Research On The Discharge Mechanism Of The Algae-Contaminated Insulators

Polymer insulators offered several benefits over original ceramic insulators on exceptional hydrophobicity and anti-pollution flashover, which has been widely used in power transmission lines to improve contamination performance all over the world. As an organic polymer, the biological corrosion resistance of silicone rubber is one disadvantage. It is important to investigate the discharge mechanism of algae-fouled silicone rubber. This paper aims to explore the discharge mechanism of algae-fouled silicone rubber based on special hydrophilic property of biological contaminants. Artificial pollution flashover test and computer simulation are conducted to explore the discharge process and characteristics of the algae-fouled silicon rubber, and the biological pollution discharge model of silicon rubber is to be established. Results show that the arc channel communicated algae population rather than clean silicone rubber surface, and the severity of discharge is positively correlated with the density of algae. On the other hand, biological pollution reduces flashover voltage by about 45%. Algae reduces the flashover voltage of silicone rubber surface, which affects the surface discharge of silicone rubber. This part of the hydrophilic surface of the silicone rubber discharge is completely different from the ordinary hydrophobic silicone rubber surface.