Modelling of Positive Streamers in SF 6 Gas under Non-Uniform Electric Field Conditions: Effect of Electronegativity on Streamer Discharges

Francis Boakye-Mensah, Nelly Bonifaci, Rachelle Hanna, Innocent Niyonzima and Igor Timoshkin
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Francis Boakye-Mensah: G2Elab, CNRS/Grenoble INP/Université Grenoble Alpes, 38000 Grenoble, France
Nelly Bonifaci: G2Elab, CNRS/Grenoble INP/Université Grenoble Alpes, 38000 Grenoble, France
Rachelle Hanna: G2Elab, CNRS/Grenoble INP/Université Grenoble Alpes, 38000 Grenoble, France
Innocent Niyonzima: G2Elab, CNRS/Grenoble INP/Université Grenoble Alpes, 38000 Grenoble, France
Igor Timoshkin: Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XW, UK

J, 2022, vol. 5, issue 2, 1-22

Abstract: The use of SF 6 in electrical insulation and fast-switching applications cannot be overemphasized. This is due to its excellent dielectric properties and high breakdown voltage, which are especially important for practical applications such as gas-insulated switchgears and pulsed power switches where pressurized SF 6 is used. Breakdown in the gas occurs via streamer–leader transition; however, this transition is difficult to quantify numerically at atmospheric pressure because of the electronegativity of the gas. In the present work, streamer discharges in SF 6 gas at pressures of 10 and 100 kPa were studied using a plasma fluid model implementation. Analysis of the electric field in the streamer body, streamer velocity, diameter, and the effect of the high electronegativity of the gas on streamer parameters are presented for positive polarity in a point-to-plane geometry. The streamers in SF 6 for non-uniform background fields are compared to those in air, which have already been studied extensively in the literature.

Keywords: streamer discharges; electronegative gases; numerical modelling (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I1 I10 I12 I13 I14 I18 I19 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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