Effect of the dielectric inhomogeneity factor's range on the electrical tree evolution in solid dielectrics

Abstract

The main contribution of the presented paper is to investigate the influence of the Dielectric Inhomogeneity Factor on the electrical tree evolution in solid dielectrics using cellular automata. We have a sample of the XLPE which is located between needle-to-plane electrodes under DC voltage. The electrical tree emanates from the end of the needle in which the electric stress attains a dielectric strength of the material. At every time step, Laplace's equation is solved to calculate the potential distribution which changes according to electrical tree development. Dynamic simulations clearly demonstrate the influence of the range of the Dielectric Inhomogeneity Factor on the electrical tree growth. Simulation results confirm the published technical literature.