Numerical simulation of the condensation process in high voltage switchgear based on the temperature and humidity distribution

Abstract

Abstract The condensation on solid materials surface inside switchgear is an important reason threatening its safety and reliability. The formation of condensation is closely related to the temperature and humidity distribution inside the switchgear. A 3-D simplified finite element calculation model for the switchgear is established, including the bus bar, the wall bushing, the circuit breaker, the cables and other key components. Based on the electromagnetic-temperature-humidity multi-physical field coupling method, the temperature distribution inside the switchgear are calculated when the operating current flows through the bus-bar. Furthermore, the humidity diffusion process is also calculated when the relative humidity of external environment was 0.8, and the relative humidity inside the switchgear is obtained. The calculation results show that the surface humidity of the contact box of the circuit breaker is the highest whereas the temperature is the lowest, which is the location where the condensation is easy to occur.