24
IEEE Electrical Insulation Magazine
F E A T U R E A R T I C L E
M
Medium Voltage Cable Defects Revealed
by Off-Line Partial Discharge Testing at
Power Frequency
Key Words: cables, impurities, defects, electrical trees, medium voltage, partial discharge,
testing, water trees.
Introduction
edium voltage cables insulated with extruded dielectric
materials, especially crosslinked polyethylene (XLPE),
are extensively used throughout the world. Large scale com-
mercialization of XLPE insulated cables began in the 1960s. In
North America, the early cables were not jacketed. The require-
ment for jacketing, started in the early 1970s, did not become
widespread until some time in the mid to late 1980s. As early as
1970, cable users became aware of early deterioration and pre-
mature failure of these cables. Among the causes cited were
water treeing, impurities, delamination of semiconducting
screens, and protrusions. As the early XLPE cable population is
aging, its impaired reliability is becoming cause for serious con-
cern. Several different testing technologies are attempting to
help identify those cables that need repair, rehabilitation, or re-
placement [1]. The authors’ company has been engaged since
1996 in performing cable diagnostic tests by means of an off-
line, partial discharge (PD) location technology, using a 50/60
Hz excitation voltage.
This article describes typical cable defects uncovered while
testing over 9,000 km of medium voltage XLPE insulated cables.
After a brief review of the testing method, the procedure that
led to the identification, localization, and characterization of
typical defects found in operating cables will be described. Water
trees often are considered as a major issue leading to premature
cable degradation [2]. Partial discharge activity has not been
reported within water trees (WT) during their growth [3]–[5].
However, “conversion” of WTs to electrical trees (ET), which
are associated with PD activity, have been discussed [6], [7] in
the context of laboratory research. The formation of ETs has
been considered as a final breakdown mechanism leading to
M. S. Mashikian and A. Szatkowski
IMCORP
179 Middle Turnpike
Storrs, CT 06268 USA
cable failure within a relatively short time. This paper, based on
actual service performance of cables, will show several cases in
which ETs associated with WTs have not led to cable failure
even after several years of service in very harsh operating envi-
ronments. It will, as well, describe several other defects, such
as inclusions, rough semiconducting screen surfaces, screen
delamination, and damages caused by rough handling during
installation. Partial discharge characteristics typically associ-
ated with some of these defects will be shown. Examples of PD
An effective, off-line partial discharge
diagnostic test method for cables that
identifies defects such as electrical
trees associated with water trees and
insulation contaminants, delamin-
ation, and physical damage caused by
rough handling is briefly described.
July/August 2006 — Vol. 22, No. 4
25
detected in a cable rehabilitated with silicone-based fluid injec-
tion will be illustrated.
Off-line 50/60 Hz PD Testing Method
The cable under test is disconnected from the system, and
the following testing steps are implemented [8]:
· a low-voltage time-domain reflectometry operation intended
to locate cable joints (splices) and other irregularities, such
as corroded neutrals;
· a sensitivity assessment test;
· a PD magnitude calibration test;
· a PD detection and location test under voltage stress condi-
tions;
· data analysis and reporting; and
· a “matching” test to locate the exact physical PD site in a
buried cable.
Each of these steps, except the first—which has no direct
relevance to the subject of this paper—will be briefly described.
A. Sensitivity Assessment
The purpose of this step is to determine the value in
picoCoulomb (pC) of the smallest PD signal detectable under
the test conditions. The setup is illustrated in Figure 1.
A calibrated pulse, such as 5 pC, is injected at the near end.
The PD estimator detects and records the response. If the re-
flected signal cannot be seen above the filtered noise level, a
larger signal, such as 10 pC, is injected. This process is repeated
until the reflected signal is observable. This determines the small-
est PD signal that can be resolved under the test conditions.
B. PD Magnitude Calibration
The calibrated pulse generator is connected to the cable re-
mote end. A large signal, such as 50 pC or 100 pC, is injected.
