Aging behavior of cellulosic materials in presence of mineral oil and ester liquids under various conditions

This paper is aimed at the study of aging behavior of cellulosic materials in different dielectric liquids under air and nitrogen atmospheres. Paper for copper conductor and high density transformer board were aged at 130°C up to 1128 h in sealed vessels in presence of mineral oil (MO), natural ester (VO) and synthetic ester (SE). The influence of thermal aging on cellulose and oil characteristics are investigated and compared. It's observed that the paper degradation is associated with the generation of CO2 and CO gases. Whatever the type of oil, this generation is more important with vessel under air atmosphere than that under nitrogen gap indicating a protective effect of nitrogen. In mineral oil, the degree of polymerization (DPv) reaches the end of life criteria at around 200 whereas it remains around 400 with ester oils. This is mainly due to the higher water solubility of esters compared to mineral oil. The measured degree of polymerization in MO is comparable to that calculated through 2-FAL (Furanic compounds) content using Vuarchex equation whereas for esters oil, there is no agreement between the measured and calculated DPv through 2-FAL content. This can constitute a limitation in the use of 2-FAL for the diagnosis of ester-filled transformers. Overall, the insulation cellulose/oil behavior seems better under nitrogen atmosphere.