Paper # 013
Added Critical Flashover Voltage by Fiberglass
Crossarm to 15 kV Polymer Suspension Insulator
S. Grzybowski S. Talabathula
Dept. of Electrical and Computer Eng
Mississippi State University
Mississippi State, MS 39762, U.S.A
stangrzy@ece.msstate.edu
shravani.talabathula@gmail.com
Abstract— The paper is based on the investigative studies
performed on the fiberglass crossarm which will be generally
used in the distribution line structures as an additional insulation
component. Lightning impulse voltage tests were conducted on
the fiberglass crossarm alone to determine its critical flashover
(CFO) voltage, and also the critical flashover voltage of 15 kV
polymer suspension insulator plus the fiberglass crossarm.
The added CFO voltage of the fiberglass crossarm to the
insulator was determined with polymer suspension insulator as
the primary insulation component and the fiberglass crossarm as
the secondary insulation component. The added CFO voltage was
evaluated for 1 ft through 5 ft length of the fiberglass crossarm
for both positive and negative polarity, under dry and wet
condition. All these tests were conducted in the High Voltage
Laboratory at Mississippi State University.
A comparison of the CFO and added CFO voltages by the
fiberglass crossarm to the polymer suspension insulator with the
CFO and added CFO voltages of wood crossarm to the polymer
suspension insulator is presented.
Keywords- additional insulation component, fiberglass
crossarm, insulation, flashover, overvoltages, critical flashover
(CFO) voltage, added critical flashover voltage, basic insulation
level (BIL), electrical strength
I. INTRODUCTION
Power transmission and distribution line structures during
their service are subjected to different types of stresses like
electrical stresses, thermal stresses, mechanical stresses,
irradiation, humidity and contamination [1]. The electrical
lightning and switching overvoltages can cause degradation
and sometimes failure of the line structures. The lightning
impulse overvoltages tend to cause more damage to the
distribution line structures than the transmission line structures
because of its lower rated voltage design. Therefore, proper
insulation designing of the distribution line structures is
necessary to protect from failure [2].
The improvement of the lightning impulse strength of the
power distribution line structure can be achieved in two ways:
using a higher rating insulator or using an additional insulation
component to the basic insulator. The first method serves well
during normal operating conditions but the required lightning
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R. Ward
Aluma-Form Inc.
Memphis, TN 38118, U.S.A
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impulse strength cannot be achieved with this design, unless a
higher insulator’s class voltage is used. The CFO of the basic
insulator is always constant during the design. In order to
design new distribution line structures for protecting against
impulse overvoltages it is important to know the critical
flashover (CFO) voltages and basic insulation level (BIL) of
the different insulation components and combined insulation
structures that are available. There are different insulation
components and also different materials used for construction
of these components. Each component will have different
lightning impulse characteristic. Also, the CFO voltage of the
combined insulation structure when the components are used in
series is different from the summation of the individual CFO
voltages of the components. The different additional insulation
components used are crossarms, poles, and standoffs.
The CFO voltages of some existing insulation structures
can be used to design new distribution line structures.
Previously wood components were used along with insulators
to obtain the required impulse strength. There are a few related
works that present the results of wood components. Now-a-
days fiberglass components are replacing the wood components
because of their superior properties.
Crossarms can be used as an additional insulation
component for designing distribution line structures [3]. The
different materials used for construction of crossarms are steel,
wood, and fiberglass. Steel crossarms are always a conductor in
any condition. Wood crossarms have very low electrical
strength under alternating voltage and especially under wet
condition its electrical strength decreases further. It also has a
low mechanical strength per unit weight. Fiberglass crossarms
have better electrical strength when compared to wood.
Fiberglass (Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic) used for crossarms is
a non-uniform composite material with properties like higher
mechanical and electrical strength along the direction of their
reinforcement, low coefficient of thermal conductivity, and
specific weight. Fiberglass crossarms are non-conductive and
are highly resistant to tracking and flashover.
The emphasis of this paper is on the CFO results of a
fiberglass crossarm alone and the added CFO results of the
fiberglass crossarm to a 15 kV polymer suspension insulator
followed by the discussion and comparison with the existing
wood crossarm results.
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II. CFO AND BIL VOLTAGE LEVELS
The surface flashover on the insulation material or the
breakdown in air gap is caused by the physical phenomenon
called the electronic avalanche and this process is statistical in
nature. Therefore, the insulation strengths or the voltage
withstand levels of different dielectrics like solid, liquid, or gas
dielectric also possesses a statistical characteristic.
In insulation coordination, the withstand voltage or the
insulation strength of any component is generally expressed as
BIL. Consequently, BIL also refers to the highest possible
lightning withstand voltage when it is energized between the
conductor and ground of any component [4]. Normally for the
equipment having non-restoring insulation, “BIL” is used to
ascertain minimum withstand voltage levels. Whereas, when
BIL is used against the self-restoring line insulation it must be
specifically explained for each use. That is, when we speak
about any line insulation it is very important that there should
always be a specified probability of withstand or failure. This
