Evolution of stress control systems in medium voltage

cable accessories
Dr. Robert Strobl,

Wolfgang Haverkamp,

Dr. Gerold Malin,

Frank Fitzgerald,

Tyco Electronics Raychem

GmbH / Energy Division
Ottobrunn, Germany

IEEE/PES Member
Tyco Electronics Raychem
GmbH / Energy Division
Ottobrunn, Germany

Tyco Electronics Raychem

GmbH / Energy Division
Ottobrunn, Germany

PE IEEE/PES Member
Tyco Electronics Corporation
Energy Division
Fuquay-Varina, NC, USA

The field along the dielectric/air interface provides the

highest electrical stress at the edge of the outer conductive
layer. Figure 2 shows electrical discharges (corona) at this
critical area.

ABSTRACT
Underground cable accessories used in medium voltage
cable systems need a highly reliable stress control
system in order to maintain and control the insulation
level which is designed for estimated life times longer
than 30 years of service. The term electrical stress
control refers to the cable termination function of
reducing the electrical stress in the area of insulation
shield cutback to levels that preclude electrical
breakdown in the cable insulation. This paper will
describe the evolution of stress control systems and their
benefits, based on different materials and concepts. The
main focus on this paper will be on the unique MetalOxide-Matrix stress control system, which has never
been attempted before.

lines oltage)
tial
v
oten round
p
i
u
eq hase/g
p
(%

Outer conductive
layer

Conductor

Figure 1: Uncontrolled cable end potential

distribution
This interface has low breakdown strength and the
termination will fail at the shield cut if the field is not
controlled. A stress control is required at the termination of
all shielded power cables which have been developed to

Keywords: Stress control technology, Cable accessories

I.

Insulation

INTRODUCTION

In coaxial MV-cable configurations the outer conductive

insulation shield is connected to ground, which contains the
entire radial E-field in the dielectric and determines the
balance between electrical operational and design stress.
This balance is distorted when the outer conductive cable
insulation shield is removed during splicing or terminating
and the shield cutback is left untreated.
Underground accessories used in medium voltage systems
need to provide stress control in order to maintain and
control the electrical stress below the breakdown level of
the dielectric [1]. The stress control system, like the cable,
should be designed to exceed 30 years operation life.
Stress control is provided in medium voltage cable
terminations for one primary purpose to control the
exceptionally high stresses, which exists at the area where
the shield is terminated. If no stress control were applied,
discharges could occur and the life of the termination would
be limited depending on the stress at the end of the shield
and the discharge resistance of the primary dielectric [4].
Figure 1 shows the stress concentration at the end of the
screen of medium voltage cables when no stress control
system is used.

Electrical discharges on the

edge of the outer conductive layer

Figure 2: Corona at the outer

conductive layer
operate at 5kV and higher to eliminate discharge activities
during operation in order to provide more than 30 years life
time.

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continuous conductive paths might be available to carry the

electrical current through the polymer system. However the
real measured amount of dispersed conductive particles for
a specific conductivity through the polymer matrix is far
less than expected. This effect can be explained in that
particular conductive carbon blacks tend to build so-called
pearl chains, which penetrate the insulated polymer
matrix and form a conductive lattice, which means less
filler will gain the same conductivity as the pure conductive
pigments measured in a test tube. The physical shape of the
carbon black pigments and the polymer material formation
influences the randomly disorganized conductivity matrix
and create different networking pearl chains and therefore
vary the percolation curves. Figure 4 shows the volume
resistivity versus the filler content of different polymers.

II. GEOMETRIC SYSTEM

The traditional method of reducing the electrical stress and
ensuring long cable services is to install a cone of insulating
material, with an outer conductive electrode, over the cable
shield end (see figure 3).

Outer conductive
layer

Conducting cone

Cable
Insulation

Insulation
material

18

10

Spec. Volume Resistance [ cm]

Figure 3: Geometrical stress control cone

The layer of insulating material between the electrode and
the cable insulation can be seen as an additional
capacitance, resulting in a redistribution of the electrical
potential. Different mathematical algorithms are used to
design the shape of the cone to provide the appropriate
electrical stress distribution. The method is defined as
geometric or capacitive stress control system. This system is
well explained in the literature and widely used. Devices
that utilize this method of stress control are terminations
and splices, where the conical electrode is moulded or taped
from a conductive elastomer with a volume resistivity of
Rvol ~ 102 cm. Paper cable accessories consists of a cone
made from metal (Pb or Al), which is then soldered to the
metal cable shield or again taped with paper tapes and
metallic foils.

