Flashover performance of IEEE standard insulators under ice conditions

This paper presents two methods for testing insulators under icing conditions. These methods were based on and developed from those described in the standard of IEC 507, which gives instructions for testing insulators under pollution. The effects of various factors, including wind velocity, ice thickness, dry arcing distance of insulators, and conductivity of freezing water, on the flashover performance of a short string of IEEE standard insulators, were then investigated. The experiments were carried out in a cold room. Moreover, the repercussions of ice on actual insulators were evaluated by examining the maximum withstand stress of the insulators employed on Hydro-Quebec networks and, by comparison, the effects of ice with salt contamination.