Completed RandD Projects

Sl. No.

Title of the Project

Abstract

Studies on stability of various Insulating Liquids under electrical discharge

Oxidation stability test for new transformer oil is being carried out as per IEC 61125 and IS 335 standards.  This test takes a very long time from 7 days to 23 days depending on whether the oil is uninhibited or inhibited.  No test method to assess the oxidation stability of in-service transformer oil is available in the standard specification.  ASTM D6180 standard describes a test method to determine the stability of both new and in-service transformer oil under electrical discharge which consumes comparatively less time of about 6 hours. In this project the stability of insulating oils under electrical discharge with conventional test methods were carried out and compared.

Effect of Additives On Gassing Tendency And Other Electro Chemical Properties Of Transformer Oil as well as Copper Corrosion of paper oil Insulation System

Several additives, inhibitors and passivator are being added to the Transformer oil to improve specific properties and also to impart stability to oil against oxidation.  The effect of these additives on gassing tendency of the oil and also on corrosion aspect of copper in oil-paper composite insulation system has been studied under this project.

Development of on line Dissolved Gas Analysis system for power transformers

Diagnostic monitoring of power transformers has been done effectively for the last sixty years with the help of Gas chromatographic system. But the Gas Chromatograph (GC) system needs some complex infrastructure and hence only in the laboratory conditions the instruments are functional. The transformer oil samples are brought to the laboratory and the analysis is carried out in the lab.  Whenever abnormal gas generation conditions are experienced, the maintenance engineers have to send the samples to the laboratory where the analysis is carried out and wait for the results to take decisions on the functional safety of the power equipment without leading to catastrophic failures and help saving essential component. This has serious revenue consequences. Hence under the project a novel Dissolved Gas Analysis setup (patent pending) was developed. The setup has easy integration and utility value to be used in general gas chromatographic setup. The setup has provisions to be used in a Gas Chromatographic setup for online DGA system.

Development of Technology of Reconditioning and Reclamation of Turbine Lubricants – Phosphate Esters

Turbines of various capacities are used in Thermal and Hydroelectric Power stations. Due to the fire hazard, many power stations have adopted fire safe lubricants based on phosphate esters. Phosphate esters are practically stable, possess good lubricity and have fire retardant properties. They are unstable with respect to hydrolysis. In presence of moisture they undergo hydrolysis releasing phosphoric acid derivatives. Normally these have acid removing cartridge systems installed during their fresh charging conditions. During service, adsorbent columns will be rendered inefficient and acid content increases. If the acid content is beyond 15mgKOH/gm of oil, lubricant is found to initiate damage on the surface of the metallic parts and hence, it is strongly advised to reject. Conventional techniques of reconditioning have been found to be unsuitable as metallic ions in the adsorbent (korvi earth) will react with phosphoric acid derivatives to form metal soaps and get dissolved in the phosphate ester matrix. These will increase the air absorption and hence air release value increases and leads to inefficient lubrication. Further, these esters have been found to be polluting and have been banned for normal disposal techniques. In this project a state of art technology for reconditioning is developed along with a safe and easy reconditioning technique by which the free acids and moisture are to be removed without affecting the lubricant characteristics of the phosphate esters.

Laboratory studies on the performance of natural esters as replacement to mineral insulating fluids

Exploratory studies were conducted on oils obtained from natural esters and investigated on their suitability  to be used as liquid insulating materials. Experiments were also carried out to modify the parameters which are beyond the acceptable criteria as per the international standards IEC 62770.

Development of Nano- Ash Polymer Composites for Electromagnetic Shielding Application.

Under this project a process was developed for electroless coating of metals/alloys on nano-ash particles and achieved uniform dispersion of these particles along with conductive fillers in polymer matrix. The process resulted in higher surface area, good conductivity and improved EMI Shielding effectiveness.

A Study to Evolve a Comprehensive Test to distinguish between the Qualities of Primary and Secondary Grade Electrical (CRGO) Steels

Secondary grade CRGO steel may enter the transformer industry due to huge cost saving. In this project experiments were conducted on primary and secondary grade CRGO steel from various sources to identify important characteristics to distinguish between the qualities of Primary and Secondary Grade CRGO steel. It was inferred that no single property could serve as diagnostic measure for distinguishing between primary and secondary steels. It was observed that after ageing studies,  a  combination of properties such as ductility, insulation resistance and power factor jointly revealed the presence of secondary grade steel.

Sl.No.

Title of the Project

Project Executing Organization

Abstract

Design and Optimization of Feedback Controller for Boost type dc-dc Converters using Artificial Immune System

National Institute of Technology - Trichy

Non-linear control techniques such as fuzzy control, sliding mode control etc. are proposed as viable alternatives for feedback control design in recent times. Controllers designed through such technique are shown to guarantee better dynamic and static performance over a wide range of operating points than conventional controllers.
In this project a cost effective and reliable closed loop control methodology for boost type dc-dc converters has been demonstrated using artificial immune system (AIS).

Feasibility Studies / Design criteria for HTS Power Transmission Cables and demonstration of a simple Laboratory scale single phase HTS

Indian Institute of Technology                  - Kharagpur

In this project a simple lab scale single phase HTS cable has been designed and demonstrated. Cooling strategies for reliable operation of HTS cables along with cryostat planning has also been devised in the project.

Understanding the Formation of Copper Sulphide in Transformer Insulation due to Multi - Stress Aging

Indian Institute of Technology                  -Madras

Monitoring of the condition of transformer, to enhance the quality and reliability of power system network. Reliability of transformers depend on proper insulation design and by use of quality of insulating material. It is recently observed that elemental sulphur and thermally unstable sulphur species in transformer oil reacts with copper forming copper sulphide and diffuse into the pressboard insulating material adversely affecting the insulation performance of transformers. In this project formation of Copper Sulphide in Transformer Insulation due to Multi - Stress Aging has been studied.

FPGA Based Development of Different MPPT Algorithms for a Stand-Alone Photo Voltaic System using Artificial Intelligence

National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal

Keeping in mind the advent of commercial PV Installations, this project aimed at developing maximum power point tracking algorithms incorporating artificial Intelligence for PV systems.

Identification of Incipient Discharges in Transformer Insulation by Elastic Wave Sensing based on Fiber Bragg Gratings

Indian Institute of Technology                  -Madras

Transformers are the heart of a power system network. With the advancements in power transmission capability, it has become essential to monitor the condition of transformer, to enhance the quality and reliability of power system network. Ideally, online monitoring with transformer energised would be the best as it has the potential to detect faults at the incipient stage and does not involve any down time. In this context, acoustic method of partial discharge detection is the most preferred technique since it also provides possibility of localization. In this project a novel method for detection of acoustic emissions from incipient discharges was developed using fibre Bragg grating based optical sensors.

Common Information Model (CIM) Compliant Power System Network Model Exchange and Naming Schemes for Indian Utilities

Indian Institute of Technology                  - Bombay

This project facilitates building experience in creation, exchange, validation and maintenance of power system network model using CIM. The primary beneficiaries of CIM modelling include system operators, vendors, utilities, and system integrators. System operators can establish an unambiguous and consistent definition of power system data throughout the system, thereby avoiding confusion. Operators can prepare specifications for ensuring CIM compliance while procuring the next generation SCADA/EMS systems. Manual actions can be eliminated and automation of various functions can be achieved in a phased manner. Vendors can develop integrated solutions configured to specific requirements. Utilities can get ready-made solutions in a modular fashion. System integrators, owing to interoperability, find it easier to integrate applications at syntactic and semantic levels.