level can be later called as BIL of that particular line insulation.
The user can choose any probability of withstand as the criteria
for BIL. Therefore, in self-restoring insulation like gas
dielectrics, BIL is understood by most of the utilities as the
crest value of a standard impulse for which the insulation
exhibits 90% probability of withstand or 10% probability of
failure [5].
Contrasting to the term BIL, the CFO voltage has a fixed
probability of 50%. Hence, the CFO voltage of the insulation
structure is defined as the crest value of a standard impulse for
which the insulation exhibits 50% probability of withstand or
failure [5]. As the CFO voltage level is fixed it can be
determined by various experimental techniques [6]. After the
CFO level is established this can be used to compute the
desired level of withstand, called BIL.
III. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE
A. Test Object
The test object is a fiberglass crossarm with dimensions
120 inches × 4.5 inches × 3.5 inches. The fiberglass crossarm
has a smooth, hard coated outside surface which is self-
cleansing and resistant to surface buildup that could cause
tracking. This is a hollow tube made of fiberglass as the main
component and a polyester resin with added UV inhibitors as
additional components. It is later filled with high density,
closed cell polyurethane expandable foam. The ends of the tube
are then covered with end caps.
Figure 1 shows the drawing of the fiberglass crossarm
cross-section.
Figure 1: Cross Section of the Fiberglass Crossarm
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Paper # 013
B. Test Equipment and Setup
All tests were performed in the High Voltage Laboratory at
Mississippi State University. The standard lightning impulse of
1.2/50 μs waveform, as per IEEE Standard 4-1995, is generated
by the 20 stage, 56 kJ, 3000 kV impulse generator. The
lightning impulse voltage is applied to the fiberglass crossarm
to find its CFO voltage as per the test procedure. The applied
impulse voltage is measured by using the capacitive voltage
divider calibrated by using the laboratory’s reference sphere
gap connected in parallel to the test object. The measured
impulse voltage is displayed on the Tektronix TDS-7104
digital storage oscilloscope to record the voltage wave shape
and magnitude. The oscilloscope and other data recording
devices are placed in the double-shielded copper screen room
for protection from the electromagnetic interference caused by
the flashover of the tested insulation structures.
C. Tests Conducted
The CFO voltages are determined for the following:
• Three samples each of the fiberglass crossarm alone for
different lengths of the crossarm from 1 ft through 5 ft
for positive polarity under both dry and wet conditions.
• Three samples of a 15 kV polymer suspension insulator
plus the fiberglass crossarm for different lengths of the
crossarm from 1 ft through 5 ft at positive and negative
polarities under both dry and wet conditions.
• A 15 kV polymer suspension insulator at positive and
negative polarities under both dry and wet conditions.
As per IEEE Std. 4-1995, a standard lightning impulse of
1.2/50 μs is used for all the tests. Also, all the voltages
measured were corrected to standard atmospheric conditions
to correlate with any other measurement results. The wet tests
were performed as per the standard requirements. That is, the
water resistivity is (178 ± 27) m, water temperature is
(Ambient ± 15)0C, and the precipitation rate of the vertical
component is (5 ± 0.5) mm/min [6].
D. Test Procedure
Up-and-down method as specified in IEEE Std. 4-1995 is
used to determine the CFO voltages for both polarities under
dry and wet conditions. The up-and-down method according
to the standard is as follows [6]:
• Lightning Impulse with magnitude less than the
expected flashover voltage of the test object is applied.
• Voltage magnitude is increased in approximate steps
of 3-5% of the expected flashover voltage for
subsequent impulses until the flashover occurs.
• After the flashover a series of 20 impulses are applied.
The prospective voltage is decreased by 3-5% if
flashover occurs or voltage is increased by 3-5% for
withstand.
• The average of all 20 impulses is the CFO voltage of
the sample.
• For accuracy, this process is repeated for three samples
of each length to get the CFO voltage of the insulation
structure.
 Paper # 013
IV. CRITICAL FLASHOVER VOLTAGE RESULTS B. CFO Voltages of the Combined Insulation Structure
Figure 3 presents the total CFO voltages of the fiberglass
A. CFO Voltages of Single Component: crossarm plus a 15 kV polymer suspension insulator for both
Figure 2 presents the CFO voltages and electrical strength polarities under dry and wet conditions. The high voltage
of the fiberglass crossarm alone for positive polarity under both electrode was a rod attached to the bottom of the insulator and
dry and wet condition. The tests are performed only under one the ground electrode used was a conducting metal tape.
polarity because conductive metal tape electrodes of the same
shape are used during the test. Therefore, there is no effect of Under dry condition, the total CFO voltages at positive
polarity on the results. The fiberglass crossarm is considered as polarity are lower than the total CFO voltages at negative
additional insulation component in distribution line structure. polarity by 30% for 1 foot length and 10% for lengths 2 ft-5 ft.
Under wet condition, the total CFO voltages at positive polarity
It is evident from the Figure 2 that the CFO voltage of the are higher than the total CFO voltages at negative polarity by
fiberglass crossarm is a function of crossarm length. The CFO 5%-15% for lengths 2 ft-5 ft, but for 1 foot length the total
voltage under dry condition is higher than the CFO voltage CFO voltages are almost equal.
under wet condition. The CFO voltage of the fiberglass
crossarm under wet condition is around 10% - 20% lower than
the CFO voltage under dry condition. The electrical strength is
expressed as the CFO voltage per unit length and it decreases
as the crossarm length increases.
The CFO voltage under dry condition of a 15 kV polymer
suspension insulator is 156 kV for positive polarity and 172 kV
for negative polarity. Similarly under wet condition the values
are 155 kV and 162 kV.

