IEEE 400.4 Draft 7

IEEE P400.
4/D7, February 2014
1 IEEE P400.4™/D7
2 Draft Guide for Field-Testing of
3 Shielded Power Cable Systems Rated
4 5 kV and Above with Damped
5 Alternating Current Voltage (DAC)
6 Prepared by WG F05 of the
7 Insulated Conductors Committee of the

8 IEEE Power Engineering Society
9
10
11 Copyright 2003 by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.
12 345 East 47th Street
13 New York, NY 10017, USA
14 All Rights Reserved
15
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Copyright © <year> IEEE. All rights reserved.

This is an unapproved IEEE Standards Draft, subject to change.
IEEE P400.4/D7, February 2014
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1 This page is left blank intentionally.

1 Introduction
2 This introduction is not part of IEEE P400.4/D1, Draft Guide for Field-Testing of Shielded Power Cable Systems
3 Rated 5 kV and Above with Damped Alternating Current Voltage (DAC)
4 This new guide provides an overview of an available method for performing electrical tests in the field on
5 shielded power cable systems using damped alternating current (DAC) voltages. It is intended to help the
6 reader select a test that is appropriate for a specific situation of interest. It provides a brief description of the
7 use of DAC voltage sources to perform field tests with a short discussion of specific tests. The material pre-
8 sented is descriptive and tutorial. Based on the actual state of the art of using this testing method it does
9 address the evaluation of test results or the specification of test voltage levels and time of application.
10
11 If applicable additional details are provided in the omnibus standard, IEEE Std 400 Guide for Field Testing
12 and
13 Evaluation of the Insulation of Shielded Power Cable Systems Rated 5 kV and Above or in "point"
14 documents, such as IEEE 400. 1TM, Guide for Field Testing of Laminated Dielectric, Shielded Power
15 Cable Systems Rated 5 kV and Above with High Direct Current Voltage; IEEE 400.2TM, Guide for
16 Field Testing of Shielded Power Cable Systems Using Very Low Frequency (VLF); and IEEE 400.3TM,
17 Guide for Partial Discharge Testing of Shielded Power Cable Systems in a Field Environment.
18 Notice to users
19 Laws and regulations

20 Users of these documents should consult all applicable laws and regulations. Compliance with the
21 provisions of this standard does not imply compliance to any applicable regulatory requirements.
22 Implementers of the standard are responsible for observing or referring to the applicable regulatory
23 requirements. IEEE does not, by the publication of its standards, intend to urge action that is not in
24 compliance with applicable laws, and these documents may not be construed as doing so.
25 Copyrights
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28 regulation, standardization, and the promotion of engineering practices and methods. By making this
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30 any rights in copyright to this document.
31 Updating of IEEE documents

32 Users of IEEE standards should be aware that these documents may be superseded at any time by the
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iv
1 For more information about the IEEE Standards Association or the IEEE standards development process,
2 visit the IEEE-SA web site at http://standards.ieee.org.
3 Errata
4 Errata, if any, for this and all other standards can be accessed at the following URL:
5 http://standards.ieee.org/reading/ieee/updates/errata/index.html. Users are encouraged to check this URL
6 for errata periodically.
7 Interpretations
8 Current interpretations can be accessed at the following URL: http://standards.ieee.org/reading/ieee/interp/
9 index.html.
10 Patents
11 Attention is called to the possibility that implementation of this guide may require use of subject matter
12 covered by patent rights. By publication of this guide, no position is taken with respect to the existence or
13 validity of any patent rights in connection therewith. The IEEE is not responsible for identifying Essential
14 Patent Claims for which a license may be required, for conducting inquiries into the legal validity or scope
15 of Patents Claims or determining whether any licensing terms or conditions provided in connection with
16 submission of a Letter of Assurance, if any, or in any licensing agreements are reasonable or non-
17 discriminatory. Users of this guide are expressly advised that determination of the validity of any patent
18 rights, and the risk of infringement of such rights, is entirely their own responsibility. Further information
19 may be obtained from the IEEE Standards Association.
20 Participants
21 This guide was prepared by Working Group WG F05 of the IEEE Insulated Conductors Committee. At the
22 time this draft guide was completed, the WG F05 had the following membership:
23 Edward Gulski, Chair
24 Ralph Patterson, Vice Chair
25
26 Eberhard Lemke Frank Petzold Frank de Vries
27 Jacques Côté John Densley Alain Bolliger
28 Ben Quak Wim Boone Hennig Oetjen
29 Wolfgang Hauschild Craig Goodwin Henk Geene
30 Rafael Minassian Nigel Hampton Ben Lanz
31 Chris Grodzinski Mark Fenger Manfred J. Bawart
32 Jean-François Drapeau
33
34
35 The following members of the [individual/entity] balloting committee voted on this guide. Balloters may
36 have voted for approval, disapproval, or abstention.
v
1
2 (to be supplied by IEEE)
3 Acknowledgments
vi
1 CONTENTS
2 CLAUSE PAGE
3
1. Overview
1.1 Scope
1.2 Purpose
2. Normative References
3. Definitions and acronyms

3.1 Definitions
3.2 Acronyms
4. Safety Awareness
5. Damped AC Testing
5.1 General
5.2 Types of Damped AC Voltage Testing
6. Damped AC Test Circuit and Parameters

6.1 DAC Test Voltage Circuit
6.2 DAC Parameters
7 DAC Voltage Withstand Testing

7.1 General
7.2 DAC Test Parameters and Procedures
7.3 DAC Evaluation Criteria
8. Partial Discharges (PD) Measurement Using DAC

8.1 General
8.2 PD Parameters
8.3 PD Evaluation Criteria
9. Dissipation Factor (tan δ) Estimation Using DAC

9.1 General
9.2 DF Parameters
9.3 DF Evaluation Criteria
Annex A: Bibliography
Annex B: DAC Test Voltage Levels and Test Procedures
Annex C: Dissipation Factor Estimation for DAC Voltages
Annex D: DAC Parameters
Annex E: Example PD Evaluation for After-laying, Maintenance and
Diagnostic Testing
Annex F: Results of International Survey of the Use of Damped AC
Voltages for Testing MV and (E)HV Power Cables
vii
1 Draft Guide for Field-Testing of

