In this study, in order to explore the failure mode of ZnO varistors under multiple lightning strokes, a five-pulse 8/20 μs nominal lightning current with pulse intervals of 50 ms was applied to ZnO varistors. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffractometry (XRD) were used to analyze the microstructure of the material. The failure processes of ZnO varistors caused by multiple lightning impulse currents were described. The performance changes of ZnO varistors after multiple lightning impulses were analyzed from both macro and micro perspectives. According to the results of this study’s experiments, the macroscopic failure mode of ZnO varistors after multiple lightning impulses involved the rapid deterioration of the electrical parameters with the increase of the number of impulse groups, until destruction occurred by side-corner cracking. The microstructural examination indicated that, after the multiple lightning strokes, the proportion of Bi in the crystal phases was altered, the grain size of the ZnO varistors became smaller, and the white intergranular phase (Bi-rich grain boundary layer) increased significantly. The failure mechanism was thermal damage and grain boundary structure damage caused by temperature gradient thermal stress, generated by multiple lightning currents.

In this study, in order to study the effect of multi-pulse waveform parameters on the aging characteristics of ZnO varistor, the aging rate and surface temperature rise of ZnO varistor under the impact of multi-pulse current were analyzed. The number of pulses and the pulse interval under multiple pulses play a decisive role in the aging rate of ZnO varistor. The greater the number of pulses and the smaller the pulse interval, the higher the temperature rise of the ZnO varistor and the faster the aging rate, the more likely to be failure and damage. The surface temperature distribution of the ZnO varistor under multi-pulse is not uniform, and the more pulses, the more uneven the temperature distribution, but the surface temperature rise has a nonlinear relationship with the number of pulses. The relationship between pulse interval, impact times and average surface temperature rise is established. The aging mechanism of the ZnO varistor under a multi-pulse lightning stroke was revealed from the perspective of energy absorption and heat transfer modelling. The energy sustained by the ZnO varistor under multiple pulses have a nonlinear multiple relationship with the energy of the single pulse current wave at the same amplitude. The superimposed cumulative energy of the impact under multiple pulses accelerates the aging process of the ZnO varistor, and eventually produces an irreversible structural destruction.

In view of the problem that ZnO varistors are often subjected to thermal breakdown and deterioration due to lightning strikes in low-voltage power distribution systems, this article used a 8/20 µs multi-pulse surge current with a pulse time interval of 50 ms to perform shock experiments on ZnO varistors. SEM scanning electron microscope and an XRD diffractometer were used to analyze the structure of the grain boundary layer and the change of the crystalline phase material of ZnO varistor under the action of a multi-pulse current. The damage mechanism of ZnO varistor under the multi-pulse current was studied at the micro level. The results show that the average impact life of different types of ZnO varistor is significantly different. It was found that the types of trace elements and grain size in the grain boundary layer will affect the ability of ZnO varistor to withstand multi-pulse current. As the number of impulses increases, the grain structure of the ZnO varistor continues to degenerate. The unevenness of internal ion migration and the nonuniformity of the micro-grain boundary layer cause the local energy density to be too large and cause the local temperature rise to be too high, which eventually causes the internal grain boundary to melt through, and the local high temperature may cause the Bi element in the ZnO varistor to change in different crystal phases.