1014

PolyProp
10

10

HDPE
LDPE

10

10

10

15

20

25

30

35

Carbon Black Filler [%]

Figure 4: Percolation plot of various polymers

Mainly the compounding and manufacturing processes
defined the characteristics of the final product. Producing a
means of stress control for MV and HV applications
requires careful selection of polymer type and carbon black.
This selection of materials and the subsequent processing
method are fundamental in achieving the desired electrical
Model

III.

IMPENDANCE SYSTEM

A. Effect of Carbon Black Filler in Polymer Systems

The study of polymer material science has produced a depth
of knowledge that has allowed chemists to modify and tailor
the physical and electrical properties of polymeric materials
for specific applications and requirements. Carbon black
filler has become important compound used to provide
unique electrical properties. With the variation of carbon
black filler content in a high performance dielectric
polymer the volume impedance can be modified to control
the electrical stress in MV cable accessories. However the
volume resistance - component of the entire impedance does not vary linearly in relation to the filler content.
This phenomenon is related to the statistical distribution of
the conductive filler in the polymer. A more precise
evaluation of the relation between filler and polymer
confirms that beyond a certain filler concentration sufficient

C PE

C C

Equivalent Circuit
R1

C1

R2

C2

R3

Voltage

Figure 5: Pearl chain model and equivalent

electrical circuit
properties. These properties exist at the steep slope of the
percolation plot. Figure 5 shows the pearl chain model and
the equivalent electrical circuit. Here the pearl chains are
fragmented and unconnected, which leads to the electrical
equivalent of a resistor and capacitor combination. The
equivalent electrical circuit can be designed as a complex
network of resistors and capacitances.

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The specific volume resistance will exhibit a non-linear

dependency when applying a variable DC E-field across the
polymer matrix. This effect contributes nicely to the stress
control needs for MV terminations and splices and is
caused by potential barriers, which are lowered under
electrical stress. Besides carbon black fillers other pigments
like SiC and ZnO are used for the same stress control
technology, which is described later in this paper as part of
the new ceramic technology for terminations (MetalOxideMatrix).

C. Stress distribution on Termination and Splices

The impedance polymer stress control layer utilizes the
available cable capacitance to effectively reduce the

B. Stabilization Effect of cross linking by radiation

The previously described effects are observed for several
thermo-plastic or thermal-elastic compounds. Today,
several technologies are used to cross link polymers and
elastomers. The two major processes are

Figure 6: Transmission line circuit

Cc = Cable Cap.
Ri = Insulation Res.

Cs = Stress-control Cap.
Rs = Stress-control Res.

electrical stress at the cable shield cutback and along the

insulation interface.
The specific impedance within the range of Zspec ~ 108 1010 cm [4] provides the required stress control function
depending on cable cross section and voltage class. The
non linear electrical field behaviour dependency of this
stress control material prevents an increase in electrical
stress in cable accessories under transient over voltages and
test conditions. Figure 7 shows the DC current versus the E-

Chemical Cross- Linking

Radiation Cross- Linking
Chemical cross-linking is the major process used in the
cable industry. The radiation process is more attractive for
advanced material technologies and complex compound
polymers like stress grading as described previously.
For reproducible applications cross-linking by radiation is
preferred. The radiation process leaves the polymer
formulation unaffected and does not initiate chemical byproducts during the chemical cross-linking process, which
might effect the desired behaviour and long term ageing
performance of the material.
The semi-crystal polymer radiated by high-energy beam
dose (several MeV) changes its amorphous part into a three
dimensional crystalline lattice. As a consequence there is a
fundamental change in the physical characteristics of the
doped polymer.
The polymer exhibits elastomeric behaviour beyond the
crystalline melt point and can then be transformed into
different shapes and dimensions and frozen when the
material is again cooled down. Using stress-grading doped
formulations the designed impedance remains stable
through the polymer phase transition and maintains the
electrical stress grading properties within the required
limits.
The morphology is temperature stabilized within wide
application ranges of electrical conductive polymers. This
provides improved performance during ageing under
temperature and electrical field operating conditions. The
radiation substantially reduces the amorphous content of
semi-crystalline polymer. The polymer exhibits increased
resistance to chemicals, less MVT (moisture vapour
transmission), improved shape stability (less swelling under
solvent attack), and improved gas sealing characteristics.

-1

10x10 mA

DC Current

Non Linear S tress Co ntro l System

-2

5x10 mA

Linear Stress Control System

-2

1x10 mA
0

10

12

14

E[kV/cm]

Figure 7: Comparison of carbon black systems

field.
Calculations of the electrical stress distribution along a
termination interface demonstrate that the electrical stress
grows less as the voltage increases. The calculated results
were confirmed by experimental measurement (E-Field
vector measurements).
Three times higher operation voltage responses only to ~
2.5 stress increase, whereas the geometric stress control
methodology results in equivalent stress increasing in
proportion to the voltage increase.
Furthermore, a combination of various polymer and
elastomer compounds using different types of filler grades
allow cable accessory applications up to 90kV operation
voltages. From a design perspective, the stress control by
material technology allows the designer to create products
for circular cable as well as sector shaped cable [4, 5].

