Equivalent salt deposit density prediction of outdoor polymer insulators during salt fog test

Contamination flashover happens when soluble or non-soluble deposits cover the surface of the insulator which results in a reduction in its surface resistance. Many researchers used the leakage current to predict the contamination level on the surface of ceramic outdoor insulators. This can be used as a mean to warn transmission power operators about the advent of contamination flashover. However, there have been few researches to predict the contamination levels on the surface of non-composite or polymer insulators. This work aims to develop a practical technique to monitor and evaluate the surface condition of non-composite by predicting the soluble contamination level known as equivalent salt deposit density (ESDD).