Figure 3: Total CFO Voltages of 15 kV Polymer Suspension Insulator Plus

Fiberglass Crossarm versus Length of Fiberglass Crossarm

C. Added Critical Flashover Voltage by Fiberglass

Crossarm to 15 kV Polymer Suspension Insulator
The added CFO voltage by the fiberglass crossarm to the
15 kV polymer suspension insulator can be obtained by
subtracting the CFO voltage of the insulator from the total CFO
(a)
voltage of the combined insulation structure. This method is
adopted because the lightning impulse strength or the CFO
voltage of the insulator is always constant when it is used in a
specific configuration.
Figure 4 presents the added CFO voltage and added
electrical strength by the fiberglass crossarm to the 15 kV
polymer suspension insulator. By comparing Figure 2(a) and
Figure 4(a), it can be observed that the added CFO voltages by
the fiberglass crossarm are lower than the CFO voltages of the
fiberglass crossarm alone for both dry and wet conditions.
Under dry condition, the added CFO by the fiberglass crossarm
at positive polarity is around 10% lower than that of negative
polarity. Under wet condition, the added CFO by the fiberglass
crossarm at positive polarity is around 15% higher than that of
negative polarity. It can be observed from Figure 4(b) that the
(b) added electrical strength has higher values under dry conditions
than under wet conditions. Under dry condition, the added
Figure 2: (a) CFO Voltages of Fiberglass Crossarm Alone versus electrical strength for positive polarity is lower than that for
Length of Fiberglass Crossarm.
(b) Electrical Strength of Fiberglass Crossarm Alone versus negative polarity and is vice versa under wet condition.
Length of Fiberglass Crossarm