0-7803-7287-5/01/$17.00 (C) 2001 IEEE

IV.

METAL-OXIDE-MATRIX SYSTEM

A. Ceramic technology
The new developed stress control system is based on a
special ceramic powder and operates differently from the
carbon-black loaded stress control system mentioned earlier
in the paper.

Figure 10: Ceramic powder and compound pellets

The calcinated ceramic powder (see figure 10) is embedded
in a polymer matrix. This special compound can be
extruded or moulded. The current manufacturing process
provides no limit to the implemented applications.
Figure 8: Structure of the calcinated powder
The stress control compound, formulated from polymer and
ceramic powder, provides unique electrical properties.
Figures 8 and 9 show the particles of the ceramic powder
under the electron microscope.

B. Characteristic of the ceramic technology

Figure 11 shows the characteristic of the ceramic powder
and the relation between the specific impedance in cm
and the electrical field in kV/cm. The material provides an
extreme non-linear characteristic and a threshold voltage
(switching point) is achieved. This characteristic is similar
to that provided by diodes or varistors (usable for both
polarities) and is well known from the semi-conductor
technology (see figure 12).

Figure 9: Particle close-up

A specifically developed calcination process creates
spherical varistors from each single particle. The centre of
the varistor is electrically conductive, but the marginal
boundary layers where the individual particles build up the
interface are highly insulating. These very thin boundaries
control the current channel in the ceramic. Each layer
between two particles, which is called boundary grain,
represents a micro-varistor with a defined threshold
voltage. These boundary grains become conductive when
the applied voltage extend beyond across the threshold
voltage. The multiple micro-varistors build a 3-dimensional
electrical network where the electrical properties of the
ceramic powder are mainly influenced by the ZnOchemistry and the calcination process, which is very
different from the carbon-black technology [2, 3].

Figure 11: Characteristic of the ceramic powder

If the electrical stress (applied voltage) is lower than the
threshold voltage, the material operates as a quasi insulator
in the linear area of the I/U-characteristic. When the
electrical stress increases and reaches the threshold voltage
the ceramic particles (micro-varistors) switches through and
releases free electrodes. The higher electrical stress will be
limited and kept fairly constant along the stress control
system. This technology compensates material overstresses
caused by electrical transients and impulse voltages, which
is very useful for managing service requirements in an
electrical distribution network.

0-7803-7287-5/01/$17.00 (C) 2001 IEEE

Electrical stress in kV/mm

If the electrical stress increases and reaches the switching

point, the individual ceramic particles (micro-varistors)
become conductive according to the current-voltage
characteristic. The electrical stress is always limited
according to the switching point design, which avoids
overstresses of the critical areas.

Figure 12: I/U-characteristic of a varistor

The threshold voltage can be adapted as needed to design
requirements for stress control management systems of
cable
accessories
or
other
electrical
components/equipments.

ZnO

ZnO
ZnO
ZnO

ZnO

ZnO

ZnO
ZnO

ZnO

Modified PE

ZnO

ZnO

ZnO

Equivalent Circuit
R1

RVAR1

R2

C1

RVAR2

R3

C2

RVARn

200

This advanced system with its stress limiting performs very

well at high AC and BIL levels in electrical networks
(transient voltages, overvoltages based on lightning and
switching operations in the electrical distribution network).
The electrical stress is always limited according to the
switching point design. For higher voltage levels a longer
distance for stress controlling is activated and necessary.
The non-linear stress control characteristic provides
excellent electrical performance especially BIL (basic
impulse insulation level). Figure 14 shows the electrical
performance at a 25kV and a 65kV AC withstand voltage
and a 150kV lightning impulse voltage. All electrical data
are based on the 20kV voltage level for medium voltage
polymeric cables.

ZnO
ZnO

Figure 14: Electrical performance of

ZnO-Micro-varistors

ZnO

ZnO

ZnO

150kV BIL

Distance in mm

ZnO - Model
ZnO

65kV AC

100

C. ZnO-Model and equivalent electrical circuit

A special modified polyethylene is used as a carrier for the
ZnO particles. The boundary layers of the individual ZnO
particles are highly insulated and these very thin boundaries
control the current channel in the ceramic. The equivalent
electrical circuit can be designed as a complex network of
varistors, resistors and capacitances (see figure 13) [2].