2 Shielded Power Cable Systems Rated
3 5 kV and Above with Damped
4 Alternating Current Voltage (DAC)
5 1. Overview
6 This guide provides a description of the methods and practices to be used in the application of damped
7 alternating current (DAC) voltages for field testing of shielded power cable systems.
8 DAC voltage testing is one of the alternative methods of AC voltage testing and is applicable for a broad
9 range of medium voltage (MV), high voltage (HV) and extra high voltage (EHV) cable types. As the DAC
10 test procedure has well been used for maintenance and acceptance (commissioning) tests it provides a
11 method of evaluation of the insulation condition and helps to fill the need for more complete information
12 on the condition of cable systems.
13 This guide addresses DAC voltage testing in the power frequency range from 20 Hz to 500 Hz [B1] to
14 [B6], [B14].
15
16 The information contained in this guide is intended to provide the methodology, the voltage levels, and test
17 procedures as well as other factors to be considered when utilizing DAC voltages, whether for withstand or
18 diagnostic tests. For general information regarding other field testing methods, reference is made to the
19 omnibus standard, IEEE Std 4002.
20
21 1.1 Scope
22 This Guide presents the practices and procedures for testing and diagnosis of shielded power cable systems
23 rated 5 kV and above using damped alternating current (DAC) voltages. It applies to all types of power
24 cable systems that are intended for the transmission or distribution of electric power. The tabulated test
25 levels assume that the cable systems have an effectively grounded neutral system or a grounded metallic
26 shield.
27
1
1 1.2 Purpose
2 The purpose of this guide is to provide uniform practices and procedures for performing damped alternating
3 current (DAC) voltages off-line tests on installed shielded power cable systems in the field and to provide
4 guidelines for evaluation of the test results.
5 2. Normative references
6 The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document. For dated
7 references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced
8 document (including any amendments or corrigenda) applies.
9 Accredited Standards Committee IEEE C2-2002, National Electrical Safety Code® (NESC®). 1
10 ANSI/ICEA S-108-720-2004 Extruded Insulation Power Cables Rated Above 46 Through 345 kV2
11 ASTM D 150-2004, Standard Test Methods for AC Loss Characteristics and Permittivity (Dielectric
12 Constant) of Solid Dielectric Insulation.3
13 IEC 60270 Partial discharges measurements;
14 IEC 60885-3: Test methods for partial discharges measurements on lengths of extruded power cable
15 IEEE 400.1TM, Guide for Field Testing of Laminated Dielectric, Shielded Power Cable Systems Rated 5
16 kV and Above with High Voltage Direct Current
17 IEC 61230 IEC 61230 Live working - Portable equipment for earthing or earthing and short-circuiting Ed.
18 2.0 b:2008
19
20 IEC 60060-1, High Voltage Test Techniques - Part 1: General Definitions and Test Requirements 4
21 IEC 60060-2, High Voltage Test Techniques – Part 2: Measuring Systems.
22 IEC 60060-3, High Voltage Test Techniques – Part 3: Definitions and requirements for on-site tests.
23 IEC 60502 Power cables with extruded insulation and their accessories for rated voltages from 1 kV (Um =
24 1,2 kV) up to 30 kV (Um = 36 kV)
25 IEC 60840 Power cables with extruded insulation and their accessories for rated voltages above 30 kV (Um
26 = 36 kV) up to 150 kV (Um = 170kV) Test methods and requirements.
27 IEC 62067, Standard Power cables with extruded insulation and their accessories for rated voltages above
28 150 kV (Um = 170 kV) up to 500kV (Um = 550 kV) - Test methods and requirements.
29 IEC 61230, 2008, Live working - Portable equipment for earthing or earthing and short-circuiting.
1
National Electrical Safety Code and NESC are both registered trademarks owned by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers, Inc.
2
ANSI/ICEA publications are available from HIS, 15 Inverness Way East, Englewood, CO 80112, USA
3
ASTM publications are available from the American Society for Testing and Materials, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken,
PA 19428-2959, USA (http://www.astm.org/).
4
IEC publications are available from the Sales Department of the International Electrotechnical Commission, Case Postale 131, 3, rue
de Varembé, CH-1211, Genève 20, Switzerland/Suisse (http://www.iec.ch/). IEC publications are also available in the United States
from the Sales Department, American National Standards Institute, 11 West 42nd Street, 13th Floor, New York, NY 10036, USA.
2
1 IEEE Std 4TM, IEEE Standard Techniques for High Voltage Testing. 5,6
2 IEEE Std 48TM, 2006, Standard Test Procedures and Requirements for Alternating-Current Cable
3 Terminations 2.5 kV Through 765 kV.
4 IEEE Std 404TM, 2006, IEEE Standard for Extruded and Laminated Dielectric Shielded Cable Joints Rated
5 2 500V to 500 000V.
6 IEEE Std 386 TM, 2006 Standard for Separable Insulated Connector Systems for Power Distribution
7 Systems Above 600 V.
8 IEEE Std 510TM, IEEE Recommended Practices for Safety in High Voltage and High Power Testing. 7
9 NEMA WC74-2006/ANSI/ICEA S-93-639 Shielded Power Cables 5,000 - 46,000 V8
10 NFPA-70E, Standard for Electrical Safety Requirements for Employee Workplaces.9
11
12 3. Definitions and Acronyms
13 3.1 Definitions
14 For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply. The IEEE Standards
15 Dictionary: Glossary of Terms and Definitions should be referenced for terms not defined in this clause.
16 cable system: One or more lengths of shielded power cable joined together, 5kV and above, including
17 cable accessories (joints and terminations).
18 breakdown: Disruptive discharge through or along the insulation causing a breakdown of the applied
19 voltage.
20 electrical tree: Tree-like growths, consisting of non-solid or carbonized micro-channels, that can occur at
21 stress enhancements such as protrusions, contaminants, voids or water tree/dry insulation interfaces
22 subjected to electrical stress for extended time periods. At the site of an electrical tree the insulation is
23 damaged irreversibly. If the voltage stress on the electrical tree is above the inception voltage, partial
24 discharge will be present, the tree will grow, and a failure can occur in only a matter of time.
25 hybrid cable system: A cable system consisting of cables with very different dielectric or construction
26 characteristics; for example extruded dielectric insulation cable and laminated insulation cable or cables
27 with filled and unfilled insulations.
5
The IEEE standards or products referred to in Clause 2 are trademarks owned by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers,
Inc.
6
IEEE publications are available from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, 445 Hoes Lane, P.O. Box 1331,
Piscataway, NJ 08855-1331, USA (http://standards.ieee.org/).
7
IEEE Std 510-1983 has been withdrawn; however, copies can be obtained from Global Engineering, 15 Inverness Way East,
Englewood, CO 80112-5704, USA, tel. (303) 792-2181 (http://global.ihs.com/)
8
NEMA/ANSI/ICEA publications are available from HIS, 15 Inverness Way East, Englewood, CO 80112, USA
9
NFPA publications are available from Publication Sales, National Fire Protection Association, 1 Batterymarch Park, P.O. Box 9101,
Quincy, MA 02269-9101, USA (http://nfpa.org/codes/index.html).
3
1 (insulation) weak spot: A part of the cable insulation system where, due to one or more factors such as
2 mechanical, chemical, or thermal stresses, the insulation medium breaks down before the rest of the system
3 under certain applied voltage. An insulation weak spot that leads to a breakdown at operating voltage is
4 sometimes called a gross defect.
5 laminated dielectrics: Insulation formed in layers typically from fluid-impregnated tapes of either
6 cellulose paper or polypropylene or a combination of the two. Examples include PILC (paper insulated lead
7 covered) cable designs, MIND (Mass Impregnated Non Draining) cable designs, high pressure pipe type
8 cable designs, self contained cable systems.
9 partial discharge (PD): localized electrical discharge that only partially bridges the insulation between
10 conductors.
11 partial discharge (PD) pulse: A high frequency current or voltage pulse that results from a partial
12 discharge. In a shielded power cable, the pulse propagates away from the PD source in both directions
13 along the cable.
14 shielded cable: A cable in which an insulated conductor is enclosed in a conducting envelope.
15 tests: For the purpose of this guide, several test categories are considered:
16
17 off-line testing: The cable system under test is disconnected from the service power source and energized
18 from a separate field test power supply.
19 a) From the application point of view, there are three categories of tests:
20 installation test: A field test conducted after cable installation but before the application of joints or
21 terminations.
22 acceptance test: A field test made after cable system installation, including terminations and joints,
23 but before the cable system is put into normal service.
24 maintenance test: A field test made during the operating life of a cable system.
25 b) From the technical point of view, there are four broad sets of tests:
26 diagnostic test: A field test made during the operating life of a cable system to assess the condition of
27 the cable system and, in some cases, locate degraded regions that can result in a failure.
28 non-monitored or simple withstand test: a diagnostic test in which a voltage of a predetermined

29 magnitude is applied for a predetermined time. If the test object survives the test it is deemed to have
30 passed the test.
31 monitored withstand test: a diagnostic test in which a voltage of a predetermined magnitude is

32 applied for a certain time period. During the test, other properties of the test object are monitored to
33 help determine its condition and also evaluate if the test duration needs to be extended or may be
34 reduced.
35 DAC excitation: complete process of stressing the power cable under test with a selected
36 continuously increasing up to selected maximum test voltage level followed by a damped sinusoidal
37 oscillation with circuit resonance frequency and a given damping factor..
38
39 DAC voltage withstand test: series of DAC voltage excitations as applied at selected voltage level
40 consecutively to the power cable under test.
4
1
2 DAC voltage PD test: a field test in which the focus of the test is to obtain information about the
3 presence and behavior of PD in the cable section under the test.
4
5 Damped alternating voltage DAC: starting from a (negative or positive) maximum voltage level and
6 having damped sinusoidal oscillation around the zero level. It is characterized by the peak value VDAC,
7 the circuit resonance frequency fr and the damping factor Df.
8
9 Circuit resonance frequency fr in [Hz]: equals to reciprocal of the time between two successive peaks
10 of same polarity and it is determined by the CTO and LC and in most cases the = fr = 1/ 2π√( LC • CTO).
11
12 Damping factor Df in [%]: equals to voltage difference between the first and second peak of same
13 polarity, divided by the voltage value of the first peak. The Df factor generally is ranging up to 40 %.
14
15 Voltage level VDAC in [kVpeak]: this is the actual test voltage level of the DAC voltage which equals to
16 the actual selected test voltage level as it has to be generated by a DAC system.
17
18 Excitation time tc in [s]: equals to the necessary time at given e.g. maximum current ICmax to stress the
19 test object capacitance CTO up to selected test voltage level VDAC .
20
21 3.2 Acronyms
22 DAC damped AC voltage (for the purpose of this guide 20 Hz to 500 Hz)
23 Df DAC damping factor
24 fr DAC frequency
25 DF dissipation factor also referred to as tan delta (tan δ)
26 NDAC number of DAC excitations
27 PD partial discharge
28 PDEV partial discharge extinction voltage, Ve
29 PDIV partial discharge inception voltage, Vi
30 TDR time domain reflectometry
31 U power cable rms rated voltage, phase-to-phase
32 U0 nominal rms operating voltage, phase-to-ground
33 VT test voltage, phase-to-ground
34
35
5
2 4. Safety Awareness
3 WARNING
4 For all tests involving hazardous voltage levels, special attention must be paid to ensure the safety of
5 personnel. Personnel safety is of utmost importance during all testing procedures. All cable and equipment
6 tests shall be performed on de-energized and isolated systems except where otherwise specifically required
7 and properly authorized. Appropriate safety practices must be followed. Where applicable, the safety
8 practices shall include, but not be limited to, the following requirements:
9 1) Applicable user safety operating procedures.
10 2) IEEE 510 Recommended Practices for Safety in High Voltage and High Power Testing
11 3) ANSI/IEEE C2 National Electrical Safety Code (NESC)
12 4) NFPA 70E - Standard for Electrical Safety Requirements for Employee Workplaces
13 5) Applicable national, state and local safety operating procedures.
14 6) Protection of utility and customer property.
15 High-voltage field testing of cable systems involves all of the factors normally associated with working on
16 energized circuits, as well as several unique situations that must be addressed.
17 Cable circuits will normally have one or more ends remote from the location of the test equipment and the
18 test operator. These ends must be cleared and guarded to protect the safety of personnel. Reliable voice
19 communication should be established between all such locations and the test operator.
20 The use of an energized circuit indicator or other suitable device may be used to indicate that the circuit is
21 completely de-energized before application of safety grounds.
22 Precautions should be taken to allow adequate voltage clearance when testing conductors in close
23 proximity to other energized conductors. Failure to maintain safe clearances may lead to flashover between
24 the test conductor and other live conductors, particularly when test voltages above the rated operating
25 voltage are used. When spacing is marginal, special precautions may be required to prevent flashover.
26 CAUTION
27 Particular attention must be directed to the special techniques required for discharging cables after testing
28 to eliminate personnel hazards. Cables have high capacitance and dielectric absorption characteristics.
29 Cables subjected to high-voltage testing that are not grounded for sufficiently long periods of time after
30 such tests can experience dangerous charge buildups as a consequence of the very long time constant
31 associated with dielectric absorption currents. For this reason, the grounding procedures recommended in
32 the appropriate work rules should be followed.
33 Personnel safety is of utmost importance during all testing procedures. All cable and equipment tests shall
34 be performed on de-energized and isolated systems except where otherwise specifically recommended and
35 properly authorized. The safety practices shall include, but not be limited to, the above mentioned
36 requirements.
37 Prior to testing, determination of particular safe clearances must consider both the test voltage and voltage
38 of nearby energized equipment:
39
6
1 1) When a switch or disconnect type device is used to isolate the cable circuit from the rest of the system,
2 the ability of the device to sustain the DAC test voltage and maintain isolation while the other end is
3 under normal operating voltage shall be checked with the manufacturer.
4 2) Care should be taken to carefully monitor the discharging (earthing) of the cable, particularly on long
5 cables that may take tens of seconds to fully discharge.
6 3) When isolation is an air gap, such as when a cable terminator connection is removed, the clearance
7 distance must be sufficient to maintain isolation with the cable system at the DAC test voltage and the
8 surrounding equipment at normal line voltage.
9 4) Proper Blocking/Lock-out/Tag-out procedures must be followed to ensure the isolation device cannot
10 be operated nor the isolation distance violated without proper authorization.
11 5) Appropriate personnel protective equipment (PPE) should be worn.
12
13
De-energized cables not being
tested should be grounded
De-energized
energized cables not
DAC test
system Test cable HV test lead HV lead
Test object
HV return lead
Grounded return lead Test object
Safety ground lead