The corresponding signal recorded at the near end is evaluated
by integrating it with respect to time (q = kvdt). The constant k
is adjusted until the PD magnitude read is 50 pC or 100 pC. The
instrument is now calibrated for measuring the apparent charge,
q, of the PD.
C. PD Testing under Voltage Stress
In Figure 1, the pulse generator is replaced by a 50/60 Hz
resonant transformer. The voltage is rapidly raised to the cable-
operating level (1.0 p.u.) at which it is maintained for several
minutes as a conditioning step. The voltage is ramped to its
maximum value (such as 2.0 p.u. or 2.5 p.u.). It then is returned
to zero as quickly as possible. During this stress cycle, several
sets of data are captured, as shown in Figure 2, each set encom-
passes an entire 50/60 Hz period. The rising and falling parts of
the voltage help determine the PD inception voltage (PDIV)
and extinction voltage (PDEV), respectively.
D. Data Analysis and Reporting
Figure 3 illustrates a typical data set. Prior to analysis, noise
mitigation filters are applied. A cursor moving from left to right
stops at each signal whose magnitude exceeds a preset value
dictated by the remaining background noise, and displays the
signal in a time-expanded frame. The PD magnitude, the phase
angle at which it occurred, and its location estimated by reflec-
tometry are determined and stored. Figure 4 is a histogram show-
ing the frequency of PD occurrence per cycle versus the PD
location at each voltage level. For each PD, a phase-resolved
display is prepared at each test voltage level, as will be shown
later.
Figure 1. Setup to assess the threshold of sensitivity during a
field test.
Figure 2. Time profile of the excitation voltage applied during
a partial discharge (PD) test.
Figure 3. Unprocessed partial discharge (PD) data (above)
recorded during one voltage cycle and data after noise
mitigation (below).
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IEEE Electrical Insulation Magazine
E. “Matching” Operation
The purpose of this operation is to match the estimated PD
site to its actual physical location along a buried cable. The
estimated distance from the near end is measured with a mea-
suring wheel. A small test hole is dug until the cable is reached.
A voltage pulse simulating a PD is injected electromagnetically
into the cable. The location in which this pulse was injected is
estimated by the PD-measuring equipment installed at the near
cable end. This provides the distance by which to move in order
to get to the correct PD location.
Characterization of Cable Defects
A. Procedure
In order to identify the PD causing defect, a cable section of
a minimum 7 m length—containing the “matched” PD site—is
removed from the field and subjected to a laboratory investiga-
tion where a final PD location is carefully performed from both
cable ends, using the regular reflectometry method or an accu-
rate “time-of-arrival” method. A large number of measurements
have confirmed that the PD site located in the field and that
found in the laboratory are generally within ±0.6 m of each
other. The cable is sectioned into 0.3 m long specimens; one
contains the measured PD site and the rest cover 0.9 m length
on either side of the PD site. The protective jacket, the concen-
tric neutrals (or metal shields), and the insulation screen are
removed. A thorough visual examination of the insulation sur-
face can often reveal the exact location of the PD site. The speci-
mens are immersed in a bath of silicone oil heated to approxi-
mately 110°C, until the XLPE insulation becomes transparent.
Visual examination of the insulation reveals the defect, which
is properly marked. After cooling, the insulation is machined
into a 0.25 mm –0.50 mm thick spiral (slinky) for microscopic
examination. Generally, the examination is done without ap-
plying a dye. However, dyeing with a solution of methylene
blue is an option that is sometimes exercised to confirm the
existence of a WT.
B. Electrical Trees Associated with Water Trees
Water treeing manifests itself as strings of water-filled
microcavities. Relative to dry XLPE, the insulation containing
WTs has a higher permittivity (dielectric constant) and a higher
conductivity. Whether the WT is of the vented (growing out of
one of the screens) or bowtie (growing from the insulation vol-
ume radially toward both screens) variety, its share of the total
voltage applied across the insulation is very small compared to
the dry insulation surrounding it. As a result, ETs tend to form
in the dry areas adjacent to WTs whenever defective sites with
enhanced electric stress exist in these areas. Discernible PD may
not be sustained within the WT, but it does occur at the sur-
rounding ET sites. Several examples follow.
