Positive streamer in cyclohexane under microsecond pulse voltage

The electrical breakdown phenomenon in cyclohexane for point-to-plane gap configuration has been investigated using an image converter camera and photooptical current measuring technique. The photographic records for 4-mm gap spacing show the propagation of positive streamers with average velocities ranging from sonic to supersonic. Time to breakdown for gap spacing <2 mm was directly measured from prebreakdown current. Three linear relations between the time lag and gap spacing are obtained, which indicate three average propagation velocities: 0.18 km/s subsonic, 1.3 km/s sonic, and 2.8 km/s supersonic velocity.<
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