The Possibilities in Greener Transformer Oils

Vegetable Liquids for High Voltage Insulation and

Applications

Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia

Duty, Honour, Integrity

Dr. Mohd Taufiq Bin Ishak

Lecturer in Power System
Electrical Energy and Power Systems Group
Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Electrical and Electronic Engineerings Knowledge Sharing Session

22 February 2017
High Voltage Lab

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 OUTLINE

1. Introduction

2. Application

3. Basic Properties

4. Dielectric Properties

5. Design and Operation

6. Conclusions

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Introduction

Dielectric Liquids are used to provide:

electrical insulation/protection in HV system,
cooling medium,
information carrier.

The insulating liquids typically employed in power systems

especially in power transformer are naphthenic mineral oils.

Concerns of using mineral oil:

Running out in future.
Non biodegradable oil and could potentially contaminate the
soil/waterways if serious spillage take place.
Fire safety issue.

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Introduction

Due to those concerns and stringent environmental protection

regulations encourage utilities and manufacturers to use bio-
degradable liquids with low toxicity.

Natural esters (organic oils) and synthetic esters are considered

as potential substitutes for traditional mineral oil.

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Introduction

What is an Ester ?
The term ester comes from chemical linkage formed from the
reaction of an alcohol and an acid.

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Introduction

Natural Ester (Vegetable Oil) Synthetic Ester

Mineral Oil

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Biodegradation Rates

Courtesy of M&I Materials,

UK Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak
 Synthetic Ester Ignition Resistance

Mineral Oil 3 mins Mineral Oil 4 mins

Synthetic Ester 3 mins Synthetic Ester 70 mins

Courtesy of M&I Materials,
UK Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak
 Application of Ester Liquids

Rail
Traction/Trackside
Tunnel
Wind Energy
Offshore substation
Marine
Subsea
Oil & Gas
Offshore platform
Electrical Utility Natural Ester Filled 132 kV Transformer, UK Power Networks, Luton, 2009

Distribution transformer
Transmission transformer
 Application of Ester Liquids

Vegetable oils such Refined , Bleached and Deodorized

Palm Oil (RBDPO) and Coconut Oil (CO) offer suitable
alternatives for mineral oil(MO).
It is biodegradable, non-toxic, has fire /flash points which
ensure more safety in service and environmental friendly.

Thailand; 3%Papua New Guinea; 1%Others; 6%

Negeria; 2%
Malaysia; 42%
Ecuador; 1%
Indonesia; 45%

Figure : World Palm Oil Producer

Countries

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Comparison of Basic Oil Properties

Property Unit Coconut oil RBDPO Mineral Oil

Density@ 20 kg/dm3 0.97 0.90 0.882
Viscosity@ 40 mm2/s 28 34 8.7
Pour point -60 15 -60
Flash point 275 >220 144
Acidity mg KOH/g <0.03 0.07 <0.01
Breakdown voltage (AC) kV 60 (d=2.5 mm) 75 (d=2.5mm) >70 (d=2.5 mm)
Dielectric dispassion 1.4 at 90 0.03 at 25 0.03 at 100
factor@
 Kinematic Viscosity

Esters are more viscous than mineral oil.

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Moisture Saturation Level

Esters are able to absorb much more water

than mineral oil
 AC Breakdown Voltage

AC breakdown voltage reduces gradually with the increase of relative

water content (relative humidity) in a similar manner to mineral oil

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 AC Breakdown Voltage

AC breakdown voltage reduces with gradually with the increase of

relative water content (relative humidity) in a similar manner to mineral
oil

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 AC Breakdown Voltage

AC breakdown voltage reduces with the increase of particle

contamination level. Reduction rate in RBDPO and Coconut oil is lower
than in mineral oil

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Lightning Impulse (LI) Breakdown Tests

Sphere-to sphere, plane-to-plane, point-to-plane electrodes

8-stages BHT impulse generator with max. voltage 800kV
Standard lightning impulse 1.2/50 s, positive and negative polarities
High-speed imaging technique

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Breakdown Voltage in Uniform Fields

1) Rising-voltage Method

The highest breakdown voltage is

: MO with a value of 112.7 kV.

For biodegradable oil is

: RBDPOB with a value of 109.7 kV

Followed by RBDPOA (106 kV),

CO (105 kV) and RBDPOC (99.7 kV).

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Breakdown Voltage in Uniform Fields

2) Up-and-Down Method

It is observed that the breakdown voltages patterns for all samples were different
each other
Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak
Breakdown Voltage in Uniform Fields

The highest breakdown voltage is

: MO with a value of 105.2 kV.

For biodegradable oil is

: RBDPOA with a value of 99 kV

Followed by CO (98.7 kV), RBDPOB

(96 kV) and RBDPOC (89.3 kV).

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Breakdown Voltage in Uniform Fields

Comparison methods

There is a small effect of the testing

method under Quasi-Uniform for all
samples.

The Rising-voltage method gives

higher breakdown voltage than
Up-and-Down method.

The percentage of different,

( 6%-13%)

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Breakdown Voltage in Uniform Fields

LI breakdown voltage of vegetable oils in quasi-uniform field

is comparable to that of mineral oil

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Breakdown Voltage in Uniform Fields

LI breakdown voltage of vegetable oils in non-uniform fields is

lower than of mineral oil particularly at large gap distances

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Design Considerations

Breakdown voltage in quasi-uniform fields of ester

liquids is comparable with those of mineral oil,
indicating that operational design stresses and
therefore the basic size and configuration of an
vegetable-filled transformer can be similar to that of
a mineral oil filled unit.

Lighting impulse breakdown voltages of vegetable

liquids are lower than that of mineral oil in non-
uniform electric fields, and the difference is
increased at larger gap distances, which suggests
design modification such as dividing a large oil gap
into multiple smaller ones near winding ends in an
ester filled power transformer.
Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak
 Design Considerations

Dielectric permittivity of ester liquids is higher than

that of mineral oil, which could provide better electric
stress distribution between oil and pressboard.

Viscosity of ester liquids is higher than that of

mineral oil, which requires elevated temperature to
reach the same pressboard impregnation speed.

Care should be taken for cold starting of natural

ester filled transformers due to the high pour point of
nature esters.

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Operation Guidance

Background Knowledge

CIGRE Brochure No 436 Experiences in Service with

New Insulating Liquids

CIGRE Brochure, No 443 DGA in Non-Mineral Oils and

Load Tap Changers and Improved DGA Diagnosis
Criteria

CIGRE Working Group D1.31 Dielectric Performance of

Insulating Liquids for Transformers

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

 Operation Guidance

International Standard

IEC 61099 Specification for unused synthetic

organic esters for electrical purposes
IEC 61203 Synthetic organic esters for electrical
purposes Guide for maintenance of transformer
esters in equipment
IEC 62770 Unused natural esters for transformers
and similar electrical equipment
IEEE C57.147 Guide for Acceptance and
Maintenance of Natural Ester Fluids in Transformers
Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak
 State of Art

Synthetic ester: 400 kV, 240 MVA, National Grid,

North London, UK
Natural ester: 380 kV (420 kV rated), 300MVA,
TransnetBW,
Karlsruhe, Germany

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak

THANK YOU
Questions or Comments?

Dr Mohd Taufiq Ishak