System ground,
ground ,thethe
Local ground recommended single point
ground at the test site
Figure 1 — Recommended DAC test connection diagram.
14 While testing, one or more cable ends will be remote from the manned testing site, therefore, before testing
15 begins:
16
17 1) Cable ends under test must be cleared and cordoned off
18 2) Cables that are de-energized should be grounded when not being tested.
19 3) Remote cable ends must be marked to indicate a high voltage test is in progress.
20
21 At the conclusion of high voltage testing, attention should be given to:
22
23 1) Discharging cables and cable systems including test equipment.
24 2) Grounding requirements for cables and test equipment to eliminate the after effects of recharging the
25 cables due to dielectric absorption and capacitance characteristics.
26
27
28 Cable systems can be considered de-energized and grounded when conductor and metallic shield are
29 connected to system ground at the test site and, if possible, at the far end of the cable.
30
31 When testing, a single system ground at the test site is recommended, see figure 1. The shield or
32 concentric conductor of the cable to be tested is connected to system ground. If this connection is missing,
33 deteriorated, or has been removed, it must be replaced at this time. A safety ground cable must connect
34 all test instrument casings with system ground. All exposed conductive parts of the test system must be
35 bonded to the common ground point. As a DAC test instrument is a high voltage device, an external safety
36 ground cable should be used to safely ground the cable to be tested. This cable should be able to
7
1 accommodate the fault current of the system. Once the test lead from the DAC test equipment is connected
2 to the cable to be tested this safety ground can be removed so that testing can commence.
3
4 Should a local ground be advisable or recommended for the test equipment, case ground must remain
5 connected to system ground in order to maintain an acceptable single ground potential.
6
7 Care should be taken to ensure that all ground connections cannot be disconnected accidentally.
8 Grounding connections, which can be securely tightened, are recommended. Portable ground clamps and
9 grounding assemblies built and tested per IEC 61230 are recommended.
8
1 5. Damped AC Testing
2 5.1 General
3 Sinusoidal damped AC (DAC) voltage testing, also known as oscillating wave testing, has been introduced
4 at the end of the 80’s as an alternative to DC test voltages [B1] to [B13][B29] to [B42], [B86]. As a
5 consequence of experiences in on-site AC testing on one hand and the technological progress in power
6 electronics and advanced signal processing on the other hand, DAC testing has been used since the end of
7 90´s. Some countries are using DAC for on-site testing and PD measurements and dissipation factor
8 estimation for all types of power cable systems [B6][B16][B26][B82], Annex F. DAC testing uses damped
9 alternating current at frequencies between 20 Hz and 500 Hz [B17] to [B23]. In DAC systems the actual
10 voltage frequency depends on the cable capacitance and the inductor used. For cable lengths which will
11 lead to oscillating frequencies above 500 Hz an additional load capacitor can be used. The DAC test
12 equipment generates damped sinusoidal voltage of quite low damping.
13 DAC voltages are generated by excitation the test object to a predetermined voltage level and then
14 discharging the test object’s capacitance through a suitable inductance. During the excitation stage, the test
15 object capacitance is subjected to a continuously increasing voltage at a rate dependent on the test object
16 and, during the discharging stage, an under-damped AC voltage at a frequency dependent on the test object
17 and the inductance, see figure 2.
18 Most applications so far are based on the combination of voltage withstand and advanced diagnostic
19 measurements (e.g., partial discharges and dielectric response). For voltage withstand test, a predetermined
20 number of DAC excitation is applied [B1][B2][B16][B18][B28], see figure 3.
21 According to [B1] to [B18] the major advantages and disadvantages of DAC testing can be summarized as
22 follows:
U [kVpeak]
0 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150
t [s] t [ms]
Energizing phase LC resonance phase

Time scale in [s] Time scale in [ms]
Switching phase
μs]
Time scale in [μ
Figure 2 — Schematic overview of one DAC excitation. The maximum DAC voltage
level is determined by the voltage peak values VT respectively the values VT/√2 of the
st
1 DAC cycle.
23
9
1 Advantages:
2 1. During DAC voltage withstand test by applying defined number of DAC excitations the ability to
3 produce in large serious insulation defects a breakdown or to initiate partial discharge occurrence
4 [B9], [B12].
5
6 2. The ability to detect defects in the insulation that will be detrimental to the cable system under
7 service conditions, without creating new defects or causing any significant aging [B17]
8 [B59][B67][B70][.
9
10 3. Significant PD conformity between the results of DAC tests and continuous power frequency
11 (50/60 Hz) factory tests [B7][B9][B10][B15][B25].
12
13 4. Low system complexity, weight and easy handling of the testing method.
14
15 5. The general availability and the low necessary power supply demand of the DAC test equipment.
16
17
18 Disadvantages:
19 1. Due to shorter duration of the excitation and decaying characteristic of the voltage, in case of PD
20 activity (typical for inhomogeneous insulation defects) test breakdown results obtained by DAC
21 testing can be different from those obtained by continuous AC withstand voltage testing [B83].
22 2. The use of fixed inductors at different cable capacitances results in variation of DAC frequency.
23 3. To keep the DAC frequency in the range of 20Hz-500Hz in the case of very short cable lengths an
24 additional capacitive load is necessary.
25 4. Due to the fact that the recommended test voltages and durations for tests (given in this document
26 for DAC testing, see Annex B are based on field-experiences as obtained by different users of the
27 DAC technology further data collection and evaluation are necessary and should be part of the
28 next revision process of this document.
29 5. The decay of the DAC voltage depends on the actual dielectric loss behavior of the particular
30 cable section.
31
32
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150
Figure 3 — Schematic overview of withstand test by damped sinusoidal AC voltage

excitations. The duration of the test is determined by a number of DAC excitations
which have been applied to the power cable under the test at a selected DAC test
voltage. The maximum DAC withstand voltage level is determined by the voltage peak
st
values VT respectively the values VT/√2 of the 1 DAC cycle.
33
10
New installed cables Service aged cables
Acceptance test Maintenance test

(Annex B, Table B1) (Annex B, Table B2)
Diagnostic test
(Chapter 8, 9)
Diagnostic parameters:
DAC voltage withstand test
partial discharges (PD)
(Chapter 7)
dissipation factor (tanδ)
Monitored by partial
Evaluation
discharges (PD)
criteria
Pass/Fail
Figure 4 — General overview of DAC field test possibilities for different testing goals
of cable systems.
1 5.2 Types of DAC Testing
2 In figure 4 an overview of DAC field test possibilities of different cable systems is shown. It follows that
3 depending on the objectives for testing a number of options can be considered.
4
5 1. DAC acceptance test; According to the test voltage levels as given in Table B1 new installed cable
6 systems can be tested with 50 DAC excitations in monitored and/or non-monitored way. The best
7 practice of the recent years indicates that most DAC acceptance tests are monitored by partial
8 discharge detection. Due to the fact that this application is under development and the effectiveness
9 verification of the DAC voltage withstand test is based on [B7][B9][B44][B50][B59] and the best
10 practice of a few years of use, further data collection and evaluation are necessary and should be part
11 of the next revision process of this document.
12
13 2. DAC maintenance test; According to the test voltage levels as given in Table B2 cable systems in
14 service after e.g. repair, refurbishment, diversion can be tested with 50 DAC excitations in monitored
15 and non-monitored way. The best practice of the recent years indicates that most DAC acceptance tests
16 are monitored by partial discharge detection.
17
18 3. DAC diagnostic testing; According to the test voltage levels as given in Table B1 and B2 as well as
19 own test procedures direction cable systems in service can be tested for condition assessment purposes
20 e.g. by using partial discharges and/or dissipation factor measurements.
21
11
HV Divider
Test Object:
HV source HV Inductor Power Cable PD Detector
dU/dt
kV PD
(a)
HV Switch
HV Divider
Test Object:
HV source HV Inductor Power Cable PD Detector
PD
(b)
HV Switch
Figure 5 — Schematic overview of a basic DAC test circuit: (a) Circuit excitation
phase, (b) LC resonance phase. In case of monitored test such parameters as partial
discharges and dissipation factor can be measured.
2 6. Damped AC Test Circuit and Parameters

