TECHNICAL BROCHURE

493
JWG
Non destructive water-tree detection D1/B1.20
in XLPE cable insulation

Members
J. Densley, Convenor (CA), S. Hvidsten, Secretary (NO)
W. Boone (NL) Liaison SC B1, N. Hampton (US),
G.C. Montanari (IT), J. Holboll (DK), K.Uchida(JP),
S.Plissou (CA), T. Blackburn (AU), B. Holmgren (SE),
J. Castellon (FR), W.Schufft(DE), R.Sarathi(IN),
F. Petzold (DE), M. Nagao (JP), J. P. Mattmann (CH),
E.Gulski(CH), S. Gubanski (SE)

Introduction tion of data, including a discussion of the limitations.

Water treeing is one of the main forms of degrada-
tion of XLPE insulation used in medium-voltage and
high-voltage cables when the insulation is exposed
to water. Water trees gradually reduce the electrical
breakdown strength of cables and are one of the
main causes of failures of early designs of extruded
medium-voltage cables after only five to fifteen years
in service. As partial discharges are not involved in
their growth, water trees have proven to be diffi-
cult to detect in cables in situ using non-destructive
techniques. However, insulation containing water
trees has lower insulation resistance and higher dielec-
tric losses and the measurement of the resistance and
these losses is being used to assess the condition of
the insulation. The insulation resistance and dielec-
tric loss are sensitive to the measurement technique
and also to parameters such as temperature, voltage,
frequency and the severity of the water treeing. There
are presently several techniques available commer-
cially. Electrical utilities presently have a choice
of measurement techniques but generally lack the
expertise to make informed decisions regarding
which technique to use and, more importantly, how
to interpret the data from such tests to assess the
condition of their cable system.
SC D1 identified the need for a guide to inform
cable system owners and users about water treeing
and to inform them what tests were available to
detect treeing in cables. A joint WG was set up in
liaison with SC B1 to prepare such a guide. This
brochure is the result of the JWG and provides a
review of the measurement techniques available to
detect and measure the extent of water treeing in
XLPE cable insulation and discusses the interpreta-
This independent review will help electrical utilities,
or other users of XLPE insulation subjected to wet
conditions, to evaluate non-destructive water tree
detection techniques and give guidance on how to
interpret the data obtained from such tests.
Scope
The scope of the JWG was to prepare a guide on
the non-destructive detection of water trees in XLPE
insulation that includes a description of what water
trees are and what factors affect their initiation and
growth, a review of water tree detection methods,
an evaluation of the parameters which affect the
methods and their limitations, a discussion of the
interpretation of the data and their limitations, and
a survey of what techniques were being used in WG
member countries.
Water trees
Water trees are generally found to initiate and
grow in the direction of the electric field from conta-
minants, voids or protrusions at interfaces in most
polymeric insulations exposed to an AC voltage and
water. They are tree-like structures, see Figure 1,
that consist of rows of voids or string of pearls. The
diameter of these voids may vary from approximately
0,1 m up to 5 m with hydrophilic tracks intercon-
necting the voids along which water can move to fill
up the voids. Water trees are generally non-conduc-
ting although they are more conducting than the
healthy insulation. The conductivity of treed regions
tends to increase with time.
Insulation failure usually occurs when

No. 261 - April 2012 ELECTRA 67

 TECHNICAL BROCHURE
493
JWG
(a) an electrical tree initiates, along with partial
a)
D1/B1.20
discharges, from a water tree and bridges the
insulation or
(b) a thermal runaway develops when a water
tree, which completely bridges the insulation,
reaches a sufficiently high conductivity b)
Table 1 lists the factors that have a significant
influence on water tree severity. c)

Longueur
Factor desarborescences
deau(L)etdensit(N)
Contrainte L & N croissent avec
de tension lintensit de la contrainte
CA locale
Eau L & N croissent avec la
(humidit) concentration deau
Impurets L est proportionnelle
au type dion et leur taille
N est proportionnel
au nombre des
contaminants
Vides L est proportionnelle
la taille des vides
N est proportionnel
au nombre de vides
Saillies L & N crot avec la taille
des saillies
Temprature Peut influencer la crois-
sance ou la
svrit des arborescences
en modifiant la contrainte
de tension et/ou la prsence
deau et/ou le taux de
diffusion des impurets
Matriau Peut affecter le dclenche-
isolant ment des arborescences et
leur croissance
Commentaire
Contrainte dclenchante
> 0,5 kV/mm
Les arborescences vont se
dclencher entre 65%-100% RH
en fonction de la temprature
ou de la saturation deau dans
les isolations / crans
Les plus solubles
sont les dangereuses.
Les non solubles
accroissent la contrainte
lectrique
Sont lorigine des arborescences
en nud papillon
Ont tendance limiter leur
longueur, mais les arborescences
peuvent shunter lisolant si
une impuret soluble est prsente
dans le vide
Les crans rubans / graphite
accroissent le nombre de saillies
Une temprature leve acclre the brochure also lists the effectiveness, ease of use and
lapparition de la dfaillance.
Les gradients de temprature
peuvent accroitre le phnomne,
par ex. eau dans le conducteur
PR est meilleur que PE
Figure 1: Typical water trees growing from a) the insulation
screen, b) conductor screen and c) from a contaminant within
the XLPE insulation.
Non-destructive water tree
detection methods
Insulation diagnostic methods, which can either
measure bulk or global insulation properties (polari-
zation or conductivity) or detect local defects (partial
discharges in voids), give information about the insula-
tion condition. Although a water tree is a localized
degradation, when they occur in sufficient numbers and
lengths, they increase the dielectric loss and conducti-
vity and can be detected by techniques that measure
these bulk properties of the insulation. Table 2 lists
the techniques and their measurement criteria that are
presently available in different countries. The Table in
experience of each of the methods. Every method is
described in detail along with some typical results and
a brief discussion of the advantages, disadvantages, and
practical issues involved.
The effects of water tree lengths and density and the
influence of different types of accessories on measure-
ments are discussed.