Electrical Tree Growing from Screen toward Vented WT: Fig-
ure 5 illustrates a large, vented WT emanating from a conductor
screen and an ET emanating from the insulation screen. The ET
is growing radially toward the top of the WT. This site was first
detected in the field in 2002. The PDIV remained constant at
2.5 p.u. for two additional years in service without failure.
Electrical Tree Emanating from Conductor Screen under a
WT: Figure 6 illustrates the case of several ETs emanating from
the same screen (conductor screen) and growing in the “shadow”
of a large, vented WT. Note that each ET in Figures 5 and 6 is
Figure 4. PD histogram showing, at each location, the
number of partial discharge (PD) per cycle.
Figure 5. Vented water tree (WT) and electrical tree (ET) growing into each other from opposite screens.
July/August 2006 — Vol. 22, No. 4
27
growing in a dry portion of the insulation in which the electric
field is enhanced. In Figure 6, the ET branches growing into the
WT are clearly deflected laterally (presumably because of a
low radial electric field component), and the branches outside
the WT are growing radially toward the insulation screen. This
PD site was tracked in the field for 3 consecutive years. Its PDIV
remained at the 2.0 p.u. level. Although Figure 6 indicates a dry
region close to the screen, there may have been a thin, wet trunk
that does not show in the cross section.
Electrical Tree Emanating from Screens on Both Sides of a
WT: Figure 7 illustrates the case of a long, vented WT emanat-
ing from the conductor screen of a 15 kV XLPE cable with poor
service performance. This unjacketed cable had been in service
over 25 years. A PD was detected at 2.5 p.u. test voltage (the
initial PDIV was somewhere between 2.0 and 2.5 p.u., the two
consecutive levels at which PD was measured). The cable owner
requested that a withstand test at 60 Hz be performed at this
voltage for 5 minutes, immediately following the PD test. The
cable survived this test, but its PDIV dropped to 1.5 p.u., pre-
sumably as a result of the further damage caused by the dis-
charge in the insulation during the prolonged withstand test. A
cable section containing the PD site was cut off and subjected
to a laboratory investigation. The vented WT covered the entire
insulation wall thickness and ETs were observed emanating from
the screens on both sides of the WT. The magnified view shows
that the tree branches were just about to meet when the with-
stand test was interrupted. This pattern also has been observed
in the presence of bowtie WTs [9].
Electrical Trees Growing from Tip of a Finger-Like WT: Fig-
ure 8(a) shows a bowtie ET growing at the tip of a long, finger-
like WT. This PD site was first noted in the field in 2001. It was
reconfirmed in 2002 and 2003. The PDIV remained practically
constant at 1.7 p.u. Figure 8(b) is another PD site in the same
feeder cable. Again, bowtie ETs are growing at the tips of thin
cactus-like WT branches. This PD site was first detected in 2002
and reconfirmed in 2003. The PDIV remained constant at 2.0
p.u.. The feeder was tested in the laboratory and dissected in
2004-2005. The phase resolved diagram for one cycle at 2.5
p.u. voltage for the specimen in Figure 8(a) is shown in Figure
9. It is compatible with that expected for such an ET.
C. Electrical Trees Associated with Contaminants
Solid contaminants embedded in the insulation sometimes
have been found to be the sites of PD activity. No attempt was
made to find the origin of the contaminants by analysis. Figure
10 is such an example. This site was first discovered in the field
Figure 6. Vented water tree (WT) and electrical trees (ET) with deflected branches emanating from the conductor screen.
Figure 7. Electrical trees (ET), with tips close to meeting, on both sides of a long vented water tree (WT).