3 To generate DAC voltages, different types of test circuits can be applied [B2][B12][B14][B16][B22] to
4 [B27]. In this document the basic circuit will be used to explain the principles of DAC voltage generation.
5 The DAC test circuit basically consists of a HV voltage source generating an increasing uni-polar voltage,
6 see figure 2, a HV inductor in the range of several [H], a capacitive test object and a suitable HV switch,
7 see figure 5. The capacitive test object can consist of one or more capacitive objects, respectively
8 capacitors. When the uni-polar excitation voltage has reached the maximum value the HV switch is closed,
9 generating on the capacitive test object a damped alternating voltage. The damping factor depends on the
10 characteristics of the test circuit and the test object. The DAC natural frequency is determined by the values
11 of the HV inductor and the capacitance of the test object. In order to reduce the influence of the low
12 capacitance of the test object e.g. below 50nF on the circuit frequency an additional HV storage capacitor
13 could be connected in parallel to the test object.
14 6.1 DAC Test Voltage Circuit
15 Basic principles of DAC test circuit are shown in figure 5 and in section 6.2 parameters relevant for a DAC
16 test circuit are defined. The complete process of a DAC excitation generation consists of three phases, see
17 also figure 2:
18
12
1
2
3 Excitation phase:
4 During this phase the test object is stressed with a slowly increasing uni-polar voltage. The excitation time
5 depends on the maximum available load current of the voltage supply, the test voltage and the capacitance
6 of the test object. As a result and according to [B77] no DC stresses are applied to the test object and due to
7 continuous voltage increase and immediate switching after the maximum voltage is reached, no steady-
8 state condition will occur in the cable insulation. Referring to [B85][B86] if the amount of space charge
9 injected is a function of frequency above 0.01 Hz for an applied field below 20 kV/mm then the space
10 charges are not likely to be developed in the insulation [B84].
11 As with the test voltage levels mentioned in Tables B1 and B2 (see Annex B) the E-fields stay below
12 20kV/mm, not only one DAC excitation but also several e.g. as applied during 1 hour DAC withstand test,
13 are producing in the insulation AC field stresses only.
14 According to [B77] when applying pure HVDC to insulation the initial voltage distribution will be
15 capacitive and slowly relaxes to a resistive distribution with the time constant of the XLPE insulation
16 (permittivity εrε0 times volume resistivity ρ). 2,3 x 8.85 x 10−12 F/m x 1014 Ω⋅m = 2035 sec. In a case of
17 pure HVDC stress (constant voltage level) the time constant needed for this transition will be over 33
18 minutes.
19 To avoid side effects of uni-polar excitation time and possible space charge development it is
20 recommended to stay with an excitation time below e.g. 100 seconds. If this value cannot be met, the
21 maximum available load current has to be increased to lower the excitation time below 100 seconds.
22
23
24 Switching phase:
25 After the uni-polar voltage with a given voltage ramp dU/dt has reached the selected maximum DAC test
26 voltage within very short switching duration time e.g. below 1µs (to avoid switching over-voltages and
27 disturbances of PD measurements) the HV switch switches the cable capacitance and the system HV
28 inductance to a LC resonant circuit. The maximum resulting DAC current in the circuits is a function of the
29 actual capacitive load, system inductance and the maximum test voltage.
30
31 LC damped resonance phase:
32 Conform to LC resonant circuits, the resonance frequency depends on the values of the capacitive load and
33 the particular HV inductance, i.e. the frequency of the DAC voltage equals to the resonant frequency of the
34 circuit.
35 The DAC attenuation depends on the quality factor of the total resonance circuit. Due to bipolar AC
36 discharging process no remaining charges will be introduced to the cable insulation.
37 Due to relatively low cable inductance and no occurrence of transient over-voltages, the DAC stress
38 applied to the cable capacitance represent AC stress conditions. As a result the PD inception, PD
39 amplitudes and the PD behavior are comparable to factory testing conditions and the DAC stress is similar
40 for inhomogeneous insulation defects [B15][B17][B25][B54].
41 In the case of homogeneous defects (no PD presence) the application of DAC stresses will have the similar
42 effect as at factory testing conditions on the Pass / Fail outcome of the test [B54].
43 The dissipation factor DF can be estimated with the decay characteristics of the damped AC voltage wave,
44 as shown in [B75][B76] and described in Annex B.
45
46 6.2 DAC Parameters
47 Considering a DAC test of a power cable circuit, a number of parameters have to be considered which are
48 related to the test circuit; the test procedure, the data acquisition and the data analysis. The knowledge
49 about these parameters is relevant for the definition of the test conditions and to provide proper evaluation
50 of the test data as obtained for a particular test object.
51
13
1 1. Test circuit parameters: Depending on the type of DAC test circuit, the total test circuit can be
2 described by a number of parameters. Annex C describes basically the parameters which are of importance
3 to determine a specific configuration of the test circuit.
4
5 2. Voltage parameters: Based on the selected test circuit, type and voltage rating of the test object as well
6 as the test procedures to be applied the following Annex C describes basic parameters which can be used to
7 characterize the DAC voltage.
8
9 3. Test parameters: Performing a DAC test in accordance to specific recommendation test parameters can
10 be used to describe the test process, see Annex C.
11
DAC maximum test voltage

step phase hold phase step phase hold phase
(a) (b) PD
PD background noise
Start test time NDAC End test time Start test time NDAC End test time
Step phase hold phase step phase hold phase
(c) PD (d)
PD
Breakdown
Breakdown
Start test time NDAC End test time Start test time NDAC End test time
Figure 6 — Schematic overview of four different situations of DAC voltage withstand test:
(a), (b) during selected number of NDAC excitations (dotted lines) no breakdown has occurred
and alternatively above the PD background noise PD has been observed or not; (c), (d)
before the DAC withstand test selected number of NDAC excitations has been applied, during
voltage increase step phase respectively during voltage hold phase breakdown has
occurred, and above the PD background noise PD has been observed.
12 4. Evaluation parameters: Performing DAC testing provides a number of parameters which can be used
13 to evaluate the test. Depending on the type of test e.g. withstand test, monitored test or diagnostic test these
14 parameters can provide information about the test outcome, see Annex D.
15
16 7. DAC Voltage Withstand Testing
17 7.1 General
18 A withstand test using DAC voltage is based on the application of a designated number of DAC excitations
19 at a selected voltage level which is generally higher than the rated voltage. DAC testing can be applied to
20 all cable and accessory types and it is based on the insulation breakdown/no breakdown outcome. In case of
21 non-monitored withstand test no indication is given of the test's effects on the insulation system.
14
1 The tests can be further subdivided into two classes:
2 1. Non-monitored DAC hold test – a number of DAC excitations is applied and the ability to hold the
3 maximum DAC voltage (i.e. no breakdown occurs) is recorded, see the dotted lines in figures 6a and
4 6b. The intent of a simple DAC withstand test is to cause weak points in the cable insulation to fail
5 during voltage application (with minimal fault current) at a time when the impact of the failure is low
6 (no system or customers affected) and repairs can be made more cost effectively. If a failure occurs
7 during the test, see the dotted lines in figures 6c and 6d then the failure should be located through a
Test Voltage
DAC voltage hold level Test duration NDAC e.g. 50

e.g. 1.7 U0
DAC voltage hold phase
∆V e.g. 0.5U0
e
as
U0
ph
ep
st
ge
lta
vo
C
DA
NDAC e.g. 5
Number of excitations
Figure 7 — Schematic overview of DAC voltage application procedure, PD detection

can be performed during step- and hold phase (monitored withstand test)
8 fault location process, repaired and the circuit retested. The results of these tests are described as either
9 Pass or Fail.
10 2. Monitored DAC hold test – a number of DAC excitations is applied and one or more additional
11 attributes are measured and used to determine whether the cable passes or fails the DAC test, see in
12 figures 6 dotted lines for DAC voltage and dashed lines for PD measurement. These additional
13 attributes are advanced diagnostic properties such as partial discharge detection. Temporal stability of
14 the measured property can also be used to monitor the effect of the test on the cable system during
15 voltage application.
16 Although some users perform simple non-monitored withstand testing, see the survey in Annex F the
17 recommendation is to perform monitored (by PD) testing, see figure 5.
18 Due to additional information as provided by PD detection, monitoring insulation properties during a DAC
19 withstand test and the effect of the test voltage during its application can improve the evaluation of the
20 insulation condition.
21 For all types of tests, voltage levels and the number of DAC excitations should be consistent with the
22 purpose of the test. From the point of view of a shielded power cable system quality and reliability, two
23 aspects are important for field tests and results evaluation:
15
1 1. The DAC test parameters shall be chosen in such a way so as to prevent or minimize the shortening of
2 service lifetime due to the field test. In the case of a withstand tests the impact on a defective insulation
3 needs to be high enough to cause a breakdown or to exceed a critical level of a monitored property.
4 2. Voltage level and the number of DAC excitations duration are important and inseparable elements of
5 the on-test and after-test performance of the cable circuit. The recommended test voltages and
6 durations for tests (given in this document for DAC testing) are based on field-experiences as obtained
7 by different users of the DAC technology. Arbitrarily increasing voltage or extending the test duration
8 from the recommended values can increase the probability of an early failure in service.
10 7.2 DAC Test Parameters and Procedures
11 Considering the DAC voltage testing, two test parameters are considered:
12 1. The maximum DAC test voltage level VT [kVpeak], see Annex B
13 2. The number of DAC excitations to be applied at selected DAC voltage levels during the test
14 3. The DAC frequency [Hz]
15 4. The DAC damping [%]
16
17 Depending on the test objective a DAC test may consist of two phases, figure 8, see also figures 2-4:
18 DAC voltage step phase: here in selected steps ∆V e.g. 0.2U0 with a selected number of DAC excitations
19 NDAC per voltage level, e.g. 5 [B1][B2][B4][B38] the maximum test voltage will be increased up to selected
20 maximum test voltage, see Annex B.
21 DAC voltage hold phase: here at selected test voltage level VT [kVpeak] see Annex B a number of DAC
22 excitations NDAC e.g. 50 will be applied to the test object [B1][B2][B4][B38].
23
24 DAC frequency: is determined by a given HV inductor LC of the tests system and the capacitance of the
25 test object CTO. In most cases the DAC frequency can be calculated as fr = 1/ 2π√( LC • CTO) [B3].
26
27 DAC damping factor: is determined by the voltage difference between the first and second peak of same
28 polarity, divided by the voltage value of the first peak. The Df factor generally is ranging up to 40 % [B3].
29
30 7.3 DAC Evaluation Criteria
31 Applying DAC testing for acceptance and or maintenance testing there are two possible outcomes:
32
33 1) the complete installation and/or repair are successfully done and the cable section is approved and
34 can be used for network operation,
35 2) the complete installation and/or repair are not successfully done and the cable section has to be
36 repaired or needs further investigations.
37
38 For the case of non-monitored DAC voltage withstand test the evaluation is based on two outcomes:
39 - Pass in the case of no breakdown during the test,
40 - Fail in the case of a breakdown during the test.
41
42 For the case of monitored DAC voltage withstand test the evaluation is based on four outcomes, see Annex
43 B).
44 For the case of diagnostic test the evaluation is based on an application of the knowledge rules (if available)
45 and the asset management expectations.
46
16
2 8. Partial Discharges Measurement Using DAC
3 8.1 General
4 Regarding PD detection refer to IEEE 400.3TM, Guide for Partial Discharge Testing of Shielded Power
5 Cable Systems in a Field Environment [B55] for more information about test application. Regarding partial
6 discharge detection by applying DAC testing the principal methods are described in [B43][B44] and in
7 [B78] to [B81] can be considered for detection of on-site partial discharges in external energized power
8 cables. In general one or more PD detection units can be connected to at least one of the cable terminations
9 and/or cable joints. Due to the fact that the DAC testing is not continuous but based on voltage excitations
10 as applied to the power cable a proper triggering/synchronization between the DAC voltage source and the
11 PD detection unit has to be provided.
DAC voltage
source
PD detection PD detection PD detection PD detection

