Development of a Hybridized Model for Determining the Degree of Polymerization of Power Transformers

Power transformers have been described as an important equipment of electrical switchyard in which its failure results in long hours of outage. Some of the existing models for determining the Degree of Polymerization (DP) of power transformers were based on singular parameter which is not sufficient for the assessment of power transformers’ lifespan. This research paper therefore developed a hybridized model for determining the degree of polymerization of power transformers. The study employed the use 2-Furaldehyde (2FAL) content values of 0.5 ppm to 10ppm in determining the DP value and simulation was carried out using MATLAB. The result was compared with existing DP model for effectiveness of the Hybridized DP model. The developed model yielded a DP range of 247 ≤ DP ≤ 1184 based on a constant hotspot temperature of 1100C and the values of activation energy and pre-exponential factors used. The results from this research presented a better method of determining the Degree of Polymerization of power transformer compared to the existing method. Therefore, the Hybridized DP model developed is more sufficient for the evaluation of lifespan of power transformers. Keywords: Power Transformers, Electrical Switchyard, Lifespan, Degree of Polymerization, Statistical Tools, Power Failure, Outages. DOI: 10.7176/ISDE/12-6-04 Publication date:October 31st 2022