Contribution to the use of palm kernel oil methyl esters as liquid bio-insulators in distribution transformers: Experimentation and simulation of heat transfer

Abstract

This work examines the potential use of palm kernel oil methyl esters (PKOME) as liquid bio-insulators in distribution transformers. A mathematical model of heat transfer inside a transformer is developed and solved using COMSOL Multiphysics software. The results of the model are validated by experimental data, showing a temperature variation of 31–81.8 °C in the measurements and 31–82.5 °C in the simulation. This validation confirms the accuracy of the model in predicting the temperature distribution inside the PKOME-filled transformer, paving the way for their use in distribution transformers.

Keywords

• Thermal behavior
• Palm kernel oil methyl esters
• Distribution transformer
• Heat transfer
• Temperature distribution