unit unit unit unit
triggering/synchronization
Figure 8 — Principles of off-line PD detection methods as connected to a power

cable during DAC testing.
12 Applying PD detection at DAC discharging activity can be detected in both: cable insulation and cable
13 accessories, figure 8.
14
(a) (b)
Figure 9 — Example of PD patterns at DAC test voltages [B25]: (a) 2-dimensional

pattern with the PD occurrence q versus the test voltage U on identical time base; (b)
3-dimensional pattern with the PD occurrence represented in discharge magnitude,
phase angle and number of PDs (by colour).
15 8.2 PD Parameters
16 The DAC testing is based on single voltage excitations. As a result the PD pattern as generated during one
17 such DAC excitation consists of information about, figure 9:
17
1 a) the maximum PD amplitude,

2 b) the phase-related PD pattern,
3 c) the PD changes in function of the decaying voltage,
4 d) and the PD extinction voltage PDEV,
5 Due to the fact that DAC testing is based on the application of single voltage excitations the determination
6 of the PD inception voltage PDIV and PD extinction voltage PDEV is based on the PD pattern analysis,
7 Figure 10.
8 For all other PD parameters suitable for on-site PD detection the references [B43][B44][B55] can be used.
9 With regard to the estimation of the PD inception voltage PDIV and PD extinction voltage PDEV at DAC
10 testing the principles are explained in Figure 10 [B25].
11
12
13
14
b)
c)
PDIV
PDEV
a)
No PD
Figure 10 — Principles of the determination of PD inception (PDIV) and PD

extinction (PDEV) voltages during DAC testing [B25]. The PDIV the voltage level of
st
the DAC excitation at which the 1 PD activity has been observed.
15 8.3 PD Evaluation criteria
16 Applying DAC testing for PD detection provides DAC specific PD patterns, In general regarding PD
17 detection and PD parameters the information as given in IEEE 400.3TM, Guide for Partial Discharge
18 Testing of Shielded Power Cable Systems in a Field Environment [B55] and in Annex D is applicable.
19 For more information about PD evaluation see Annex D.
20
21 9. Dissipation Factor (tan δ) Estimation Using DAC
22 9.1 General
23 Applying DAC testing based on the attenuation of DAC voltage the dissipation factor (DF) can be
24 determined and it can used for the determination of the loss factor of the insulation material, see
25 [B63][B65][B72][B73]. Due to the fact that this factor increases during the aging process of the cable, the
26 DF measurement can be used for diagnosis purposes. The DF is measured by applying a DAC voltage at a
27 given test voltage frequency fr. Using damped AC (DAC) voltages and based on the resulting resonant
28 frequency, the cable capacitance C can be calculated and an estimation of the DF can be derived from the
29 decay characteristics of the damped sinusoidal voltage wave [B14][B25][B60][B69][76].
18
1 DAC testing can be combined with diagnostics such as dielectric loss estimation: tan δ (or dielectric loss
2 factor). DF is estimated by applying a DAC sinusoidal voltage at the resonant frequency between the cable
Test voltage DF phase yellow DF phase red DF phase blue

High DF
Low DF
(in %) (in %) (in %)
Voltage
Voltage
0.5Uo 15 x 10-4 17 x 10-4 14 x 10-4

(0.15%) (0.17%) (0.14%)
1.0Uo 19 x 10-4 20x 10-4 17 x 10-4
(0.19%) (0.2%) (0.17%)
time time
1.7Uo 21 x 10-4 22 x 10-4 19 x 10-4

(0.21%) (0.22%) (0.19%)
Figure 13 —Example of dissipation factor DF estimation during DAC testing

Figure 11 —Dissipation factor estimation during DAC testing; schematic examples of a
DAC voltage waves as observed for power cable with low DF (left curve) and higher DF
(right curve).
Test voltage DF phase yellow DF phase red DF phase blue
0.5Uo 0.15% 0.17% 0.14%

15x 10-4 17x 10-4 14x 10-4
1.0Uo 0.19% 0.2% 0.17%
19x 10-4 20x 10-4 17x 10-4
1.7Uo 0.21% 0.22% 0.19%
21x 10-4 22x 10-4 19x 10-4
Figure 12 —Example of discrete DF values are shown representing a non-aged condition of

oil-impregnated cable insulation
3 capacitance and an air core inductor, and analyzing the decay characteristics of the resulting damped
4 sinusoidal voltage wave [B76].
5 The DF can be estimated from the decay characteristics of the DAC wave. The losses in the measuring
6 circuit must be known, i.e., those due to the series resonance of the air-core inductor. The test object can be
7 represented by a resistance in parallel with a capacitance; the resistance can be estimated using formulas
8 presented in Annex B.
9 Figure 11a shows a schematic DAC wave taken from a test object with very low dielectric losses e.g.
10 <0.1% as estimated for a newly installed polymeric power cable, while Figure 11b shows a DAC voltage
11 wave with high dielectric losses e.g. 0.5% as estimated for a service aged oil-impregnated power cable.
12 Various DAC voltage waves corresponding to several tan δ values can be seen in Annex C.
13
14 9.2 DF Parameters
15 Performing DF measurement on a cable sample results in single DF value in [%] respectively in N x 10-4
16 where the relation is 0.1% = 10 x 10-4 . According to [B76] the measuring threshold value of DF at DAC is
17 0.1%.
18 In the next paragraph the evaluation of these single values as observed at different voltage levels
19 respectively as observed for single phases of one particular circuit can be evaluated. In Figure 12 an
19
1 example of discrete DF values are shown representing a non-aged condition of oil-impregnated cable
2 insulation.
3
4 9.3 DF Evaluation Criteria
5 Except [B63] which recommends maximum DF values for several insulation types, in general there are no
6 fixed rules for the interpretation. As a result for each type of cable insulation the judgment has to be made
7 regarding how much the dielectric losses differ, see figures 13-15. The reference may come from
8 - Comparison with adjacent phases (A, B, C), or
9 - Comparison with other cables (e.g.: of the same design and vintage within the same location), or
10 - Values when new, or changes as monitored during periodic inspections or under different test
11 conditions e.g. electrical stresses, different temperatures,
12 - A historic experience library.
13 Establishing the DF acceptable values for a cable system is complicated by the fact that the values depend
14 not only on the cable system quality but also on the cable and accessory technologies employed. It is clear
15 that the DF is most useful if the specific cable and accessory technologies are known, as this assists in
16 making the appropriate comparisons. Due to the fact that DF depends by definition from the frequency of
17 the test voltage, using DAC voltage at variable frequency one can only compare results of frequencies in
18 the same order of magnitudes.
19 In addition to the absolute value of DF, the increment of DF (∆ DF or tip-up) measured at two designated
20 voltages or the variability (which can be quantified using the standard deviation or the interquartile range)
22 of DF values with time at a constant voltage level can be used for condition assessment [B68][B69].
Dissipation Factor DF [%]
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
A B C A B C A B C
0.5 Uo 1.0 Uo 1.7 Uo

Figure 13 — Schematic overview of DF measurements at different DAC test voltages
using comparison with adjacent phases (A, B, C): case comparison shows that there
is no difference between particular phases, all phases show low DF values and that
there is no significant increase of DF in function of the test voltage.
23 To enhance the effectiveness of the DF test in assessing cable degradation, the DF values should be
24 observed over time when test is repeated, to observe trends. In general, an increase in the DF in comparison
25 to previously measured values indicates additional degradation has occurred [B70][B71].
26 It is important to recognize that data as obtained using different DAC test voltages at different frequencies
27 between 20 Hz up to 500 Hz can be compared. As shown in [B76] to estimate the DF of DAC system
28 calibration procedures at different DAC frequencies at different DAC testing voltage levels are performed.
29 In those ranges where a DAC system is calibrated the values can be compared.
20

