A10 1

Long-term Performance of Partially Silicone

Rubber Coated Porcelain Long-rod Insulators
Ryosuke Matsuoka1*, Basanta K. Gautam2, Kenji Sakanishi1, Hiroyuki Shinokubo1, Shouichi
Ishikawa1, Masato Imai1, Tomoyuki Sasaki1, Kazuma Yamada1, Susumu Ito3 and Osamu Fujii3
1
Faculty of Electrical Engg., College of Engineering, Chubu University, Kasugai, 487-8501, Japan
2
Dept. of Electrical Engg., Inst. of Engineering, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal
3
NGK Insulators, LTD., Nagoya, Japan
*
Email: matsuoka@isc.chubu.ac.jp

polymer insulators, hasn’t been obtained with porcelain long

Abstract—By applying hydrophobic silicone rubber coating
only to trunk portions or shed portions of a porcelain long rod
insulator, applied voltage to the whole insulator can be divided
and allotted to the individual trunks or sheds, and so insulator
contamination flashover voltage can be improved both under
long-term accumulation and rapid contamination conditions.
Such a better performance owes to superior hydrophobicity of
silicone rubber. So aging reduction of this performance is
concerned about due to the reduction of hydrophobicity.
We have investigated the long-term performance of this type of
insulators by the 275-kV accelerated aging test. Test results are
presented.
Index Terms— Aging, Contamination flashover voltage,
Porcelain long rod insulator, Silicone rubber coating
I. INTRODUCTION
rod insulators, although they had been developed also with the
same design philosophy.
Similar favorable effect with the case of transmission line
polymer insulators may be expected if a hydrophobic silicone
rubber coating is applied only to all the trunk surfaces of a
porcelain long rod insulator. Due to hydrophobicity, surface
resistances on these trunks could be very high even under
contaminated and wet conditions, and so the voltage applied to
this insulator could be divided and allotted to these individual
trunks, resulting in a higher contamination flashover voltage
owing to an improved voltage distribution along the insulator.
Contamination flashover voltages of a porcelain long rod
insulator with hydrophobic silicone rubber coating on its all the
trunks were evaluated by the clean fog test method, but only
approx. 10% of improvement in the contamination flashover

I N our investigations of the effect of core diameter of polymer
insulators on their contamination flashover voltages, we
found that transmission line insulators with very small core
diameters have 30-50% higher flashover voltages compared
with larger core diameter insulators like line-post and station
post insulators, and bushing shells despite all the specimens
having the same housing material and the same or similar shed
configurations [1]. Such better performance of a transmission
line insulator can be attributed to its large ratio of shed to core
diameter which is 4 to 5. Due to such a large ratio, the leakage
current density on trunks is 4 or 5 times higher than that at the
shed tips resulting in extremely high surface resistances on
trunks. So the voltage applied to the whole insulator gets
divided and allotted to these individual trunks. Such an
improved voltage distribution along the transmission line
polymer insulator results in higher contamination flashover
voltages.
In the case of porcelain long rod insulators, ratios of shed to
core diameter are only 2~3. So the difference in the surface
resistance is not so significantly large between the trunk and
shed portions and can be easily masked by other factors such as
the non-uniform distribution of fog density along the insulator
and the difference in wetting degree between the upper- and
under-shed surfaces. So superior contamination flashover
voltage performance, as is the case of transmission line
voltage was confirmed compared with the same long rod
insulator without any coating on its trunks [2], [3]. The silicone
rubber coated surfaces were pre-conditioned to get a uniform
contamination layer as is the case of hydrophobic polymer
insulators [4]. Due to pre-conditioning, the surface
hydrophobicity was reduced and surface resistances were not
so high compared with the dried trunk surface of transmission
line polymer insulators. Although we also evaluated the
performance of the specimen after one week of rest time
expecting the recovery of hydrophobicity, any significant
improvement wasn’t obtained.
Considering the actual field conditions of silicone rubber
polymer insulator surfaces, we developed a new contamination
method by spraying dry salt and Tonoko powders on to the
insulator surfaces. Then we could get a significant
improvement of 35-45% in the flashover voltage [5]. We could
also confirm significant improvement in the flashover voltage
by the salt fog test method [6].
In the next stage of our investigation, we evaluated the
comparative contamination flashover voltages among the
porcelain long rod insulators with silicone rubber coating only
on all the shed surfaces, only on the trunk surfaces and whole
the insulator surface [7]. Higher flashover voltages were
obtained, for the specimen with silicone rubber coating on all
the shed surfaces compared with the specimen coated on all the
 A10 2

