Effect of UV irradiation modification on surface flashover voltage of epoxy resin

The vacuum surface flashover phenomenon of solid insulating media has always been a fundamental problem in the field of high voltage insulation. Therefore, study of the vacuum flashover mechanism of solid insulating media, proposing the theory and method of improving surface flashover performance of vacuum insulation of solid insulating media is of great significance for the safe operation of power equipment. In this research, an Ultraviolet irradiation surface modification technique is proposed, which carries out ultraviolet irradiation of epoxy resin samples for different durations of ultraviolet irradiation in an aerobic environment. After that, the chemical structure of the samples after different irradiation duration was tested by infrared spectroscopy tester and water contact Angle tester, the surface conductivity of different samples was tested, and the vacuum flashover voltage of the samples after different irradiation duration was measured. Experimental results show that Ultraviolet irradiation in the aerobic environment can change the surface morphology of epoxy resin samples, and generate oxygen-containing groups on the surface of the sample. As the irradiation time increases, the flashover voltage increases first and then decreases, the flashover voltage can be increased by 21.83%. The results showed that UV irradiation for a specific duration under aerobic conditions can effectively increase the surface flashover voltage of epoxy resin by affect the chemical structure on the surface of the epoxy resin.