Conducteur L & N dpendent de la pro- Les gaines peuvent transmettre

Cable assessment
et cran de pret des matriaux des dans lisolant lhumidit prsente
lisolant crans et de leur conception proximit de lcran As much information as possible should be collected
(SC extrud, SC ruban ou about the circuits to be tested to get the best interpreta-
noir de carbone en poudre) tion of the results, independent of the method used to
detect water trees. If a testing organization is performing
Conception Type du matriau de la Plus lisolation est protge contre the tests, it should be asked to explain the principles
du cble gaine (jacket) (quand elle la pntration de lhumidit, moins of operation of its test methods and what assessment
existe) tanche radialement il y a risque darborescence
ou non, prsence de rubans criteria are being used.
gonflants proximit de la Information needed includes details of the cable
gaine et/ou conducteur construction and design, manufacture, length of circuit,
tanche.
types and numbers of accessories, operating environment,
previous service experience, details of diagnostic method
Table 1: Factors influencing water tree severity used and test conditions, assessment criteria, etc.

No. 261 - April 2012 ELECTRA 69

 TECHNICAL BROCHURE
493
JWG
No. Type U Measurement principles No. Type U Measurement principles
D1/B1.20
1 Power frequency Capacitance AC Variation in C and DF with 8 DC leakage current DC Leakage current with time after
(C) & dissipation factor (DF) 50/60 (a) time at constant voltage, DC voltage step application.
Hz or (b) voltage
2 VLF Capacitance & dissipation AC Variation in C and DF with 9 DC component current AC Difference in leakage current
factor 0,1 (a) time at constant voltage, between positive and negative
Hz or (b) voltage polarity DC voltage
0,02
Hz
3 Damped AC (DAC) Capacitance AC Variation in C and DF with voltage 10 DC superposition current DC DC current after DC low
& dissipation factor & voltage injection
AC
4 Dielectric spectroscopy AC Variation in C and DF with 11 AC superposition current AC AC current after AC low
Capacitance & dissipation factor 0,01 (a) time and frequency at constant voltage injection
Hz- voltage, or (b) frequency and voltage
10 Hz

5 Harmonic distortion AC Amplitude and phase angle of 3rd 12 Residual charge DC Space charge at the tip of a
harmonics & water tree by applying DC
AC followed by AC voltage

6 Recovery/Return voltage DC Recovery voltage (amplitude, slope, 13 Thermal step DC Detection and location of space
time) after DC-pulse application charges by applying a thermal
pulse on the cable

7 DC polarization and/or DC Variations in polarization and

depolarization Current depolarization current after DC
application C and DF after
transformation from time
to frequency domain

Table 2 List of main characteristics of non-destructive diagnostic methods for the detection
of water-tree degradation

BROCHURE N 493
Survey Copie papier / Hardcopy
Representatives from eighteen countries were asked (en anglais seulement)
to find out which, if any, water tree detection techniques (in English only)
were being used by its largest utilities. Five countries
have developed well established test programs with En vente au Bureau Central
assessment criteria to detect water trees and one of these
On sale at the Central Office
was using an on-line method. Eight countries perform
little or no testing and five countries did not respond. Prix Membres / Members Price:
63 e
Conclusions Prix non-Membres / Non-Member Price:
126 e
A TB has been prepared to help utilities decide which
tests they should consider to detect water tree degrada-
Contact
tion in their XLPE cable circuits. It contains an overview
of the different techniques presently available to detect Fax +33 (1) 53 89 12 99
water trees in cables, gives advantages and disadvan- e-mail : publication@cigre.org
ou tlcharger http://www.e.cigre.org
tages of each method as well as practical guidance regar- or download at http://www.e.cigre.org
ding the choice of method to use, and what information (Membres uniquement /Members only)
needs to be collected to optimize the interpretation of
the test data.

No. 261 - April 2012 ELECTRA 71