Unlocked by Ergon – Transformer oil – e-lesson #17 – Alternative fluids – Basic features influenced by chemical structures
Hosted by: CS Narasimhan / Master's level
Join us on June 18th at Transformers Academy!
The 17th lesson in the Transformer oil course, authored and presented by Mr. C. S Narasimhan, is hosted on the Master's level. Here you can save your seat.
This lesson provides an overview of alternative transformer fluids, focusing on how their chemical structures influence their basic features and performance. It discusses the various alternative fluid options, including synthetic hydrocarbons, esters, and silicones, and the key triggers for considering them, such as fire safety, environmental impact, and enhanced asset life. The lesson delves into how the ester group's polarity and polarizability impact properties like dielectric permittivity and moisture tolerance. It also compares the fire, oxidation, and dielectric properties of esters to mineral oils, highlighting the trade-offs. The lesson touches on the application of esters for drying transformers and their niche uses, like retrofitting and fire-prone environments. It concludes by summarizing the key differences between the alternative fluid types and providing guidance on product selection.
Content of this lesson is fully vendor agnostic but it is sponsored by Ergon!
After the live broadcasting, the lesson stays available on demand. It is intended for utility engineers/chemists, transformer and oil manufacturers, students and faculty of educational institutes, oil testing laboratories, utility staff, etc.
The lesson #17 deals with HSE aspects in mineral oils – A comparison with alternative fluids.
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About the author
CS Narasimhan
Dr. Narasimhan holds PhD in chemistry from a premier institute IIT Madras, Chennai (India), with a long experience of about 40 years. He has been working in corporate R&D centers of multinational companies ever since he completed his PhD in 1978.
He was heading R&D at Savita Oil Technologies in Mumbai for 20 years, until his recent retirement.
His R&D work includes: developing a variety of grades of transformer oils based on paraffinic oils, naphthenic oils, natural esters and synthetic esters,
application development in transformers, developing additives for transformer oils, studying oxidation behavior, moisture dynamics in oil-filled transformers, studies on dielectric properties of mineral oils and esters (impulse & power frequency), insulation paper ageing studies in mineral oils and ester oils published papers in the recent ICDL conference in Rome and 9 papers in IEEE conferences on dielectric properties of ester oils and mineral oils, and more.
He has published more than 30 papers, of which 15 are on transformer oils, and is proud of his six patents.
He has been an invited speaker at conferences in India and abroad, as well as delivered lectures at seminars conducted by Weidman in Europe. He is a member of two IEC committees on oil standards and a member of two CIGRE committees on oils.