28
IEEE Electrical Insulation Magazine
at 2.5 p.u. voltage in 2002 and was reconfirmed in 2003.
Laboratory testing and dissection were performed in 2004-
2005. Electrical trees are seen linking two contaminants, and
another elongated ET is seen emanating from the conductor
screen, probably at the site of some surface roughness. A phase
resolved PD diagram (PD magnitude versus phase angle at which
PD occurred during one cycle of the applied voltage) obtained
at 2.5 p.u. voltage is shown in Figure 11.
D. Bush-Type Electrical Trees
The bush-type tree has been observed repeatedly on 1000
kcmil (~500 mm2) Al-conductor, 15 kV XLPE insulated feeders
with copper concentric neutral and a jacket. No visual evidence
of water treeing exists. Figure 12 provides an overall view of
the tree, and Figure 13 is a magnified view of another such tree,
showing more clearly the branches of the ET. The trees ema-
nate from the insulation screen. Generally, they consist of a main
bush and a large number of “seedlings” growing around its trunk,
presumably at the sites of interface stress concentration areas.
These trees, reminding one of certain sea shells, have a striking
combination of blue, green, and rust colors. The tree tops are
evenly rounded, minimizing any leading edge stress concentra-
tion. The PD site depicted in Figure 12 was observed at 2.0 p.u.
voltage during PD tests conducted 12 months apart while the
cable remained in service between tests. In the laboratory, sev-
eral months after decommissioning and storing outdoors, the
PDIV had dropped to approximately 1.2 p.u.. The different PD
phase patterns of Figure 14 for one cycle at 10.0 kV and 13.0
kV are interesting and may shed light on how the PD evolves
with increasing voltage.
E. PD and Treeing Associated with Silicone-Injected
Cables
An aged XLPE insulated cable feeder, without prior failure
history, was injected with silicone fluid to preclude failures due
to water treeing. This was done without prior off-line PD test-
ing, which could have revealed any existing ETs. After the in-
jection was completed and the required conditioning time
elapsed, the cable was returned to service. Within less than 50
hours, the cable failed, was repaired and failed again. The loca-
tions of the failure sites were not recorded. An off-line PD test
at power frequency revealed four PD sites. At two of these sites,
the owner induced failures in the cable upon application of re-
peated impulse test voltage (thumping). A 30 m long cable
sample containing the remaining two PD sites were sectioned
off and made available for laboratory examination. Figure 15
shows a cross-sectional view of the defect at one of the PD sites,
together with a magnified view of the ET tips. The second site
had a similar tree emanating from the insulation screen. Micro-
scopic examination showed a faint silhouette in the background
of a vented WT that was emanating from the conductor screen.
Before injection, the WT was probably preventing rapid ET
growth because of the low stress provided within its foliage.
Upon removal of the WT by silicone injection, the ETs were
allowed to grow rapidly.
F. Miscellaneous Other PD Sites
Partial discharge is almost invariably mentioned in conjunc-
tion with voids or microcavities in the insulation or at interfaces
with screens. The only cases of PD of this category uncovered
by the authors on installed cables had been caused by delamina-
tion between the screens and the insulation or by physical inju-
ries inflicted on the cable insulation or its screen during manu-
facturing, transportation or installation. For instance, a new 15
Figure 8. Micrographs of bowtie electrical trees (ET) growing at the tips of finger-like water trees (WT).
Figure 9. Phase angle diagram obtained at 2.5 p.u. for
specimen in Figure 8(a).
July/August 2006 — Vol. 22, No. 4
29
kV ethylene-propylene rubber (EPR) insulated cable showed a
PD site at 12 kV during commissioning tests after installation
in a duct system. The PD magnitude was 38 pC. The PD loca-
tion and magnitude were confirmed by an independent labora-
tory. The cause was reported to be a separation of the insulation
from its screen. Normally, such a defect should have been de-
tected by the manufacturer. Figure 16 depicts a defect found at
a PD site with a PDIV of 17 kV. A neutral wire was found pen-
etrating a gash extending through more than 50% of the insula-
tion. The existence of a WT suggests that this defect probably
had been inflicted during installation over 25 years ago, or some
subsequent repair. The PD most probably was occurring on the
insulation surface. These are by no means isolated cases of cable
installed with imperfections, usually caused by rough handling.