trunk surfaces. This can be attributed to the longer leakage or TABLE 2 SEQUENCE AND CONDITIONS OF ACCELERATED AGEING TEST
longer dry arcing distance along the individual shed surfaces Time, h
Stress Test Conditions
compared with that along the trunk surfaces. 3 6 9 12 15 18 21
Based on the successful test results of porcelain long rod Voltage AC 160kV(Line to Ground)
insulators with partial silicone rubber coating, we evaluated Salinity : 6.0 mS/cm
Salt Fog
also the performance of a porcelain bushing shell with silicone Input Rate:0.5 l/h/m3

rubber coating on all the trunks by salt fog test method [8]. Steam Fog Input Rate:0.1 kg/h/m3

Similar improvement in contamination flashover voltage was Rain Precipitation:3±2 mm/min

obtained again on this bushing shell. UV Intensity: 2.0±0.5 mW/cm2
Since silicone rubber is organic material, long-term
performance is concerned about. As the applied voltage to the
whole insulator is divided and allotted to individual silicone 11.3 m
rubber coated trunks or sheds, partial discharges may be
concentrated at these portions. Reduction in contamination Nozzles for
UV Lamps
flashover voltage performance might be encountered under Salt Fog
reduced surface hydrophobic conditions. We have investigated
Specimen Insulator Strings
the long-term ageing performances of these insulators both by

8m
an accelerated ageing test and by an outdoor exposure test Wall Bushing
under the test voltage of 160kV for the system voltage of Nozzles for Salt Fog
275kV on full scale [9]. In this paper we present the Nozzles for Steam Fog
investigation results of long-term performance of these
insulators. Plan

II. SPECIMENS Nozzles for Rain Catwalk

Porcelain long rod insulators were partially or wholly coated
with hydrophobic silicone rubber. Specimen details are shown
in Table 1. Nozzles for Salt Fog

10 m
TABLE 1 SPECIMEN DETAILS
UV Lamps
Leakage
RTV SiR No. of Specimen Insulator Strings
Kind of Test Shed Shape Distance,
Coating at Units
mm Nozzles for Steam Fog
Nozzles for Salt Fog
2 4280
Trunks
3 6420 Elevation
Accelerated Whole Fig. 1 Accelerated ageing test arrangement
2 4280
Ageing Surface
40mm
Under 5.7 m 5.7 m
2 4280
40mm Sheds
Nozzles for Salt Fog
Outdoor
Trunks 3 6420
Exposure Bushing
6.3 m Specimen

III. TEST METHOD Specimen 6.1 m

0.6m
3m
Specimen insulators were aged for 400 cycles by the Nozzles for Salt Fog
Nozzles for Salt Fog
accelerated ageing test whose test sequence and conditions are
shown in Table 2. Test arrangement is shown in Fig. 1. A test Plan Elevation
voltage 160kV (line to ground voltage for the system voltage Fig. 2 Contamination Test Arrangement
275kV) is applied continuously to all the specimens and the
sequence is repeated cyclically once every day.
TABLE 3 CONTAMINATION TEST CONDITIONS
Visual observation was made for checking the erosion and
tracking on the SiR coated surfaces. Surface hydrophobicity Salinity, g/l 80
was evaluated based on the STRI criteria. Then contamination Salt Fog Injection Rate, cc/min/nozzle 250
flashover voltage performance was evaluated by the salt fog
Pressure, MPa 0.7±5%
test method. Contamination test arrangement and test
Specimen: No. of Units per Test 1
conditions are shown in Fig. 2 and Table 3, respectively. Test
procedure is shown in Fig. 3. A porcelain long-rod insulator
 A10 3

