The effectiveness of the insulation systems has great importance for the continuity of the power equipment. Due to operating conditions, solid insulating mate-rials are subjected to different types of stresses. In this context, one of the factors affecting the breakdown performance is the type of the applied voltage. Since the breakdown strength of the materials determines their lifespan, the effect of the different voltage types must be considered for proper insulation design. For this reason, it is vital to investigate the breakdown performance of insulation materials under different voltage types. In this study, breakdown voltages of press-paper, polyethylene terephthalate and styrene–butadiene rubber/natural rubber under AC, positive DC(+), and negative DC(−) voltages were investigated. For the analysis of the breakdown points, the electric field analysis of the materials for the cylinder–cylinder electrode configuration was performed with COMSOL Multiphysics® software. As a result, it was determined that the electric field distortion increased in the triple junction regions and the potential breakdown points obtained by the simulation matched with seen in the experiments.
Cite this article as: F. Akin, O. Arikan and C. Cagdas Uydur, Analysis of solid insulating materials breakdown voltages under different voltage types. Turk J Electr Power Energy Syst, 2022; 2(1): 85-93.