In rare cases, voids have been found in XLPE insulation that
had been subjected to excessively high temperatures.
Discussion
The foregoing examples illustrate defects that have been found
in medium voltage cables by means of off-line PD testing. Al-
though these may not cover all possible defects, they were se-
lected because they have been encountered frequently in cable
samples that were made available by their owners. Some were
due to solid contaminants present in the raw materials or intro-
duced during the manufacturing process. High stress concentra-
tion areas at semiconducting screen-insulation interfaces have
been observed to be the sites of ETs. Such defects occurred
more frequently in old vintage cables. Nowadays, quality con-
trol is expected to reduce the likelihood of such defects. Other
defects have been traced to rough cable handling during trans-
Figure 10. Electrical trees (ET) are linking two contaminants and another ET is emanating from the conductor screen.
Figure 11. Phase angle diagram obtained at 2.5 p.u. for
specimen in Figure 10.
Figure 12. Bush-type electrical tree (ET) emanating from the
insulation screen of 15 kV feeder.
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IEEE Electrical Insulation Magazine
portation or installation. By far the most prevalent PD sites were
observed to occur at ET sites associated with WTs.
Water trees have significantly higher permittivity and con-
ductivity than the dry portions of insulation. Under 60 Hz or
higher frequency electric fields (such as those encountered un-
der switching surge or lightning conditions), voltage distribu-
tion within the cable insulation occurs mainly through capaci-
tive coupling and, therefore, is dictated by permittivity. Areas
with water treeing have relatively higher capacitance and, there-
fore, assume a smaller proportion of the total voltage, while the
adjacent dry areas of insulation become overstressed. This is
depicted in Figure 17 by means of equipotential lines that show
two enhanced stress areas around the WT. As the WT grows
larger, so does the stress in these areas. Should there be, in addi-
tion, any unusual roughness over the surface of the screen or
some other inclusion in these areas, an electric tree is gener-
ated, especially during transient overvoltage conditions. Elec-
trical trees thus started tend to grow every time the stress ex-
ceeds the PD inception level at the tip of the ET. This continues
until, relatively rapidly, the ET tip meets the boundary of the
WT, which represents a low stress region. At this juncture, the
growth of the ET is markedly slowed down. This explains why
PD, observed at certain cable locations over a period of 3-4
years, had yet to lead to failure. Eventually, some time (weeks
to months) after a heavy lightning storm or following a with-
stand voltage maintenance test exceeding the PDIV level, the
cable may fail at these locations during normal service.
Electrical trees associated with finger-like WTs may not grow
until the WT becomes very long. A transient overvoltage or long
time exposure to a withstand test (VLF tests last 15-60 minutes
and, in Europe, some power frequency tests last 30 minutes,
“thumping” may be performed at a relatively high voltage level)
may trigger the formation of a bowtie ET at the tip of the WT.
Although a WT can retard the growth of an ET during ser-
vice, this delay cannot last for ever. Experiments conducted in
the field and in the laboratory have shown that withstand tests
(with both power frequency and VLF voltage) lasting as long as
30 minutes can significantly decrease the PDIV at a defect site
without causing failure. If the PDIV drops to operating level, an
imminent failure should be expected. Figure 7 offers a pictorial
example of ETs emanating from both screens just about to meet
and cause a cable fault.
