An activation energy-based method for assessing the aging state of cellulose insulating paper under the synergistic effect of mechanical stress and heat

Oil-paper insulation is an important component of the oil-immersed power transformer, and its insulation life is directly related to the operating life of the transformer. Therefore, it is particularly important to accurately assess the life of the oil-paper insulation system. In this paper, aging insulation paper samples with different mechanical stresses were prepared in an aging vibration chamber under laboratory conditions, and the activation energy under the synergistic machine-thermal action was obtained using the translation factor. The Arrhenius equation was then combined with the Ekenstam equation to derive an equation that can accurately determine the degree of polymerization of the oil-paper insulation system. It is proved that this equation can predict the degree of polymerization of the paper under the synergistic action of machine and heat, and can provide theoretical support for the evaluation of paper life.