ZnO

25kV AC
2

Cn

V. CONCLUSION
The Metal-Oxide-Matrix stress control system is unique
and was never been attempted before. This system provides
excellent electrical stress distribution along the termination
and prevents overstresses of the material specifically along
with high electrical impulses. The system handles
specifically well external overvoltages and transient
voltages in electrical networks. The stress control polymer
matrix loaded with the doped ceramic powder can be
extruded as well as molded. Various applications can be
designed based on this unique technology.

Voltage

Figure 13: ZnO-Model and equivalent

electrical circuit
D. Electrical performance of ZnO
The typical electrical performance is shown in figure 14 as
an example for a medium voltage termination. The critical
point of a cable is the edge of the outer conductive layer.
The break of the cable shield causes very high electrical
stresses (concentration of the electrical field) and therefore
a stress control system must be used in order to get a
smooth electrical field distribution.

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VI.

Graz, Austria in 1979 and got the PHD degree in Electrical

Engineering from the Technical University of Graz, Austria
in 1992. His employment experiences include Assistant
Professor and Lecturer at the Institute of High Voltage
Engineering, Technical University of Graz as well as
several technical and managing positions at Kabel u.
Drahtwerke AG Vienna. He is a member of national and
international technical committees. In 1991 he joined
Raychem GmbH, Vienna, Austria. His current position is
Business Unit Manager for Cable Network Products at Tyco
Electronics Raychem GmbH in Ottobrunn, Germany

REFERENCES

[1] Haverkamp W., Lyons P.: World-wide long-term

Experiences with heatshrinkable splice Concept, T&D Los
Angeles, IEEE 1996
[2] Strobl R., Haverkamp W., Malin, G.: I(O)XSU-F
Neue Generation waermeschrumpfender Mittelspannungsendverschluesse
basierend
auf
ZnO-Technologie,
Elektrizitaetswirtschaft Heft 26/2000 Seite 68 - 73,
Germany
[3] Strobl R., Haverkamp W., Malin, G.: Termination
System for Polymeric Distribution Cables Based on
Ceramic Stress-Grading Technology, erergize, Power
Journal of the South African Institute of Electrical
Engineers, January/February 2000, Page 66 69
[4] Blake A. E., Clarke G., Starr W. T: Improvements in
Stress Control Materials, 7th IEEE/PAS Conference and
Exposition on Transmission and Distribution, April 1-6,
1979, Atlanta, Georgia
[5] Haverkamp W., Le Baut P.: Heat-shrink Cable
Accessories for plastic cable up to 36kV, March 84
Jicable, France

Frank Fitzgerald graduated from the State University of

New York at Plattsburgh in 1974 with a Bachelor of
Science Degree in Physical Chemistry. He attended
Graduate School at Oregon State University for two years
and left to begin working as an electrical engineer at the
Satsop Nuclear Power Station. He joined Raychem in 1983
and has several positions including Application
Engineering Management, Area Sales Manager, Technical
Manager for Americas and Product Management. He is
currently responsible for the management of Tyco
Electronics Raychems Nuclear Products world-wide and
for North America cable accessories from Tyco Electronics
Corporation facility in Raleigh, NC.

VII. BIOGRAPHY
Robert Strobl graduated with a Master of Science Degree
in Electrical Engineering in 1994, and in 1997 he got the
PHD Degree in Electrical Engineering from the Technical
University Graz, Austria. In 1997 he joined Raychem
GmbH, Electrical Products Division in Ottobrunn,
Germany. Previously he worked as a research assistant at
the Institute of High Voltage Engineering, Technical
University of Graz, Austria. His current responsibilities are
development, design and management of cable accessories
projects. His current position is Product Manager for LV
and MV termination cable accessories at Tyco Electronics
Raychem GmbH in Ottobrunn, Germany.

Tyco Electronics Raychem GmbH

Energy Division
Haidgraben 6
85521 Ottobrunn/Munich
Germany/Europe
Tyco Electronics Corporation
Energy Division
8000 Purfoy Road
Fuquay-Varina
NC 27526-9349, USA.

Wolfgang B. Haverkamp graduated from the University of

Essen, Germany with a Master of Science Degree in
Electrical- and Power Engineering in 1966. His
employment experiences included the Siemens A.G., Kaiser
Aluminium and Chemical Corporation. In 1980 he joined
Raychem GmbH, Electrical Products Division in Ottobrunn,
Germany. His areas of responsibility have included
managing projects on cable accessory development, their
applications and product management. He is currently
Product Manager for HV Cable Accessories from Tyco
Electronics Raychem GmbH in Ottobrunn, Germany. He is
a Working Group Member of IEEE/ICC.
Gerold Malin graduated with a Master of Science Degree
in Electrical Engineering from the Technical University of

0-7803-7287-5/01/$17.00 (C) 2001 IEEE