SF6 decomposition and insulation condition monitoring of GIE: A review

Abstract

The statistics of the Conference International des Grands Reseaux Electriques (CIGRE) indicate that the operational reliability of SF6 gas-insulated equipment (GIE) is very high; however, the failure rate of the GIE in operation is much higher than that of the IEC standard, and the fault occurs frequently in the GIE at a high voltage level. The reason is due to the complex and strong on-site electromagnetic interference environment and fully enclosed structure of GIE. The key method and technology for effective on-line monitoring and fault diagnosis of GIE are still lacking. Given the partial strong electromagnetic energy and high temperature induced by early latent insulation faults in the equipment, SF6 gas insulation presents different degrees of decomposition. The decomposition products mainly include SO2F2, SOF2, SO2, HF, and H2S. The decomposition characteristics of SF6 are closely related to the property of insulation faults. At present, this area is attracting attention from the power industry and research institutes. This study summarises the current research on SF6 decomposition component analysis (DCA). The content mainly includes the latest progress of SF6 decomposition characteristics and mechanism under fault conditions, and fault diagnosis methods based on decomposition components.