Power Quality Investigation in Ceramic Insulator

This paper presents a new method for the detection of high-voltage flashover using the power quality parameters in the insulator testing industries at a remote location from the test rig. In ceramic insulator industries, it is mandatory to test each insulator at manufacturing stage for high-voltage power frequency flashover/withstand test. The flashover is visually detected by the operator in insulator industries. Therefore, an operator has to be physically present close to the testing rig for the detection of flashover, which is very dangerous for the life. The proposed “high-voltage flashover detector” detects the flashover in insulators without using any quantity required to be measured from the high-voltage side of the test rig. The proposed scheme provides an improved flashover detection system, which detects the flashover without its visual inspection. The flashover phenomenon is reliably detected at some distant location from the test rig using power quality parameters of the system. The detailed power quality analysis of high-voltage ceramic insulator industries during power frequency flashover test and lightning impulse test based on experimental investigation is also reported here. Initially, a prototype of the new method for detection of high-voltage flashover is designed and implemented for flashover detection in insulator industries and in test laboratories. This scheme may also be extended to detect the fault on hot line with required modifications.