unit coated with silicone rubber and aged by the accelerated
ageing test or outdoor exposure test is installed vertically in the
fog chamber as shown in Fig. 2 after cleaning the surface by tap
water. Test voltage V0 is applied and then salt fog is directly
sprayed over the specimen as shown in Fig. 2. Based on the test
procedure shown in Fig. 3, after confirming withstand during
30 minutes under the test voltage V0, test voltage is increased
by 10% and flashover or withstand during 5minutes is
confirmed. If no flashover, the test voltage is increased by
another 10%. Repeating this procedure, the first flashover
voltage FOV1 is obtained. Then, 80% of FOV1 is applied to the
same specimen for 5 minutes to confirm flashover or withstand.
If no flashover, the same test procedure is repeated to get the
next flashover voltage FOV2. Thus repeating the procedure,
five flashover voltage values shall be obtained and the average
value is compared.
FOV2
5min
5min
Applied Voltage, kV
This shows that if silicone rubber coating is applied only to all
the trunk surfaces, the applied voltage to the whole insulator
string can be divided and allotted to these portions and ageing
deterioration is accelerated by the partial discharges
concentrated around these portions if the string is too short for
the partial discharges to occur.
Hydrophobicity measurement results after 400 cycles of the
accelerated ageing test of 3 long-rod insulator units of string
under the same voltage application are shown in Fig. 6. A
drastic improvement can be seen in the hydrophobicity on the
trunk surfaces compared with the case of 2 units of string. In
our visual observation, any severe discharge activities were not
observed.
Surface observation results of SiR coated trunk surfaces after
400 cycles of accelerated ageing tests of 2 units and 3 units of
strings are shown in Fig. 7. In the case of 3 units of string,
FOV5 crazing is seen only on the energized side unit and the number
5min
of trunks with crazing in this unit is less than that in the case of
5min
5min
2 units of string. Any erosion or crazing is not observed on the
remaining two units.

1.3V0 5min V4
5min FOV1 V4≒0.8FOV4
1.2V0 V1 V ≒0.8FOV
5min 1 1
1.1V0 F.O ●: Coated on Whole Surface (Measured on Trunk Surface)
5min ○: Coated on Whole Surface (Measured on Under-shed Surface)
F.O. F.O.
30min ■: Coated on Under-shed Surface
Hydrophobicity Level Acc. to STRI Criteria

V0 ▲: Coated on Trunk Surface

7
Salt Fog Spraying 6
Hydrophilic

Time 5
Fig. 3 Contamination Test Procedure 4
3
Hydrophobic

IV. TEST RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

2
A. Surface Condition
1
After 200 and 400 cycles of accelerated ageing tests, surface
hydrophobicity was measured and visual observation was
Ground End Energized End Ground End Energized End
conducted on the 2 units of string. Surface hydrophobicity on
the specimens after 200 cycles, evaluated by the STRI criteria, Ground Side Unit Energized Side Unit
is shown in Fig 4. It can be seen that hydrophobicity on the
Fig. 4 Hydrophobicity on Different Specimens after 200 Cycles
energized endmost core of the specimen with SiR coating on
the trunks is HC6 but on the other parts it is around HC2～3.
Hydrophobicity on the SiR coated surfaces of the specimens
Hydrophobicity Level Acc. to STRI Criteria

7
with whole surface coating and under-shed surface coating is
HC1～2, no significant reduction in hydrophobicity. Slight 6
Hydrophilic

erosion was observed on the first trunk (from the energized 5

end) of the energized side specimen with SiR coating on the
trunks after 200 cycles. Erosion was not seen on the other parts 4

of the specimen but crazing is observed on almost all the trunk

Hydrophobic

3
surfaces of the energized side unit. Any erosion and surface 2
degradation wasn’t observed on the other specimen. Specimen: SiR Coating on Trunks
1
Surface hydrophobicity on the specimens coated with SiR on
trunks was significantly reduced after 400 cycles of accelerated
Ground Energized Ground Energized
ageing test as shown in Fig. 5. Significant reduction in End Middle End End Middle End
hydrophobicity can be seen on almost all the trunks of both Ground Side Unit Energized Side Unit
units.
Concentrated partial discharges are observed at the trunks. Fig. 5 Hydrophobicity on Trunks of 2 Units of String after 400 Cycles
 A10 4

[6] K. Yamada, C. Saka, B. K. Gautam, K. Sakanishi, S. Sumi and R.

