accurately to ensure Diala F 378 106 63 2 0 215 908 764
the correct action is taken concern- Univolt 52 122 101 58 10 0 113 1414 404
ing any incipient faults within the Diala A 81 34 20 1 0 65 608 201
Univolt N61 35 0 0 0 0 46 489 81
transformer. It is well known that
oils can age differently, particularly
where there is ample oxygen such TABLE 2
as may be found in older units, or
Gassing Characteristics of Vacuum-Processed
free-breathing transformers. A 1991
New Oils Aged at 95C, ppm vol./vol.
study revealed that oils exposed to
relatively low temperatures could Oil Hydrogen Methane Ethane Ethylene Acetylene CO CO2 TCG
have different gassing behaviors Diala F 165 133 99 2 0 116 370 515
and oxygen consumption rates Univolt 52 0 4 2 0 0 0 42 6
under the same controlled condi-
tions. Gassing rates were different The results listed in Tables 1 and 2 show clearly that the Shell Diala F
for two oils tested if the oxygen product produced larger amounts of combustible gases than the other oils
content was fairly low at 3000 ppm tested. Even when oxygen is removed or reduced in the test samples, the
or high at 30,000 ppm and this is overall concentration of gases is reduced but the same oil still produces
one of the reasons why the new the largest quantity of dissolved gases. Table 2 reveals that degassing the
ASTM D 7150 test is performed two oils to reduce the oxygen content had a much greater effect on the
using air and nitrogen sparged Univolt 52 oil than the Diala F product. This type of experiment shows
samples. It was also shown that that the gassing characteristics of new oils under thermal stress can be
passing the dissolved gas-in-oil drastically different. In the case of a transformer heat run, one oil would
test for a factory heat run could cause the transformer to fail the test while the other oil would not be of
depend on the oil chosen. concern.

Recent Studies on Gassing Behavior

Doble, with the inspiration of the CIGRE work and its own previous
work, undertook a study to evaluate the gassing characteristics of oils
commercially available in 2001 and 2002 and in many cases still sold
today. The study was to look at a wide range of oils to determine the
amount of variation.

2 NETA WORLD Fall 2005

 Testing was performed under the following condi-
tions:
Air purged, 16 hours at 120C
Air purged, 164 hours at 120C
Nitrogen Purged, 16 hours at 120C
Nitrogen Purged, 164 hours at 120C
The aging was performed for differing times to as-
sess initial gassing rate and when a plateau or equi-
librium rate was reached. The samples were either air
or nitrogen purged to have a range of oxygen contents
representative of service conditions. The aging times
were as follows:
16 hours provides indication of initial generation
of gases and would be similar to the time for a fac-
tory heat run test.
164 hours indicates if the gases reach a plateau or Figure 1 Total Combustible Gas
a constant rate of generation of Air Saturated Samples Aged for 164 Hours

The oils were assigned a sequential number based

on the total amount of combustible gases formed dur- Nitrogen Purged Samples Aged 164 Hours
ing the experiment with air saturated oils aged for 16 at 120C
hours. For example, number 1 had the least amount Samples purged with nitrogen and then aged 164
of total combustible gas (TCG) and number 30 the hours did not contain as much combustible gas as
greatest amount of TCG. In some cases there was more those saturated with air before aging for the same
than one product from a refiner. Only the results of the amount of time; however, there were five oils that
164-hour testing are presented here as this is the time still exhibited high concentrations of hydrogen and
that was decided upon for the ASTM method. total combustible gases. In these cases the hydrogen
made up a large percentage of the composition of the
Air Saturated Samples Aged TCG.
for 164 Hours at 120C What is interesting in nitrogen-sparged samples is
that the methane and ethane values are consistently
For the samples saturated with air and aged for
low but make up a greater percentage of the TCG for
164 hours, the data shown in Figure 1 reveals that
more samples than was the case when there was ample
there is a large difference in the total combustible gas
oxygen at the start of aging. This is due to the fact that
(TCG) content between some of the oils and that very
the hydrogen produced in nitrogen-sparged samples
significant amounts of combustible gases are formed
is not as high in concentration. Similarly, the carbon
in some cases. There were four gassing patterns that
oxide gases are consistently lower for the nitrogen-
developed:
purged samples than when saturated with air.
Mostly carbon monoxide
Hydrogen and carbon monoxide
Mostly hydrogen
Mixture of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, methane
and ethane
The predominant gas formed was hydrogen. How-
ever, other gases such as methane, ethane, ethylene,
carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide were also
formed. In general, if the oxygen content remained
high, the first three gassing patterns occurred (as listed
above). If the oxygen was depleted, the methane and
ethane were generated in greater concentrations. Eth-
ane was not generated in significant amounts without
methane. The oxygen consumption rate was quite dif-
ferent for the various products.
Figure 2 TCG and Hydrogen Content
of Nitrogen Saturated Samples Aged for 164 Hours

