Electrical treeing in high voltage insulations: a review on nanocomposite insulating materials and their processing techniques

Abstract

Electrical treeing is one of the major causes of breakdown/failure of polymeric insulations. Nanocomposite materials play an important role in preventing insulation breakdown due to the presence of nanoparticles. Nanoparticles act as charge trapping sites and physical barriers to electrical treeing thereby hindering their growth. This study presents a review on electrical treeing studies on nanocomposite materials and processing techniques employed to mitigate insulation failure due to electrical treeing. Various polymers combined with different nanofillers as well as the most common processing techniques are also reviewed. Emerging trends on nanomaterial surface modification to improve electrical treeing resistance are also discussed.