Study of Breakdown Voltage Stability of Gas-Filled Surge Arresters in the Presence of Gamma Radiation

The results presented in this article relate to the study of the impact of gamma radiation on the breakdown voltage of gas-filled surge arrester manufactured by CITEL, Littelfuse and EPCOS at an operating voltage of 230 V. Radium was considered as a source of gamma radiation in this research. The stability of breakdown voltage as well as the reliability of gas-filled surge arresters of different manufacturers were investigated using different statistical methods. This gas component operation was based on processes that lead to electrical breakdown and discharge in gas. The breakdown voltage has a stochastic nature, and it is a subject of certain distribution. One thousand voltage measurements of breakdown voltage were carried out for each value of the voltage increase rate, from 1 V/s up to 10 V/s, with and without the presence of additional gamma radiation. The detailed statistical analysis of the obtained experimental data was performed for both cases for all three GFSA types. Moreover, the cumulative distribution functions of breakdown voltage were presented with the applied Weibull distribution fit. The coefficient of correlation as well as Pearson chi(2) test showed the strength of the relationship between the experimental distribution functions and the Weibull distribution fits. The values of the Weibull distribution coefficients for all voltage increase rates and for all components were also analyzed with and without gamma radiation.