Investigation of Hydrothermally Stressed Silicone Rubber/Silica Micro and Nanocomposite for the Coating High Voltage Insulation Applications
Faiza,
Abraiz Khattak,
Safi Ullah Butt,
Kashif Imran,
Abasin Ulasyar,
Asghar Ali,
Zuhair Subhani Khan,
Azhar Mahmood,
Nasim Ullah,
Ahmad Aziz Alahmadi,
Adam Khan
Affiliations
Faiza
School of Natural Sciences, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Sector H-12, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Abraiz Khattak
U.S.-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Energy, Department of Electrical Power Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Sector H-12, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Safi Ullah Butt
U.S.-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Energy, Department of Electrical Power Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Sector H-12, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Kashif Imran
U.S.-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Energy, Department of Electrical Power Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Sector H-12, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Abasin Ulasyar
U.S.-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Energy, Department of Energy Systems Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Sector H-12, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Asghar Ali
U.S.-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Energy, Department of Energy Systems Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Sector H-12, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Zuhair Subhani Khan
U.S.-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Energy, Department of Energy Systems Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Sector H-12, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Azhar Mahmood
School of Natural Sciences, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Sector H-12, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Nasim Ullah
Department of Electrical Engineering, College of Engineering, Taif University KSA, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia
Ahmad Aziz Alahmadi
Department of Electrical Engineering, College of Engineering, Taif University KSA, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia
Adam Khan
Department of Electronics Engineering, University of Engineering and Technology (UET) Peshawar (Abbottabad Campus), Abbottabad 22010, Pakistan
Silicone rubber is a promising insulating material that has been performing well for different insulating and dielectric applications. However, in outdoor applications, environmental stresses cause structural and surface degradations that diminish its insulating properties. This effect of degradation can be reduced with the addition of a suitable filler to the polymer chains. For the investigation of structural changes and hydrophobicity four different systems were fabricated, including neat silicone rubber, a micro composite (with 15% micro-silica filler), and nanocomposites (with 2.5% and 5% nanosilica filler) by subjecting them to various hydrothermal conditions. In general, remarkable results were obtained by the addition of fillers. However, nanocomposites showed the best resistance against the applied stresses. In comparison to neat silicone rubber, the stability of the structure and hydrophobic behavior was better for micro-silica, which was further enhanced in the case of nanocomposites. The inclusion of 5% nanosilica showed the best results before and after applying aging conditions.