POLARIZATION CURRENTS IN LIQUID DIELECTRICS

The anomalous charging and discharging currents that flow when a d.c. stress is applied to a non-polar liquid dielectric can be greatly reduced by incorporating a metal screen between the electrode gap and the test cell walls. This suggests that charge storage occurs on the inside of the test cell itself and that it is not directly associated with the volume of liquid under test. A metal screen is essential in order to obtain reliable conduction-current measurements which are not subject to anomalous instabilities.