An experimental investigation is conducted to measure and correlate the impact of the water content on the electrical characteristics of the mineral oil for transformers, particularly the breakdown voltage, the resistivity, and the dielectric dissipation factor. Regression method is carried out to compare the results obtained through laboratory experiments with those predicted using an analytical model. A treatment to reduce water content in oil involving filtration, degassing and dehydration using a SESCO mobile station was applied to the new, regenerated, and used oil samples in service. The breakdown voltage, the resistivity, and the dielectric dissipation factor of the samples were measured. Regression analysis using an exponential model was applied to examine the samples electrical properties. The results show that, after treatment, the breakdown voltage and resistivity increase as the water content decreases, unlike the dielectric dissipation factor which exhibits a decreasing trend. This trend is found to be similar for the three oil samples: new, regenerated, and used. The results of the regression analysis give close agreement with the experimental results for all the samples and all studied characteristics. The model shows strong correlation with high coefficients (>90%).

Oxidation of oil/paper insulation initiates premature aging and introduces carboxylic acids with eventual increase in oil acidity, which hampers the properties of the oil. In this paper, a membrane separation technology-based purification process for aged insulation oil has been evaluated and reported. The intent of the present study is to eliminate carboxylic acids, dissolved decay contents and other colloidal contamination present in aged oil and enhance the useful life of oil. The potential of the membrane treatment process has been demonstrated using Ultraviolet Visible Infrared Spectroscopy and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy diagnostic measurements for oil and membrane. Additionally, membrane retention properties like membrane flux, retention coefficient, sorption time and membrane mass have been analyzed to understand the treatment process. To further evaluate the performance of the membrane and effectiveness of the treatment process, acidity, dielectric dissipation factor, relative permittivity, and resistivity measurements of the oil before and after filtration have been also reported. The proposed membrane purification method has been tested for Algerian utility in-service oil samples. It is inferred that, membrane filtration method is a simple and effective method for treatment of aged oils and aids in extending the remnant life of the oil. The procedure is economically attractive because of increasing prices for transformer liquids, cost effective and environmentally sounds.

The objective of this contribution was to study the behaviour of new and regenerated insulating oil used in power transformers under the influence of an electric stress. To estimate the degradation rate of the dielectric fluids, one thousand (1000) successive breakdowns were generated according to the IEC 60156 standard. The parameters such as dissipation factor (Tan δ ), resistivity, total acid number (TAN) and oil water content were measured and examined following IEC/ISO standards. Good correlations have been obtained between TAN/resistivity and Tan δ which might provide a ‘picture’ of the fluid condition. The dissolved oxidation products for the two dielectric fluids (after the application of electric breakdowns) was evaluated by Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy. The results obtained indicate that the degradation of the parameters is significant and confirms the influence of an alternative electric field (AC) on the new and regenerated oils. It was also suspected that inhibitors and antioxidants were removed from the oil after regeneration. Their concentration should therefore be monitored and replenished when necessary.