Analysis of Polarization and Depolarization Currents of Samples of NOMEX^®910 Cellulose–Aramid Insulation Impregnated with Mineral Oil

The article presents results of laboratory tests performed on samples of NOMEX^®910 cellulose–aramid insulation impregnated with Nynas Nytro 10× inhibited insulating mineral oil using the polarization and depolarization current analysis method (PDC Method). In the course of the tests, the insulation samples were subjected to a process of accelerated thermal degradation of cellulose macromolecules, as well as weight-controlled dampening, thereby simulating the ageing processes occurring when using the insulation in power transformers. The effects of temperature in the ranges typical of normal transformer operation were also taken into account. On the basis of the obtained data, the activation energy was then fixed together with dominant time constants of cellulose–aramid insulation relaxation processes with respect to the temperature and degree of moisture, as well as thermal degradation of cellulose macromolecules. It was found that the greatest and predictable changes in the activation energy value were caused by the temperature and the degree of moisture in the samples. A similar conclusion applies to the dominant time constant of the relaxation process of cellulose fibers. Degree of thermal degradation samples was of marginal importance for the described parameters. The final outcome of the test results and analyses presented in the article are regression functions for the activation energy and the dominant time constants depending on the earlier listed parameters of the experiment, which may be used in the future diagnostics of the degree of technical wear of cellulose–aramid insulation performed using the PDC method.