Water trees are the “curse” that leads cables toward their
ultimate destruction. However, once initiated either at the top
or at the bottom of a WT, ETs experience a growth that is effec-
tively retarded by the low stress prevailing within the WT. Some
trees are deflected around the periphery of the WT. Others stop
growing altogether until the WT bridges the entire insulation
thickness. During this stage, WTs act as a “blessing”. As the
WT bridges the entire insulation thickness, the electric stress
distribution within the insulation reverts back to its original pat-
tern that existed prior to water treeing and the ETs resume their
rapid radial growth, each time the PDIV is exceeded, until fail-
ure occurs.
Bush-type ETs are characterized by rounded fronts that limit
stress enhancement at the tree tips. Partial discharge sites moni-
tored for several years were found upon dissection to consist of
bush-type ETs. No apparent deterioration has been observed in
the PD behavior over time. This could not have been guaran-
teed if the cable had been subjected to unduly high stress by
lightning, maintenance withstand testing or thumping. In an un-
related case (encountered in Europe while the foregoing ex-
amples happened in the United States), dissection of a PD site
revealed a typical ET emanating from the top of a bush. Highly
aged cables afflicted with serious defects, such as those described
in this article, could last many years in service if care is taken to
apply proper surge protection and avoid mistreatment by with-
stand testing and thumping.
Summary and Conclusions
This article has documented several major types of cable de-
fects that were discovered by PD testing. A summary of the
findings and important conclusions reached are provided be-
low.
· Off-line PD testing at power frequency effectively sorted out
defective from serviceable cables.
· In testing service-aged cables, seldom was a cavity-type de-
Figure 13. Magnified view of bush-type electrical tree (ET)
showing structure of its branches.
Figure 14. Phase angle diagram for the defect in Figure 12 at
two voltage levels.
July/August 2006 — Vol. 22, No. 4
31
fect encountered, except in cases in which a physical dam-
age was inflicted during transportation or installation (Fig-
ure 16), or when, owing to poor factory quality control,
delaminated layers of insulation and semiconducting shields
went unnoticed. Of all such PD sites identified during field
tests, none had lead to the development of ETs.
· A number of solid impurities within the insulation have been
found to be the sites of ETs with PD activity. Material sup-
pliers, cable manufacturers and cable owners should continue
to be vigilant about keeping cable insulation clean.
· Most PD sites of highly service-aged cables (over 20 years
in service) revealed ETs often associated with large WTs.
· Vented WTs bridging the entire insulation thickness had not
resulted in service failures. Dissipation factor tests alone could
not have been used economically in an effective assets man-
agement strategy, as WTs alone are not responsible for cable
failure. Water trees could promote ET initiation, the ultimate
failure mechanism. Dissipation factor tests may be useful as
a supplementary test to minimize the number of cables that
may benefit from treatment by silicone fluid injection. How-
ever, a prior PD test is necessary to identify ET sites.
· Repeated field testing of cables with PD sites at up to 2.5
p.u. over a period of 4 years caused no additional, apparent
deterioration, as the PDIV levels showed no dramatic de-
crease over time, and no test-related failures could be docu-
mented. Apparent deterioration (lower PDIV and higher dis-
charge levels) were encountered on some of the cables only
after they were kept de-energized for long periods of time
(over ~2 weeks).
· PD testing of defective cables following several weeks in a
de-energized state often showed a clear decrease in PDIV.
This may be ascribed to the partial drying of WTs, which
could increase the electric stress at the tips of pre-existing
ETs. Under the recommended test procedures, such long pe-
riods in the de-energized state are to be avoided. Under nor-
mal conditions, testing followed by repair and acceptance
retesting should be performed in much less time than 1 week.
· Although phase-resolved diagrams obtained during testing
could distinguish cavity type and ET type PD sites, no effec-
tive means has yet been found to exactly predict the remain-
Figure 15. ETs growing from both screens at the site of an old water tree (WT).
Figure 16. Deep gash, over 50% of the insulation, made during installation.
32
IEEE Electrical Insulation Magazine
ing operating time before the next failure for all PD sites.
