Influence of waveform on the accumulation of charges along a particle contaminated spacer surface in SF6 stressed by impulse voltage

The influence of the waveform on the surface charging of a spacer stressed by impulse voltages is investigated in this paper. The experimental study was carried out using a simplified spacer with an adhering conducting particle under homogeneous conditions in SF6 gas. A capacitive probe was specially designed to yield the surface charge data through potential measurement. The results show that the impulse waveform has a significant influence on charge accumulation on the spacer surface. Also, the measurements of the optical signal occurring in the predischarge process can give an explanation for the mechanism of charge accumulation on the spacer surface in the presence of impulse.