406

(a)
(b)
Figure 4: (a) Added CFO Voltages by Fiberglass Crossarm to Insulator
versus Length of Fiberglass Crossarm.
(b) Added Electrical Strength by Fiberglass Crossarm to Insulator
versus Length of Fiberglass Crossarm
V. COMPARISON OF RESULTS
The fiberglass crossarm’s CFO and added CFO results
obtained from the tests are compared with the wood crossarm’s
CFO voltage and added CFO voltage results. The wood
crossarm data is taken from the previously published results
[7]. The CFO voltage and the electrical strength of the
fiberglass crossarm alone are compared with the previous
results of the wood crossarm alone under both dry and wet
conditions [7].
Figure 5 presents comparison of the fiberglass crossarm and
wood crossarm results. For 1 foot length the CFO voltage of
the wood crossarm is higher than the CFO voltages of the
fiberglass crossarm under both dry and wet conditions. Later
for the lengths 2 ft-4 ft, the CFO voltage and the electrical
strength of the fiberglass crossarm is higher by 10% - 15%
under dry condition and 25% - 30% under wet condition.
The electrical strength of fiberglass crossarm decreased
from 199 kV/ft–176 kV/ft and 171 kV/ft–148 kV/ft under dry
and wet conditions respectively as length increased from 1 ft–
5 ft. For wood crossarm it decreased from 236 kV/ft-153 kV/ft
and 185 kV/ft–104 kV/ft under dry and wet conditions
respectively as length increased from 1 ft–4 ft [4].
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Paper # 013
(a)
(b)
Figure 5: (a) Comparison of Fiberglass Crossarm and Wood Crossarm CFO
Voltages
(b) Comparison of Fiberglass Crossarm and Wood Crossarm
Electrical Strength
The added CFO voltage by the fiberglass crossarm to the
15 kV polymer suspension insulator is compared with the
previous added CFO voltage of the wood crossarm to the
15 kV polymer suspension insulator at negative polarity under
dry condition [4].
Figure 6 presents the comparison of fiberglass crossarm and
wood crossarm added CFO voltage results.
From Figure 6, the added CFO voltage by the fiberglass
crossarm to the polymer suspension insulator is higher than the
added CFO voltage by the wood crossarm to the polymer
suspension insulator under the same test condition, impulse
polarity, and crossarm length. The added electric strength of
the fiberglass crossarm is higher than the added electrical
strength by the wood crossarm. The added electrical strength
by the dry fiberglass crossarm is in the range 150-200 kV/ft
and for the wet crossarm is 80-120 kV/ft. While, the added
electrical strength by the dry wood crossarm is in the range
140-180 kV/ft and for the wet crossarm is 40-80 kV/ft [7].
 Paper # 013
• The CFO voltages of the fiberglass crossarm alone are
higher than the added CFO voltages of the fiberglass
crossarm when is used as a secondary insulation
component for both dry and wet conditions.
• The CFO voltages and the added CFO voltages are the
function of length. As the length of the crossarm
increased the CFO and the added CFO voltages
increased.
• The lightning impulse strength of the component when
used as an additional insulation component in the
combined insulation structure is not equal to the
component’s individual lightning impulse strength.
• The fiberglass crossarm alone has higher lightning
(a) impulse strength than the wood crossarm alone. When
the fiberglass crossarm serves as the secondary
insulation component it has better insulation strength
when compared to the wood crossarm. Therefore,
fiberglass crossarms can improve the lightning impulse
strength of the insulation structure.

(b)
Figure 6: (a) Comparison of Fiberglass Crossarm and Wood Crossarm Added
CFO Voltages
(b) Comparison of Fiberglass Crossarm and Wood Crossarm Added
Electrical Strength
VI. CONCLUSION
The following conclusions can be made from the obtained
experimental results and their comparison:
• The added CFO voltages by the fiberglass crossarm are
lowest at negative polarity under wet condition and
highest at negative polarity under dry condition.
REFERENCES
[1] S. Grzybowski, G. Gao, and E.A. Feilat, “Added Critical Flashover
Voltage by Fiberglass Distribution Line Pole,” Proc. 2000 IEEE
International Symposium on Electrical Insulation (ISEI’2000), Anaheim,
U.S.A., April 2-5, 2000, pp. 520-523.
[2] E.R. Ross, S. Grzybowski, “Application of the Extended CFO Added
Method to Overhead Distribution Configurations,” IEEE Trans. on
Power Delivery, Vol. 6, 1991, pp. 1573-1578.
[3] S. Grzybowski; T. Disyadej, “Electrical Performance of Fiberglass
Crossarm in Distribution and Transmission Lines,” Transmission and
Distribution Conference and Exposition, 2008.
[4] E.R. Ross, A Study of lightning insulation Strengths provided by
multiple Series Dielectrics used in Overhead Distribution
Configurations, Master of Science thesis, Department of Electrical and
Computer Engineering, Mississippi State University, May 1989.
[5] A.R. Hileman. Insulation Coordination for Power Systems. New York,
New York: Marcel Dekker, Inc., 1991.
[6] “IEEE Standard Techniques for High-Voltage Testing,”
IEEE Std. 4-1995; The Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineering, New York, U.S.A., 1995.
[7] P.B. Jacob, S. Grzybowski, and E.R. Ross, “An Estimation of Lightning
Insulation Level of the Overhead Distribution Lines,” IEEE Trans.
Power Delivery, Vol.6, 1991, pp.384-390.

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