Nano-sized composite improving the insulating performance of insulating paper using low-temperature plasmas

Nanostructured dielectric composite has been considered as a promising manner in improving the flashover performance of oil-paper which has been widely used in power systems. In this paper, plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) is used to deposit SiO2 on the ceramic fiber-reinforced insulating paper. Scanning electron microscope images show a large number of SiO2 nanoparticles with diameters of 100 nm–250 nm uniformly attached to the fiber surface after the plasma deposition. The surface flashover voltage of the insulating paper was tested in the air and the transformer oil, respectively. Results show that the corresponding DC surface flashover voltages increased by 15.1% in the air and breakdown between liquid and solid interface increased by 24.6% after the PECVD. It is believed that nanoparticles constructed in ceramic fibers change the electron injection barrier which inhibits the injection of negative charges and hinders the accumulation of charges in the dielectric. Nanoparticles can capture electric charges formed in the transformer oil which affects the generation and development of streamers, resulting in an increased dielectric strength. This study provides a new method to comprehensively improve the surface insulating property which has the prospect of promoting other dielectric materials.