'Producer gas' generated through the gasification of biomass and energetically utilized at electric power generation plants and catalytic converted into bio-methane or bio-fuels, inevitably comprises of multiple species of condensable hydrocarbons. These condensable hydrocarbons are mainly aromatic and poly-aromatic e.g. styrene, phenol, naphthalene, etc., and manifests properties like condensation, polymerization, reaction with other compounds and deposition on cooler surfaces that they come under contact. Consequently, such properties make the condensable hydrocarbons highly problematic henceforth emerges as undesirable.
It is experimentally proven that the multiple species of hydrocarbons under the influence of high electric field induce severe electrical discharges irrespective of the material onto which they have deposited. Present investigations concentrates only on understanding the time and frequency dependent electrical behaviour of condensable hydrocarbons over a wide range of frequency. At the same time, understanding the characteristics of electrical discharges initiated by the condensable hydrocarbons has received a scanty attention. In this context, an effort to characterize the nature of electrical discharges that arise due to condensable hydrocarbons under the influence of DC voltage is initiated.
The present study is restricted to experimental investigations. This involves experiments on a chosen sample and test insulator arrangement. The sample is extracted from an actual ceramic insulator that has acquired condensable hydrocarbons on its surface during its service. The dielectric parameters such as loss factor, DC resistance, AC impedance etc., of the chosen sample at power frequency is measured. Subsequently, the electrical discharges that arise on the depositions due to the high voltage DC is decoupled through a Medium frequency Current Transformer (MCT). The Phase Resolved PD pattern (PRPD) and Three Phase Amplitude Relation Diagram (3PARD) are obtained from the decoupled signal. Later, the decoupled signals are analyzed in real time and also de-convoluted in frequency domain. Once this is accomplished, similar experimental procedures are exercised on a test insulator arrangement.
In conclusion, it is believed that after adequate verifications, the electrical behaviour of multiple species of condensable hydrocarbons and their influence on dielectric condition of the ceramic insulator could be identified. Detailed information regarding the experimental setup, procedure and results are presented in the paper.
