Experimental Studies of Partial Discharges in Bubbles Exposed to X-Ray Radiation

The influence of X-ray radiation on the possibility and probability of partial discharge (PD) initiation in freely floating helium bubbles in transformer oil under the action of an alternating voltage with a frequency of 50 Hz has been experimentally investigated. For this purpose, X-ray radiation was supplied to the experimental cell's interelectrode region, in which single helium bubbles floated up in transformer oil at a given rate. It is shown that X-ray radiation (in the presence of PD ignition conditions according to Paschen's law) initiates PD in freely floating bubbles. Results have also been obtained showing the qualitative dependence of the number of PDs in helium bubbles on X-ray radiation intensity.