Influence of Spike Defect on the Impulse Breakdown Characteristics of SF6 Gas Gap in GIS

By using 1 MV Marx generator and a 220 kV GIS bus, an experiment platform has been established, and a stainless steel needle is applied to simulate spike defect, so as to study the influence of pressure, wave front time and electric field on 50 % breakdown voltage (U-50) and voltage-time (V-t) characteristics of SF6 gas gap with existence of a spike defect on the bus of GIS under double exponential impulse voltage. When wave front time is short, 50% breakdown voltage of the SF6 gap hardly changes with various pressures, and U-50%-P curve turns to be a hump shape when wave front time increases. However, pressure has no significant effect on V-t characteristics. The slope of V-t characteristics curve is negative when wave front time of applied voltage is short (0.08 similar to 0.9 mu s), and it will turn to be positive when wave front time becomes longer (several similar to 15 mu s). A new method to fit these V-t characteristics curves under impulse voltage with longer wave front times is proposed. It is found that 50 % breakdown voltage decreases almost linearly with the increase of electric field non-uniformity factors (f), and V-t characteristics cluster with valley-like profile have been drawn at different f. Dispersion of V-t characteristics cluster reduces and the flat region expands with the increase of f, and minimum value of breakdown voltage of SF6 gap with spike defect under impulse voltage, which is of guiding significance for engineering, can be obtained.