New insulation materials – testing and trends for HV applications

HV insulation components work in a very harsh environment. These elements, depending on their application, are exposed to high voltage and high temperature (>100C), outdoor work, dielectric gases, and many other conditions. For many years such elements have been produced mainly from thermoset materials with filler, in particular epoxy resin. In general, the current material and its processing lead to a labor-intensive and complex manufacturing process. Additionally, epoxy material is very problematic to recycle thus, it would be desirable to find a material which is easier to process and more ecofriendly. Nowadays, we see more and better polymers like thermoplastics that seem to be good alternative. But their implementation is not an easy task and requires performing a lot of tests which are very challenging. The paper consists of selected HV insulation requirements and examples of tests that must be performed to find the best material candidates. Performed analyses and tests for different thermoplastic materials show its potential for implementation as alternative to epoxy resin. This way seems to be the right one as thermoplastic material offer a lot of benefits especially in terms of sustainability and circular economy.