A new computer model for partial discharge phenomena investigations

A new library macromodel for the general purpose circuit analysis computer program PSpice is proposed in this paper. The model incorporates the equivalent electrical circuit parameters of dielectric unhomogeneities (voids), such as a void's capacitance and discharge resistance, together with a switch to connect and disconnect this resistance. The new feature of this model is the automatic switching of the circuit at two user defined values: the switch closes when the voltage arising across the void reaches the local inception value a; and opens when this voltage drops down to the local extinction value u/sub e/. Thus it is possible to create and analyse more complex equivalent schemes for partial discharge development in unhomogeneous dielectrics.