Preparation and study of breakdown features of transformer oil based magnetic nanofluids

Nanofluids were developed by suspending conductive nanoparticles (Fe
₃
O
₄
) to improve the dielectric properties of transformer oil. The AC and lightening impulse breakdown voltages were measured for prepared samples in accordance to IEC standards. The results menifested that the addition of conductive nanoparticles (NPs) to the mineral oil can improve the mean AC breakdown performance 1.16 times of that for carrier oil approximately. Additionally, for nanofluids, the mean lightning impulse breakdown voltages were also enhanced than that of base transformer oil and were 1.36 times in comparison to host oil. A possible mechanism of conductive nanoparticles was also used to describe the difference among the performance of nanofluids and base oil.