Partial discharge characteristics of low-density polyethylene nanocomposites incorporated with plasma-treated silica and boron nitride nanofillers

Abstract

One of the criteria used to evaluate the improvement of the polymer's insulating property when nanofillers are introduced is partial discharge (PD). Nevertheless, the agglomeration of nanofillers within the polymer matrix is the key issue that prevents the insulating characteristics from improving. In light of the aforementioned, a variety of surface modification approaches have been developed to prevent nanofiller agglomeration. Plasma treatment is another emerging approach that has the potential to improve nanofiller compatibility with polymer matrices by altering the surface of the nanofillers. It is therefore necessary to investigate the efficiency of plasma treatment in improving the partial discharge properties of Low-density Polyethylene (LDPE) nanocomposites. In this study, the PD measurement according to the IEC 60270 standard has been conducted to characterize the PD endurance of the LDPE nanocomposites filled by different loading of plasma-treated silica (SiO2) and boron nitride (BN) nanofillers. The PD was measured using a CIGRE method (II) test cell. The phase-resolved partial discharge (PRPD) pattern diagram, the maximum PD magnitude, and the total PD number were used to examine the PD characteristics. The results showed that the 30-minutes plasma-treated nanocomposites had the greatest improvement against the PD activities with the lowest PD magnitude of 513 pC. Besides, it was found that the LDPE/SiO2 nanocomposites exhibited a significant improvement of the PD resistance compared to the LDPE/BN nanocomposites.