The 3D φ-n-q Analysis of Partial Discharge Detection in Low Pressure Conditions

Modern aerospace applications are more reliant on electrical or electrically powered actuators for flight surfaces, the safety of power systems in aerospace applications are significantly concerned. Partial discharges at lower pressures are a concern in these power systems as which are working at high altitudes. This work represents experimental results and analyzing the partial discharge activity associated with an Ethylene-Tetraflourethylene (ETFE) insulated twisted pair samples over the pressure range of 1.0 bar to 0.11bar corresponding to an altitude of up to 15,000m. The φ-n-q techniques commonly applied to data from power systems at atmospheric pressure and above has been used to analyze the observed partial discharge parameters in low pressure conditions in this work. The results present an increase in the number of discharges occurring and the total charge transferred is observed as the voltage is increased at each pressure, and a 3 peak structure is observed in both the positive and negative half cycles at the higher voltage levels. Besides, the peaks are shifting to lower phase with either the increasing voltage or the decreasing pressure