University of Canterbury Home
    • Admin
    UC Research Repository
    UC Library
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.
    View Item 
    1. UC Home
    2. Library
    3. UC Research Repository
    4. Faculty of Engineering | Te Kaupeka Pūhanga
    5. Engineering: Conference Contributions
    6. View Item
    1. UC Home
    2.  > 
    3. Library
    4.  > 
    5. UC Research Repository
    6.  > 
    7. Faculty of Engineering | Te Kaupeka Pūhanga
    8.  > 
    9. Engineering: Conference Contributions
    10.  > 
    11. View Item

    Volcanic ash contamination of high voltage insulators: Revising insulator design to aid the electrostatic repulsion of volcanic ash (2012)

    Thumbnail
    View/Open
    12642397_C99.pdf (531.1Kb)
    UC Permalink
    http://hdl.handle.net/10092/7407
    
    Publisher
    University of Canterbury. Electrical and Computer Engineering
    University of Canterbury. Geological Sciences
    Collections
    • Engineering: Conference Contributions [2338]
    Authors
    Mee, M.J.
    Bodger, P.S.
    Wardman, J.B.
    show all
    Abstract

    Ashfalls from volcanic eruptions can pose a considerable risk to electric transmission and distribution networks. Dry ash is non-conductive [1] and unlikely to cause an insulator flashover; but it is of concern when the ash becomes damp/wet through light rain, dew, and fog. Volcanic ash is the signature of a volcano; all volcanoes have slightly different volcanic ash. During an eruption the ash absorbs charged halogens and molecules into its surface which dry to become soluble salts [1]. When the ash becomes wet, these trapped soluble salts dissolve in the water to form a conductive channel. This can result in insulator flashover. Current insulator cleaning methods are exceedingly labour intensive and can only occur once a volcanic eruption has finished. Linemen are required to manually clean each and every insulator. This is a very time consuming task and may result in a lengthy downtime for the affected transmission line [2]. A self-cleaning insulator would vastly improve the current situation. Not only would the insulators be less susceptible to the build-up of ash, the effort and money required to manually clean the insulators would be substantially reduced. Only transmission lines potentially susceptible to volcanic ash contamination would need to be retrofitted, with either new insulators, or to modify existing insulators to improve their self-cleaning abilities and assist the natural cleaning of heavy rain.

    Citation
    Mee, M.J., Bodger, P.S., Wardman, J.B. (2012) Volcanic ash contamination of high voltage insulators: Revising insulator design to aid the electrostatic repulsion of volcanic ash. Auckland, New Zealand: Electricity Engineers' Association Conference (EEA), 20-22 Jun 2012.
    This citation is automatically generated and may be unreliable. Use as a guide only.
    ANZSRC Fields of Research
    09 - Engineering::0906 - Electrical and Electronic Engineering::090607 - Power and Energy Systems Engineering (excl. Renewable Power)
    37 - Earth sciences::3705 - Geology::370512 - Volcanology
    Rights
    https://hdl.handle.net/10092/17651

    Related items

    Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.

    • Quantifying the Vulnerability of High Voltage Power Transmission Systems to Volcanic Ashfall Hazards 

      Wardman, J.B.; Wilson, T.M.; Cole, J.W.; Bodger, P.S.; Johnston, D.M. (University of Canterbury. Electrical and Computer EngineeringUniversity of Canterbury. Geological Sciences, 2010)
      Insulator flashover initiated by volcanic ashfall contamination compromises the reliability of high voltage transmission systems. Research at the University of Canterbury has identified the properties of volcanic ash ...
    • Potential impacts from tephra fall to electric power systems: A review and mitigation strategies 

      Wardman, J.B.; Wilson, T.M.; Bodger, P.S.; Cole, J.W.; Stewart, C. (University of Canterbury. Electrical and Computer EngineeringUniversity of Canterbury. Geological Sciences, 2012)
      Modern society is highly dependent on a reliable electricity supply. During explosive volcanic eruptions, tephra contamination of power networks (systems) can compromise the reliability of supply. Outages can have ...
    • Volcanic Ash Contamination of High Voltage Insulators 

      Wightman, A.; Bodger, P. (University of Canterbury. Electrical and Computer Engineering, 2011)
      Recent work in the University of Canterbury high voltage laboratory uncovered an interesting phenomenon. While studying the effect of volcanic ash contamination on high voltage insulator flashover levels, ash was seen ...
    Advanced Search

    Browse

    All of the RepositoryCommunities & CollectionsBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsThesis DisciplineThis CollectionBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsThesis Discipline

    Statistics

    View Usage Statistics
    • SUBMISSIONS
    • Research Outputs
    • UC Theses
    • CONTACTS
    • Send Feedback
    • +64 3 369 3853
    • ucresearchrepository@canterbury.ac.nz
    • ABOUT
    • UC Research Repository Guide
    • Copyright and Disclaimer
    • SUBMISSIONS
    • Research Outputs
    • UC Theses
    • CONTACTS
    • Send Feedback
    • +64 3 369 3853
    • ucresearchrepository@canterbury.ac.nz
    • ABOUT
    • UC Research Repository Guide
    • Copyright and Disclaimer