NETA WORLD Fall 2005 3

Conclusions
There is a new ASTM Method D 7150 that provides
the protocol for determining the gassing character-
istics of oils under air and nitrogen (sealed) condi-
tions and at low temperature (120C).
It is not meant to be a routine test method in the
sense that DGA currently is. However, it can be ap-
plied in those situations where there is a question of
whether the oil is involved in producing the gassing
that is being observed.
DGA is a very important test, but care needs to be
taken in the interpretation of results to understand
the low temperature gassing behavior of the oil
when certain types of problems are detected. As
hydrogen is often the predominant gas formed for
the oils with the highest combustible gas genera-
tion rates, it is possible that low temperature ther-
mal problems could be confused with low energy
partial discharge activity. Stray gassing may also
be mistaken for excessive gassing at modest tem-
peratures.
Some of the breaking in characteristics that are ob- St. Marys College of Maryland in 1980. He has been employed
served for the gassing behavior of new transformers
or newly processed transformers may be attributed
to the oil and will stabilize over time.
Stray gassing can also be due to the presence of
contamination in the oil, the presence of incompat-
ible materials, and the presence of additives.
It is clearly important to know the properties and
characteristics of the oil in individual transformers,
especially when performing DGA. Similarly, it is
important to make sure the gassing characteristics
of oils used to top off transformers are also well
understood.
Article available for reprint with permission from NETA. Please inquire at neta@netaworld.org.
4 NETA WORLD Fall 2005
References
1. Griffin, P.J., Lewand, L. R., Heywood, R., and Lap-
worth, J. Gassing Characteristics of Transformer
Oils at Modest Temperatures, Part 1: Transformer
Experiences, Proceedings of the Seventy-First An-
nual Conference of Doble Clients, 2004.
2. Griffin, P.J., Lewand, L. R., Heywood, R., and Lap-
worth, J. Gassing Characteristics of Transformer
Oils at Modest Temperatures, Part 2: Laboratory
Experiments, Proceedings of the Seventy-First
Annual Conference of Doble Clients, 2004.
3. Schmidt, J., Eitner, R., and Hartwig, R., Gassing Be-
havior of Transformer Oils at Temperatures Above
60C, 7th International Symposium on High Voltage
Engineering, Aug. 26-30, 1991, pg. 33-36.
4. Griffn, P. J., Gassing Characteristics of New Oils
Used in Factory Heat Runs, Doble Oil Committee
Minutes, 1994, pg. 18-21.
Lance Lewand received his Bachelor of Science degree from
by the Doble Engineering Company since 1992 and is currently
the Laboratory Manager for the Doble Materials Laboratory and
Product Manager for the DOMINO. product line. Prior to his
present position at Doble, he was Manager of the Transformer
Fluid Test Laboratory and PCB and Oil Services at MET Electri-
cal Testing in Baltimore, MD. Mr. Lewand is a member of ASTM
Committee D 27.
Paul J. Griffin received his BS degree at the American Interna-
tional College and his MS at the University of Rhode Island. He has
been employed by the Doble Engineering Company since 1978 and
is currently Vice President of Laboratory Services. He is secretary
of the Doble Oil Committee, a member of ASTM committee D 27,
US Technical Advisor to IEC TC10 for Fluids for Electrotechanical
Applications, member of the IEEE Insulating Fluid subcommittee
of the Transformer committee, and a member of the CIGRE Work-
ing Group 15.01 Fluid Impregnated Insulating Systems.