· PD sites were identified in cables that had been treated by
silicone injection or by drying of WTs. Some of these loca-
tions were later identified with service failure sites. Others
were dissected to reveal the existence of very long ETs that,
presumably, predated the treatment process. Removing WTs
had helped accelerate the growth of pre-existing ETs.
· Withstand tests applied to cables in the field as a means of
sorting poor cables from reliable cables were found to gradu-
ally increase the severity of certain defects without causing
failure because of insufficient application time.
The foregoing information gathered over several years of field
testing should help the cable owner make the right decision about
preventive diagnostic testing.
References
[1] A. Bulinski, E. So, S. Bamji, J. Densley, G. Hoff, H.-G. Krantz, M.
Mashikian, and P. Werelius, Panel on diagnostic measurement tech-
niques for power cables, presented at the IEEE/PES T&D Conf.,
New Orleans, LA, USA, April 11-16, 1999.
[2] G. Bahder, C. Katz, J. Lawson, and W. Vahlstrom, “Electrical and
electrochemical treeing in polyethylene and crosslinked polyethyl-
ene cables,”
IEEE Trans. Power App. and Syst., vol. PAS 93, pp.
979–990, May/June 1974.
[3] S. Bamji, A. Bulinski, J. Densley, A. Garton, and N. Shimizu, “Wa-
ter treeing in polymeric insulation,”
Congres International des
Grands Reseaux Electriques (CIGRE), Paris, France, 1984.
[4] S. Hvidsten, E. Ildstad, and J. Sletbak, “Understanding water tree-
ing mechanisms in the development of diagnostic test methods,”
IEEE
Trans. Dielect. Electric. Insulation, vol. 5, pp. 754–760, Oct. 1998.
[5] J. Kirkland, R. Thiede, and R. Reitz, “Evaluating the service degra-
dation of insulated power cables,”
IEEE Trans.Power App.Syst., vol.
PAS 101, pp. 2128–2136, Jul. 1982.
[6] S. Bamji, A. Bulinski, and J. Densley, “Final breakdown mechanism
of water treeing,”
Annual Report of the Conference on Electrical
Insulation and Dielectric Phenomena, 1991, pp. 298–305.
[7] S. Boggs, J. Densley, and J. Kuang, “Mechanism for conversion of
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IEEE Trans.
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[8] M. Mashikian, “Preventive maintenance testing of shielded power
cable systems,”
IEEE Trans. Ind. Applicat., vol. 38, pp. 736–743,
May/June 2002.
[9] “Estimation of life expectancy of XLPE-insulated cables: Aging of
in-Situ tested cables,”
Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), Fi-
nal Report 1001892, Dec. 2001, p. 5-5, Palo Alto, CA.
Matthew S. Mashikian (Life Fellow)
holds a doctorate in Electrical Engineer-
ing from the University of Detroit, Michi-
gan.
His employment experience includes
ASEA (now ABB), Detroit Edison, self-
employment as a consultant, the Univer-
sity of Connecticut as Professor of Electri-
cal Engineering and Director of the Elec-
trical Insulation Research Center, and
IMCORP as President.
Dr. Mashikian holds 13 patents covering electrical insulat-
ing devices, surge protection systems, load leveling batteries,
cable jacketing materials and cable diagnostic test systems. He
is a Past Chairman of the IEEE/PES Insulated Conductors Com-
mittee, a Past Chairman of the IEEE/DEIS Education Commit-
tee, and a member of the Connecticut Academy of Science and
Engineering.
Andrzej Szatkowski was born in Nysa,
Poland, on July 21, 1973. He received his
BSEE from the University of Connecticut
in May 1999. He was employed by
IMCORP as a co-op student in 1997–1998,
and has been with IMCORP as a full-time
employee since his graduation.
Mr. Szatkowski has conducted labora-
tory investigations on cables retrieved from
the field and has developed several diag-
nostic instruments. He presently is manager of hardware engi-
neering and development.
Figure 17. Stress enhancement areas, sites of possible
electrical trees (ET), created by a water tree (WT).
