Multichannel optical-fibre heterodyne interferometer for ultrasound detection of partial discharges in power transformers

A multichannel interferometric system is proposed for the ultrasonic detection of partial discharges using intrinsic optical fibre sensors that may be immersed in oil. It is based on a heterodyne scheme which drives at least four sensor heads in order to localize the source of the acoustic emissions. Proper design of the sensing head improves its sensitivity through magnification and reaches a compact encapsulated probe able to be installed within power transformers. The optoelectronic implementation and the experimental tests are presented to optimize the resolution (4 channels?4 mrad). In addition, the results of ultrasound measurements at 150?kHz with an optical fibre sensor immersed in water in an acoustic test bench are shown, in which a resolution better than 10 Pa was obtained. Finally, the set-up for three-phase power transformers is demonstrated and characterized to detect and locate the source of acoustic emissions.