Hydrophobicity Level Acc. to STRI Criteria

Matsuoka, “Improvement of Insulation Performance of a Porcelain Long

7 Specimen: SiR Coating on Trunks
Rod Insulator under Contaminated Conditions”, IEEJ Trans. on Power
and Energy, Vol. 127, No. 12, pp. 1287-1291, Dec. 2007.
Hydrophilic

6 [7] K. Yamada, A. Hayashi, C. Saka, K. Sakanishi and R. Matsuoka,

5 “Improvement of Contamination Flashover Voltage Performance of
Cylindrical Porcelain Insulators”, Proceedings of IEEE-ISEI, Paper No.
4 A-18, pp. 69-72, Vancouver, B. C., Canada, June 8-11, 2008.
[8] A. Hayashi, K. Yamada, C. Saka, K. Sakanishi and R. Matsuoka,
Hydrophobic

3 “Contamination Flashover Voltage of a Porcelain Bushing Shell with

Silicone Rubber Coating at Trunks”, Proceedings of 2007 Japan-Korea
2 Joint Symposium on ED & HVE, Paper No. 16P-18, pp. 303-306, Japan,
Nov. 15-17, 2007.
1 [9] A. Satake, T. Nakanishi, H. Shinokubo and R. Matsuoka, “A New Ageing
Test Chamber for 275-kV Full Scale Insulator Strings and Preliminary
Ground Test Results”, Proceedings of 2001 Japan-Korea Joint Symposium on ED
Middle Energized Ground Middle Energized Ground Middle Energized
End End End End End End & HVE, Paper No. 13-15, 1-2 Nov., 2001, Miyazaki, Japan.
Ground Side Unit Middle Unit Energized Side Unit
66

Ground End Unit

Fig. 6 Hydrophobicity on Trunks of 3 Units of String after 400 Cycles
Crazing

B. Contamination Flashover Voltage Test Results Erosion

Specimens with SiR coating on all the trunks were tested to

Position of Trunk from Energized End

determine the contamination flashover voltage by salt fog test 44
method and the results are shown in Fig. 8. It can be seen that
due to maintaining of better hydrophobicity level on the SiR

Center Unit
coated trunk surfaces, specimens of the 3 units of string have
significantly higher contamination flashover voltages
compared with the specimens of 2 units of string.
22
V. CONCLUSION
Energized End Unit

Although significant improvement in contamination

flashover voltage of a long-rod porcelain insulator can be
obtained by applying hydrophobic silicone rubber coating only
to all the trunk or shed surfaces, such a superior performance
0
could be easily lost if the insulator string length is too short for
200 Cycles 400 Cycles 400 Cycles
the sustainable partial discharges to occur. Such an ageing
deterioration can be avoided with the use of a pertinent length 2 units 3 units
of insulator string. Fig. 7 Surface Observation Results

REFERENCES 110
[1] B. K. Gautam, S. Matsumura, K. Sakanishi, R. Matsuoka and M. Ito, Ground End (3 Unit)
“Effect of Core Diameter of Cylindrical Polymer Insulators on
Contamination Flashover Voltage – Part I”, IEEJ Trans. on Electrical and
Average Flashover Voltage, kV/unit

Electronic Engg., Vol. 1, No. 3, pp. 298-305, Sept. 2006. 100 New Specimen
[2] B. K. Gautam, S. Matsumura, S. Matsushita, T. Hashimoto, K. Sakanishi
and R. Matsuoka, “Investigation of Contamination Flashover Voltage of a
Porcelain Long Rod Insulator with Silicone Rubber Coating on the Ground End (2 Unit)
Trunks”, Proceedings of the 8th ICPADM, Paper No. M-2, pp. 591-594, 90
Bali, Indonesia, June 26-30, 2006.
[3] K. Yamada, T. Yamazaki, C. Saka, B. K. Gautam, K. Sakanishi, R. Energized End (3 Unit)
Matsuoka and K. Kondo, “Improvement of Contamination Flashover
Performance of Long Rod Porcelain Insulators – Part 2”, IEEJ Tokai
Branch Joint Conference, paper No. o-062, Gifu, Japan, September 28-29, 80
2006 (in Japanese). : Ground End
[4] K. Naito, K. Izumi, K. Takasu and R. Matsuoka, “Performance of : Center Energized End (2 Unit)
Composite Insulators under Poluuted Conditions”, CIGRE Session Paper : Energized End
No. 33-301, 1996. 70
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
[5] M. Suzuki, J. Aoyama, K. Yamada, A. Hayashi, C. Saka, K. Sakanishi and
Hydrophobic Hydrophilic
R. Matsuoka, “Improvement of Contamination Flashover Voltage Hydrohobicity Class
Performance of a Porcelain Long-rod Insulator”, IEEJ Tokai Branch
Conference, Paper No. O-013, 2008 (in Japanese) Fig. 8 Contamination Flashover Voltage Test Results