Electrical Material Characterization and Non-Destructive Diagnostics on Power Cable Dielectric Materials subjected to Thermal Aging – Phase II

Electric power is almost entirely transmitted through polymer insulated cables or wires in every home, factory, plant, or apparatus. If the temperature of a cable increases, it would be an indication that some accidents or malfunctions such as inflow of excess electric current occur in the cable. The generated heat, indeed, degrades the polymer insulations in cable, thus, making it unsuitable and unsafe for extra service. Therefore, it would be markedly valuable if the thermally-degraded portion in the cable can be located accurately without destroying the cable. In this project the electrical properties of cables are studied and employed as potential indicators to diagnose thermally-degraded regions of the cable. As a result, possible malfunctions in cables due to heatoverloads can be detected in an efficient, fast, low-cost, and non-destructive way which elevates the safety and lowers catastrophic risk in power transmissions.

Faculty Supervisor:

Sheshakamal Jayaram

Student:

Amin Gorji Bandpy

Partner:

Kinectrics Inc

Discipline:

Engineering - computer / electrical

Sector:

Information and cultural industries

University:

University of Waterloo