0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
A B C A B C A B C
0.5 Uo 1.0 Uo 1.7 Uo

is significant difference between particular phases and that not all phases show low
DF values.
1 The DF should only vary slightly between different voltage levels. The DF of oil/paper insulation, which
2 will normally go through a minimum with increasing voltage, is more temperature sensitive than that for
3 extruded insulations. An increase in the DF with increasing voltage can have different physical origins. It
4 can indicate the presence of high intensity of or severe partial discharge in PILC cable systems, the
5 presence of water treeing in extruded dielectric cable systems or other defects [B70] to [B75]. The
6 variation of DF with time at constant voltage can also indicate water treeing. Meanwhile, a decrease in DF
7 can indicate moisture problems in accessories. Such variation in DF can be on the order of less than 0.1%.
8 Results are reported in terms of the temporal stability of the DF, the increase of loss (“tip-up”) at selected
9 electrical stresses, and/or the absolute DF at a specific voltage. The data should be reported to make further
10 analysis (e.g. track trends, compare with adjacent cable lengths and/or reinterpret data in the light of new
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
A B C A B C A B C (c)
0.5 Uo 1.0 Uo 1.7 Uo

is no difference between particular phases, all phases show increased DF values and
that there is significant increase of DF in function of the test voltage.
11 knowledge).
12 New oil-filled insulation always shows low dielectric losses when measured at power frequencies. The tan
13 δ should not exceed 2 x10-3 (0.2 %). In addition, when the test voltage is increased from 0.5 U0 to 2.0 U0,
14 tan δ should not increase by more than 10x10-4. When, as a result of aging, tan δ exceeds 50x10-4 (0.5%),
15 thermal breakdown is more likely. Dissipation of energy in insulation is caused by different phenomena
16 occurring when voltage is applied to the insulation [B54][B67].
17 Due to the aging processes, oil-filled insulation is more prone to exhibit high values of tan δ. Therefore, for
18 oil-filled cables, the tan δ might be used as degradation indicator, as it increases during aging. Moreover,
19 by the tan δ measurements performance on OF cables, the degradation assessment of oil-filled insulation
20 can be made [B27][B38][B42][B61] to [B66][B71]. In particular, an approach in relating degradation level
21 and measurable values of tan δ in the oil-filled insulation would be very helpful when performing the
22 condition assessment of the insulation.
21
2 Annex A: Bibliography
3 [B1] W.A. Thue, Electrical Power Cable Engineering, ISBN 0-8247-9976-3,Book Marcel Dekker,
4 Inc, 1999.
5 [B2] F. Farneti, F. Ombello, E. Bertani, W. Mosca, Generation of Oscillating Waves for After-laying
6 Test of HV Extruded Cable Links, Cigre 1990 Session, 26th August- 1st September, 1990, paper 21-110
7 [B3] IEC 60060-3, High Voltage Test Techniques – Part 3: Definitions and requirements for on-site
8 tests.
9 [B4] IEEE 400 Guide for Field Testing and Evaluation of the Insulation of Shielded Power Cable
10 Systems, 2001.
11 [B5] J. Densley, “Ageing Mechanisms and Diagnostics for Power Cables – An Overview”, IEEE
12 Electrical Insulation Magazine, Vol. 17 Nr. 1 pp14-21, Jan/Feb 2001
13 [B6] Gulski E, F.J. Wester, J J Smit, P.N. Seitz, M. Turner; Advanced partial discharge diagnostic of
14 MV power cable system using oscillating wave test system. In: IEEE electrical insulation magazine,
15 Year: 16, 2, 2000, p. 17-25. ISSN: 0883-7554
16 [B7] Farneti, F., Ombello, F., Bertani, E., Mosca, W."After-laying Test of Extruded Insulation Cable
17 Links." 6th ISH, paper No. 45.02, New Orleans, U.S.A. August, 1989.
18 [B8] R. Bartnikas and K.D. Srivastava, Power and Communication Cables, J.Wiley and Sons- IEEE
19 Press, New York, 2003.
20 [B9] Aucourt, C., Boone, W., Kalkner, W., Naybour, R.D. Ombello, F. "Recommendations for a
21 New After Laying Test Method for High Voltage Extruded Cable Systems." CIGRE Paper No. 21-105,
22 August, 1990.
23 [B10] Aucourt, C., Louis, M. "After Laying Test of Accessories of Synthetic Insulated Cables with
24 Oscillating Wave." 6th ISH, Paper No. 47.05, New Orleans, U.S.A. August, 1989.
25 [B11] J.P. Steiner, B.H. Ward, Partial discharge measurements and pulsed resonant wave excitation,
26 IEEE International Symposium on Electrical Insulation, Baltimore, MD, USA, June 7-10, 1992, pages
27 389-392
28 [B12] R. Bach W. Kalkner, Comparative Study on Alternative test voltages for layed Medium Voltage
29 cables, 7th, ISH, Paper No. 23.13 Dresden, Germany, August 1991
30 [B13] E. Peschke and R. von Olhausen, Cable Systems for High Voltage and Extra-High Voltage,
31 ISBN 3-89578-118-5, Book, Publicis MCD Verlag,1999.
32 [B14] P.P. Seitz, B. Quak, E. Gulski, J.J. Smit, P. Cichecki, F. de Vries, F.Petzold, Novel Method for
33 On-site Testing and Diagnosis of Transmission Cables up to 250kV, Proceedings Jicable '07. 7th
34 Intern.Conf. Insulated Power Cables, Versailles, France, Paper 16, 2007.
35 [B15] F.J. Wester, E. Gulski and J.J. Smit, “Detection of PD at Different AC Voltage Stresses in
36 Power Cables”, IEEE Electr. Insul. Mag., Vol. 23, No. 4, pp. 28-43, 2007.
37 [B16] S. Brettschneider, E. Lemke, J.L. Hinkle, M. Schneider, Recent Field Experiences in PD
38 Assessment of Power Cables Using Oscillating Voltage Waveforms, IEEE International Symposium on
39 Electrical Insulation, Boston, MA, USA, April 7-10, 2002, pages 546-552
40 [B17] B. Oyegoke, P. Hyvonen, M. Aro, N. Gao, M. Danikas, Selectivity of Damped AC Voltages
41 (DAC) and VLF Voltages in After-laying Tests of Extruded MV Cable Systems, IEEE Transactions on
42 Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation Vol. 10, No. 5; October 2003
43 [B18] F. Petzold, S. Boettcher, Evaluation of PD Measurements of MV Cable Systems by Means of a
44 Web Database, paper B.8.1, 8th Jicable, 2011.
22
1 [B19] IEC 60840 Power cables with extruded insulation and their accessories for rated voltages above
2 30 kV (Um = 36 kV) up to 150 kV (Um = 170kV) Test methods and requirements.
3 [B20] IEC 62067, Standard Power cables with extruded insulation and their accessories for rated
4 voltages above 150 kV (Um = 170 kV) up to 500kV (Um = 550 kV) - Test methods and requirements.
5 [B21] IEC60502 Power cables with extruded insulation and their accessories for rated voltages from 1
6 kV (Um = 1,2 kV) up to 30 kV (Um = 36 kV) - Part 1: Cables for rated voltages of 1 kV (Um = 1,2 kV)
7 and 3 kV (Um = 3,6 kV)
8 [B22] E. Gulski, A. Rakowska, K. Siodla, P. Cichecki, L.D. Post, J.J. Smit, Implementation of Modern
9 Methods of On-site Testing and Diagnosis of HV Power Cables, paper D.3.4, 8th Jicable, 2011
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11 Technology for Transmission Power Cables, paper A.8.3, 8th Jicable 2011
12 [B24] E. Gulski, J.J. Smit, F.J. Wester, PD knowledge rules for insulation condition assessment of
13 distribution power cables. IEEE Transactions on dielectrics and electrical insulation, 2005
14 [B25] F.J. Wester, Condition Assessment of Power Cables Using PD Diagnosis at Damped AC
15 Voltages, ISBN 90-8559-019-1, Book, Publisher Optima Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 2004.
16 [B26] R. Plath, ´Oscillating Voltages´ als Prüfspannung zur Vor-Ort-Prüfung und TE-Messung
17 kunststoffisolierter Kabel, Book ISBN 3-89574-023-3, Verlag Dr. Köster, Berlin, Germany, 1994
18 [B27] E. Gulski, P Cichecki, J.J. Smit, “Condition Assessment of Service Aged HV Power Cables”,
19 Cigre , Paris, France, Paper D1-206, 2008.
20 [B28] Koevoets, R.C.A.M. "A New After Laying Dielectric Test for Underground High-Voltage
21 Extruded Cables."Conference Record of 1990 IEEE International Symposium on Electrical Insulation,
22 Toronto, Canada, June, 1990.
23 [B29] Thomson, E.T., "A Survey of Unconventional Methods of Testing Power Cables Having
24 Extruded Solid Insulation." 7th ISH, Paper No. 53.01, Dresden, Germany, August, 1991.
25 [B30] Z.A. Tamus, R. Cselsko,, T. Schachinger, R. Egyed, Experiences of Diagnosis of HV Cables by
26 Damped AC Technique, paper E.5.2.16, 8th Jicable, 2011
27 [B31] E. Gulski, E. Lemke, M. Gamlin, E. Gockenbach, W. Hauschild, E. Pultrum, “Experiences in
28 partial discharge detection of distribution power cable systems”. Cigre, Vol 208 Electra, pp. 34-43, 2003.
29 [B32] Minutes PES ICC Meeting Spring 2008, C-Ad Hoc Meeting on Damped AC Voltage
30 (Oscillating Wave)
31 [B33] Minutes PES ICC Meeting Fall 2008, F05D Meeting on Damped AC Voltage Testing
32 [B34] Minutes PES ICC Meeting Spring 2009, F05D Meeting on Damped AC Voltage
33 [B35] Gulski E., Cichecki P., Wester F.J., Smit J.J., Bodega R., Hermans T.J.W.H., Seitz P.P., Quak
34 B., de Vries F., (2008). On-site testing and PD diagnosis of high voltage power cables, IEEE transactions
