Aging in silicone rubber used for outdoor insulation

A hypothesis for aging produced by dry band arcing in silicone rubber material used for outdoor insulation is presented and experimentally proven. Aging is indicated by permanent changes. The analytical techniques used to study the permanent changes are Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and surface roughness measurement. The authors highlight the fact that there are permanent changes occurring in the material that lead to progressive degradation in the long run, even though there can be a complete recovery of surface hydrophobicity in a short time.<
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