Microstructural characterization of XLPE electrical insulation in power cables: determination of void size distributions using TEM

In an effort to progress in our understanding of the ageing mechanisms of high voltage cables submitted to electrical and thermal stresses, we present a quantitative study of voids, the defects which are considered to be partly responsible for cable failure. We propose a method based on large data sets of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations of replicated samples allowing for the determination of void concentration distribution as a function of void size in the mesoscopic to microscopic range at any point in the cable insulation. A theory is also developed to calculate the effect of etching on the apparent size of the voids observed. We present the first results of this sort ever obtained on two industrial cables, one of which was aged in an AC field. Results clearly indicate that a much larger concentration of voids occur near the inner semiconductor compared to the bulk of the insulation, independently of ageing. An effect of ageing can also be seen near the inner semiconductor, resulting in an increase in the total void internal surface area and a slight shift of the concentration curve towards larger voids, with the peak moving from about 40 nm to about 50 nm.