Edinburgh Napier University

  Manufacturing failures of insulators, such as the existence of cavities due to air bubbles and impurities during polymer injection can cause electric field distortion to occur where the air ionizes and fills the internal voids leading to the occurrence of partial discharges. This paper analyzes the maximum electric field and region where the field exists are studied with the model of the insulator’s configuration and analyzed using Finite Element Method (FEM). Contamination will also be simulated to compare the severity between the cavity and pollution. It was observed that pollution is more severe in polymeric insulators when compared to the presence of cavities. This research is significant as early PD detection is necessary to prevent faults in the insulation systems.