Enhancement of AC Breakdown Strength of Epoxy TiO2 Nanocomposite by Removing Agglomerates

Epoxy nanocomposites (NCs) are known to have advantages when used in the electrical insulation of power equipment. Agglomerates of nanoparticles, which inevitably form during the fabrication process, can affect the insulating properties of the resultant nanocomposites. Our previous research has clarified that the impulse breakdown strength of the solid part, rather than the surface, of epoxy-TiO
₂
NCs with agglomerates removed was higher than that of unfilled epoxy resin. Here, we investigated the dependence of the TiO
₂
filler volume fraction on the AC breakdown strength of NCs whose agglomerate size was controlled. The volume fraction and the maximum agglomerate size were controlled using a simple dilution procedure and a centrifugation technique. The AC breakdown strength of the NCs was found to increase with decreasing volume fraction of TiO
₂
nanoparticles when the maximum agglomerate size was controlled at the same level. The variation of the AC breakdown strength of the NCs decreased with decreasing maximum agglomerate size, suggesting that the existence of agglomerates larger than a critical size could affect the breakdown.