35 on dielectrics and electrical insulation
36 [B36] E. Gulski, P. Chojnowski, A. Rakowska, K. Siodła, Importance of sensitive on-site testing and
37 diagnosis of transsmission power cabels, Przegląd Elektrotechniczny, R 85, Nr. 2/2009 s. 171-176
38 [B37] E. Gulski, A. Rakowska, K. Siodła, P. Chojnowski, On-site Testing and Diagnosis of
39 transsmission power cabels, Przegląd Elektrotechniczny, R 85, Nr. 4/2009 s. 195-200
40 [B38] Lemke, P. Schmiegel: Complex discharge analyzing (CDA) - an alternative procedure for
41 diagnosis tests of HV power apparatus of extremely high capacity. 9th ISH Graz (1995) paper 5617
42 [B39] Lemke, E.: A new method for PD measurement of polyethylene insulated power cables. 3rd.
43 ISH Milan (1979) paper 43.13
44 [B40] E. Lemke, T. Strehl: Advanced measuring system for analysis of dielectric parameters including
45 PD events. Jicable (1999), paper A9.4, pp. 302-306
23
1 [B41] E. Lemke, T. Strehl, M. Boltze: Advanced diagnostic tool for PD fault location in power cables
2 using the CDA technology 13th International Symposium on High Voltage Engineering, Bangalore,
3 India, paper 6-72, 2001.
4 [B42] Partial discharge detection in installed extruded cable systems. Report by CIGRE WG-21 (2000)
5 [B43] IEC 60270: Partial discharges measurements;
6 [B44] IEC 885-3: Test methods for partial discharges measurements on lengths of extruded power
7 cable;
8 [B45] Mashikian, M. S., Luther, R., McIver, J. C., Jurcisin, J. and Spencer, P. W., "Evaluation of Field
9 Aged Crosslinked Polyethylene Cables by Partial Discharge Location", presented at IEEE Summer
10 Power Meeting, July, 1993, Vancouver, Canada
11 [B46] M. Mashikian, V. Gonzalez, G. Valdes and C. Katz, “Partial Discharge Location as a Cable
12 Operating Tool”. Proceedings of JICABLE 95, Versailles, France, June 1995, pp. 497-502. Also
13 published in Revue de l’Electricité et de l’Electronique (REE), Dec., 1997
14 [B47] Voigt G., Mohaupt P., "Partial Discharge Measurements on Service Aged Medium Voltage
15 Cables at Different Frequencies”, Proceedings Jicable 2003, 6th Intern. Conference Insulated Power
16 Cables, Versailles, France
17 [B48] Kreuger F.H., Wezelenburg M.G., Wiemer A.G., Sonneveld W.A., “Partial discharge Part
18 XVIII: errors in the location of partial discharges in high voltage solid dielectric cables,” IEEE Electrical
19 Insulation Magazine, Vol. 9, No. 6, pp. 15-22, Nov.-Dec. 1993.
20 [B49] Boggs, S., Densley, R. J., “Fundamentals of partial discharge in the context of field cable
21 testing,” IEEE Electrical Insulation Magazine, Vol. 16, No. 5, pp. 13–18, 2000.
22 [B50] CIGRE TF D1.02.05; "Practical aspects of the detection and location of partial discharges in
23 power cables"; Electra 297
24 [B51] Boggs S., Pathak A., Walker P., "Partial Discharge XXII: High Frequency Attenuation in
25 Shielded Solid Dielectric Power Cable and Implications Thereof for PD location"; IEEE Electrical
26 Insulation Magazine, January/February 1996 -Vol. 12, No. 1
27 [B52] Hernandez Mejia J.C., Perkel J., Harley R., Begovic M., Hampton R.N., Hartlein R.,
28 "Determining Routes for the Analysis of Partial Discharge Signals Derived from the Field", IEEE
29 Transactions on Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation Vol. 15, No. 6; December 2008
30 [B53] E. Gulski, F. de Vries, P. Cichecki, J.J. Smit, Modern Methods of Installing and Diagnostic
31 Testing of Distribution Power Cables, paper C.4.4, 8th Jicable, 2011
32 [B54] F.H. Kreuger, Industrial High Voltage, 1991, ISBN 90-6275-561-5, Delft University Press
33 [B55] IEEE 400.3 Guide for PD Testing of Shielded Power Cable Systems in a Field Environment.
34 [B56] R.E. James, Q. Su Condition Assessment of HV Insulation in Power System Equipment, 2008,
35 ISBN 978-0-86341-737-5, ITE, London
36 [B57] CIGRE WG D1.33 Technical Brochure On-site testing and PD measurements, (to be published)
37 [B58] Gulski E., Patterson R., Importance of On-site Testing and Diagnosis of Power Cables, NETA
38 PowerTest 2011 Conference, Washington DC, USA
39 [B59] T Takahashi, T. Takahashi, T. Okamoto, Insulation Diagnosis for XLPE Cables Using Damping
40 Oscillating High Voltage, 2008 IEEE Conference on Electrical Insulation Dielectric Phenomena
41 [B60] Popma J., Pellis J., Diagnostics for high voltage cable systems, proceedings ERA conference on
42 HV plant life extension, Belgium, 23-24 November, 2000.
43 [B61] Cichecki P., Jongen R.A., Gulski E., Smit J.J., (2008). Statistical approach in power cables
44 diagnostic data analysis. IEEE transactions on dielectrics and electrical insulation, 15(6), 1559-1569
24
1 [B62] Cigre W.G. B1.09 “Remaining Life Management of existing AC Underground Lines” October
2 2008
3 [B63] IEC 60141 “Test on oil-filled gas pressure cables and their accessories”
4 [B64] Cigre Working Group B1.104, Brochure 279 Maintenance for HV cables and accessories
5 [B65] IEEE 1425: Guide for the evaluation of the Remaining Life of Impregnated Paper Insulated
6 Transmission Cable Systems
7 [B66] E. Gulski, P. Cichecki, J.J.Smit, F. de Vries, J. Pellis, F.J. Wester, Condition Assessment of
8 Transmission Power Cables, paper B.6.2, 8th, Jicable 2011
9 [B67] Gulski E., Cichecki P., Jiankang Z., Rong X., Jongen R., Seitz P.P., Porsche A., Huang L.,
10 Practical aspects of on-site testing and diagnosis of transmission power cables in China, CMD2010
11 [B68] Ward, B.H., Steiner, J.P., "An Alternative to DC Testing of Installed Polymeric Power Cables."
12 7th ISH, Paper No. 75.06, Dresden, Germany, August, 1991.
13 [B69] E. Gulski, H. Putter, J.J. Smit (2008). Investigation of water treeing - electrical treeing
14 transition in power cables. In s.n. (Ed.), Proceedings of 2008 International conference on condition
15 monitoring and diagnosis CMD 2008 (pp. 234-237). Piscataway: IEEE (ISBN 978-1-4244-1621-9).
16 [B70] Gulski E. et Al., "Condition Assessment of Transmission Power Cables" CIGRE 2010, Paper
17 D1-205-2010
18 [B71] E. Lemke, E. Gulski, W. Hauschild, R. Malewski, P. Mohaupt, M. Muhr, J.Rickmann, T. Strehl,
19 F.J. Wester: Practical aspects of the detection of partial discharges in power cables. CIGRE WG
20 D1.33.TF 05, Technical Brochure 297, ELECTRA No. 232, pp. 63-70, 2006
21 [B72] ASTM D 150-2004, Standard Test Methods for AC Loss Characteristics and Permittivity
22 (Dielectric Constant) of Solid Dielectric Insulation.10
23 [B73] IEC 60141 “Test on oil-filled gas pressure cables and their accessories”
24 [B74] Cigre Working Group B1.09, Brochure 358 Remaining Life Management of Existing
25 Underground Lines, 2008
26 [B75] IEEE 1425: Guide for the evaluation of the Remaining Life of Impregnated Paper Insulated
27 Transmission Cable Systems
28 [B76] R. Houtepen, L. Chmura at al, Estimation of Dielectric Loss using Damped AC Voltages, IEEE
29 EI magazine Vol, 27 No.3 pp 14-19, May/June 2011
30 [B77] F.H. Kreuger, Industrial High DC Voltage, ISBN9-=407-1110-0, 1995
31 [B78] IEC 62478 (Draft under preparation) High Voltage Test Techniques: Measurement of Partial
32 Discharges by Electromagnetic and Acoustic Methods
33 [B79] Cigré WG D1.33, 2010, "TB 444 - Guidelines for unconventional partial discharge
34 measurements"
35 [B80] S. Meijer, E. Gulski, P.D. Agoris, P.P. Seitz, T.J.W.H. Hermans, L. Lamballais, 2006, "Non-
36 Conventional On-Site Partial Discharge Diagnostics of Transmission Power Cable Accessories",
37 Proceedings of the 16th Conference of the Electric Power Supply Industry
38 [B81] P.D. Agoris, 2009, "Sensitivity verification of radio frequency partial discharge detection in
39 high voltage equipment", PhD thesis TUDelft
40 [B82] B. Quak, F. Petzold, E. Lemke, R. Jongen, P. Cichecki, International survey of using damped
41 AC voltages for testing MV and E(HV) power cables, PES ICC, Sub F, Spring 2013, Pittsburgh. PA
10
ASTM publications are available from the American Society for Testing and Materials, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West
Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, USA (http://www.astm.org/).
25
1 [B83] W. Hauschild, Critical Review of Voltages Applied for Quality-Acceptance and Diagnostic
2 Field Tests on High-Voltage and Extra-High-Voltage Cable Systems, IEEE Electrical Insulation
3 Magazine, March/April — Vol. 29, No. 2, pages 16-25
4 [B84] IEEE 400.2: Guide for Field Testing of Shielded Power Cable Systems Using Very Low
5 Frequency (VLF) (less than 1Hz), 2013
6 [B85] Takada T., "Acoustic and Optical Methods for Measuring Electric Charge Distributions in
7 Dielectrics", IEEE Trans. on Diel. and Elect. Insul. (DEIS), vol.6, no. 5, pp.519-547, 1999.
8 [B86] Dissado, L.A., Laurent, C., Montanari, G. C., and. Morshuis, P. H. F., "Demonstrating a
9 Threshold for Trapped Space Charge Accumulation in Solid Dielectrics under dc Fields", IEEE Trans. on
10 Diel. and Elect. Insul. (DEIS), vol. 13, no. 3, pp 612-620, 2005.
11
12
26
1 Annex B: DAC Test Voltage Levels

