Nonuniform electric field distribution is one of the key issues for the superconducting cable terminals. This paper tries to modify the electric field distribution in the stress cone of HTS dc cable terminals by the nonlinear conductive epoxy/ZnO insulation, in-stead of the insulation with a fixed conductivity. The nonlinear conductivity of epoxy/ZnO composites is measured, and a finite element simulation model of the +100 kV HTS dc cable terminal is established to analyze the electric field distribution at the steady and transient state. The results show that the field-dependent conductivity has a great effect on the dc electric field distribution. If the nonlinear coefficient is excessively large, the electric field in the polypropylene laminated paper (PPLP) will be extremely strong; otherwise, the electric field in the terminal insulation will be extremely strong. The epoxy/ZnO composites with an appropriate nonlinear conductivity can effectively modi-fy the dc electric field distribution at the stress cone surface, es-pecially at the triple junction. As the impulse superimposed on the dc voltage is applied, the maximum field is always located in the PPLP layer. The nonlinear conductive epoxy/ZnO compo-sites could play an important role in promoting the development of stress cone of HTS dc cable terminals.

Electrical treeing is an inevitable phenomenon during the operation of cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) cables installed in the underground and humid environment, which is the direct reason for insulation failure. This work focuses on the issue of electrical trees in XLPE insulation and growth stage recognition of treeing stage. The partial discharge (PD) characteristics during different tree growth modes were recorded in the form of φ-q-n patterns. A growth model of electrical trees considering PD process was investigated. The discharge energy was computed, and the relationship between PD characteristics and growth modes of electrical trees was analyzed. A recognition method of the growth stages of electrical trees was given. It was found that PD is mainly distributed in the rising stage of applied voltage, which is the typical characteristic of internal discharge. Tree growth speed depends on the discharge energy that periodically changes during treeing. The increase in PD energy promotes the growth of electrical trees. The growth stage of electrical trees in the rapid growth mode can be recognized by the sparse representation with a recognition accuracy of 90%.

Superconducting power lead equipment for epoxy insulation, such as high-temperature superconducting DC power or liquefied natural gas energy pipelines, as well as high-temperature superconducting cables, has long been used in extreme environments, from liquid nitrogen temperatures to normal temperatures. It is easy to induce surface discharge and flashover under the action of strong electric field, which accelerates the insulation failure of current leads. In this paper, two-dimensional nano-material GO was used to control the electrical properties of epoxy resins. The DC surface discharge and flashover characteristics of the prepared epoxy resin–GO composite insulation materials were tested at room temperature with liquid nitrogen. The surface discharge mechanism of the epoxy resin–GO composite insulation materials was analyzed. The experimental results show that the insulation properties of epoxy composites doped with GO changed. Among them, the surface flashover voltage of 0.05 wt% material is the best, which can inhibit the discharge phenomenon and improve its insulation properties in extreme environments, from room temperature to liquid nitrogen temperature. It is found that the development process of surface discharge of composite insulating materials under liquid nitrogen is quite different from that under room temperature. Before critical flashover, the repetition rate and amplitude of surface discharge remain at a low level until critical flashover. Furthermore, the voltage of the first flashover is significantly higher than that of the subsequent flashover under the action of the desorption gas on the surface of the composite insulating material and the gasification layer produced by the discharge. Given that the surface flashover voltage of 0.05 wt% epoxy composite is the best, the research and analysis of 0.05 wt% composite is emphasized. In the future design of superconducting power lead insulation, the modification method of adding GO to epoxy resin can be considered in order to improve its insulation performance.

Basin insulator is a critical component of gas-insulated transmission line (GIL) systems. Air gap defects and surface crack defects may form in basin insulators due to casting, installation, or transport processes. This phenomenon poses a significant threat to long-term safety and stability and may even lead to partial discharges. This study establishes a simulation model of a GIL system-incorporating insulator to systematically analyze the influence patterns of various defects on the insulation characteristics of the basin insulator. Meanwhile, an equation predicting the relationship between defect size and maximum electric field strength is derived. The research revealed the following: For short air gap defects near the conductor, increasing length reduces their impact on the surrounding electric field, with the radius having minimal effect; for long air gap defects near the conductor, increasing length amplifies their influence. Smooth air gap defects distant from the conductor show negligible variation in maximum electric field strength with increasing length, while unsmooth air gap defects exhibit more pronounced effects at shorter lengths. Under identical conditions, unsmooth air gap defects demonstrate greater influence on the electric field than smooth ones. For elliptical surface defects, variations in radius show the strongest distortion. The degree of influence from surface crack defects correlates directly with their proximity to the conductor. These findings provide critical diagnostic criteria for assessing the insulation performance of basin insulator under damaged conditions.

HVDC cable accessories made of ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA) by incorporation of specific fillers have to face the problem of space charge accumulation. The effects of doping contents on the space charge behaviors of EVA/ZnO composite are not completely clear. EVA composites are prepared with the fraction of 0, 1, 5 and 10 wt%, respectively, with which 5 wt% nano-sized plus 5 wt% micro-sized ZnO-doped samples are chosen for comparison. Obtained results show that the particles in EVA composite are in homodisperse. The permittivity is increased by ZnO doping and the dissipation factor of EVA composites with 1 and 5 wt% nanoparticles is lower at the lower frequencies. The homocharge injection occurs in cathode instead of anode when ZnO nanoparticles are introduced and 5 wt% nanoparticle doping performs well in suppressing space charge injection. The electric field in the 5 wt% nanoparticle-doped EVA distributes more uniformly under the high electric stress than that of others. During the depolarization procedure, the total remnant charges of 10 wt% doped samples are the least in the final. The above results are well explained by the DC conduction, apparent mobility and trap distribution characteristics.