2 With regard to applied DAC test voltage levels the best practice experiences have shown that regarding the
3 test voltage levels as well as the number of DAC excitations these are selected in accordance to the
4 international recommendations [B19] to [B21] and/or in accordance to national recommendations of
5 individual countries, and/or in accordance with best practice feedback [B1][B2][B4][B22][B30] to
6 [B38][B71], see Table B1 and Table B2.
7
Table B1 — DAC test voltages levels (20 Hz...500 Hz) as used for DAC testing (50 DAC
excitations) of new installed power cables.
Power cable rated voltage U [kV] U0 [kV] DAC test voltage level VT [kVpeak]
phase-to-phase phase-to-ground
3 3 6
6 4 12
10 6 17
15 9 26
20 12 34
25 15 43
30 18 51
35 21 60
45-47 26 74
60-69 35 99
110-115 64 181
132-138 77 187
150-161 87 212
220-230 127 254
8
9
Table B2 — DAC test voltages levels (20 Hz...500 Hz) as used for maintenance testing (50 DAC
excitations) of repaired / refurbished power cables.
Power cable rated voltage U [kV] U0 [kV] DAC test voltage level VT [kVpeak]
phase-to-phase phase-to-ground
3 3 5
6 4 10
10 6 14
15 9 21
20 12 28
25 15 35
30 18 41
35 21 48
45-47 26 60
60-69 35 80
110-115 64 145
132-138 77 150
150-161 87 170
220-230 127 204
275-287 159 237
330-345 191 282
380-400 220 293
10
27
1 The DAC test procedures for acceptance tests and maintenance tests are the following [B1] to [B18][B38]
2 to [B90]:
3
4 Step 1. According to the cable voltage rating select the DAC maximum test voltage level VT [kVpeak]:, see
5 tables B1 and B2.
6
7 Step 2. For the DAC voltage step phase, fix the test voltage steps ∆VT in [kVpeak] or in the unit of U0 e.g.
8 0.2U0.
9
10 Step 3. Fix the number of excitations NDAC to be applied for the DAC voltage step phase NDAC e.g. 5 per
11 each ∆VT test voltage step.
12
13 Step 4. Fix the number of excitations NDAC to be applied for the DAC voltage hold phase e.g. 50.
14
15 Step 5. According to the parameters as defined in Steps 1-3 start the test procedure of the DAC voltage
16 step phase, see also figure 7.
17
18 Step 6. In the case of a PD monitored test evaluate the PD inception voltage. In the case of PD occurrence
19 evaluate the harmfulness of the PD source, e.g. external or internal and take the appropriate
20 action.
21
22 Step 7. After the DAC maximum test voltage level VT has been achieved, start the DAC voltage withstand
23 test according to the parameters of Steps 1 and 4.
24
25 Step 8. In the case of a PD monitored test evaluate the PD inception. In the case of PD occurrence
26 evaluate the harmfulness of the PD source, e.g. external or internal and take the appropriate
27 actions.
28
29 Step 9. Evaluate the results of the test in accordance with Figure B1 and section 7.3.
30
Breakdown during No breakdown during
DAC voltage DAC voltage
withstand test withstand test
il s s
Fa Pa
PD not present PD not present
Case: large homogenous defect(s) Case: weak-spot(s)
Breakdown during No breakdown during

DAC voltage DAC voltage
withstand test withstand test
il il
Fa Fa
PD present PD present
Case: large inhomogenous defect(s) Case: inhomogeneous defects
Figure B1 — Schematic overview of evaluation criteria for PD monitored DAC voltage

withstand test of (E)HV power cables. In the case that new or maintained power cable
circuits have to be PD free even if there was no breakdown observed due to the
presence of PD the particular cable has to be rejected.
31
28
1 For diagnostic tests of the DAC test procedure for a diagnostic test is the following:
2 Step 1. According to the cable voltage rating select the DAC maximum test voltage level VT [kVpeak]:, see
3 table 5. In accordance with the maintenance and operational history reduce the maximum test
4 voltage level to a level where no effects of life-time consumption will be expected.
5
6 Step 2. For the DAC voltage step phase, fix the test voltage steps ∆VT in [kVpeak] or in the unit of U0 e.g.
7 0.2U0.
8
9 Step 3. Fix the number of excitations NDAC to be applied for the DAC voltage step phase NDAC e.g. 5 per
10 each ∆VT test voltage step
11
12 Step 4. According to the parameters as defined in Steps 1-3 start the test procedure of the DAC voltage
13 step phase, see also figure 7.
14
15 Step 5. In the case of a PD monitored test evaluate the PD inception voltage. In the case of PD occurrence
16 evaluate the harmfulness of the PD source, e.g. external or internal and take the necessary
17 actions.
18
19 Step 6. In the case of DF measurement at selected DAC test voltage levels the actual DF values have to be
20 registered.
21
22 Step 7. Evaluate the results in accordance with Section 7.3, Section 8 and Section 9.
23
29
1 Annex C: Dissipation Factor Estimation for DAC Voltages

2 The dissipation factor DF represented by tan δ parameter is an important diagnostic parameter to assess the
3 condition of oil-impregnated paper insulation [B61] to [B75]. The most important and recognizable origins
4 are [B54]:
5 a) conductive losses caused by finite bulk resistance of the insulation and leakage currents,
6 b) friction between dipoles and insulation material (polarization losses),
7 c) local field enhancement on interfaces between materials characterized by different permeability,
8 d) in case of the presence of PD activity this can also increase the value of dissipation factor.
9 In the case of healthy paper oil insulation at power frequencies of tens of [Hz] the dissipation factor is
10 characterized by low values e.g. below 20 x 10-4 (0.2%) and less dependence on the electric stresses e.g.
11 less than 0.1% if the test voltage is raised from e.g. 0.5Uo to 2.0Uo. Theoretically, values higher than 0.5%
12 values at nominal voltage in combination with aging effects and temporary and local thermal over-stresses
13 may represent a higher risk of thermal breakdown.
14 An increase of electric stress above PD inception voltage accompanied with high intensity PD activity e.g.
15 PD-levels in the range of [nC] may also increase dielectric losses.
16 Figure C1 shows a circuit model for the DAC system, essentially a series RLC circuit.
LC
RL
CTO RC
Figure C1 —DAC circuit model as it can be used for the dissipation factor DF estimation.
17 RL is the total internal resistance of the system, which varies with the amplitude and frequency of the
18 applied voltage, RC represents the losses in the test object, LC is the inductance of the air-core inductor, and
19 CTO is the capacitance of the test object. It should be noted that CTO and RC may also be a function of
20 voltage and frequency.
21
22 Based on the resulting resonant voltage of a DAC test setup, the dissipation factor DF can be measured
23 with the decay characteristics of the damped AC voltage wave, as shown in [B15][B76], see figure C2.
24
30
60 0.01% 0.1% 0.2% 0.4% 0.8% 33 0.01% 0.1% 0.2% 0.4% 0.8%
32
40
31
20 30
Voltage [kV]
Voltage [kV]
29
0
0 0.005 0.01 0.015 0.02 0.025 0.03
28
-20
27
-40 26
25
-60 0.0294 0.0295 0.0296 0.0297 0.0298 0.0299 0.03 0.0301
Time [ms] Time [ms]
Figure C2— DAC Voltage wave shape for a DAC test system setup with L = 2H and C =1uF
th
for different dielectric loss factors. To the right a close up of the 8 cycle to show the
difference in damping in higher detail.
1
2 A damped AC voltage wave can be described by
3
4 U (t ) = U 0 ⋅ e − β ⋅t sin(ω ⋅ t + ϕ )
5 where U0 is the voltage at the end of the uni-polar voltage excitation time, β is the attenuation coefficient, φ
6 is the phase shift, and ω=2Πf. Tan δ can be calculated from the decay characteristics of the wave.
7 To be able to estimate the dissipation factor of the test object, the losses of the DAC test setup should be
8 known, e.g. by determination of the losses as a resistance RL in the whole DAC test circuit without the
9 losses of the test object. The losses of the test object can be represented by a parallel resistance RC. This RC
10 can be estimated numerically out of the measurement results, e.g., with the formula presented by [B15] or
11 in [B76]:
12
LC
13 RC = (9)
2 β DAC LC CTO − RL CTO
14
15 The unknown factor βDAC can be calculated directly from the damping characteristics of the DAC voltage,
16 using the voltage and time of the voltage peaks of different periods. E.g.:
17
U5 ln(U 5 U1 )
18 = e − β (t5 −t1 ) ⇒ β DAC = − (10)
U1 (t5 − t1 )
19
20 Now, the dissipation factor DF equals to DL of the cable sample is given by:
21
1
22 DL = (11)
ω ⋅ RC ⋅ CTO
23
24
25
31
2 Annex D: DAC Parameters

3
4 Test circuit parameters:
5 1. Test object capacitance CTO in [µF]: depending on the cable type, cable length and cable dimension
6 this value can vary between a few nF and several uF. In the case of a test object with a relative low
7 capacitance of a few nF the total test object capacitance can be a parallel connection of the test object
8 with some additional HV capacitor. In this case it is of importance that this capacitor is suitable to
9 withstand the maximum test voltage and in the case of monitored tests e.g. PD or dielectric loss
10 measurement, it has to be PD-free and its dielectric losses should be known. In case of PD
11 measurements, a blocking inductance should be placed in series with the additional capacitance to
12 avoid PD signals to run through the additional capacitance in stead of the measuring system.
13
14 2. System inductance LC in [H]: Next to the test object capacitance, this is the second fundamental part of
15 a DAC system and depending on the DAC system type the inductance (one single coil or several coils)
16 of the DAC system can be fixed e.g. 8H or it can be variable in dependence on the test voltages and the
17 test object capacitance.
18
19 3. Maximum test voltage Vmax in [kVpeak]: this is the maximum test voltage of the 1st DAC voltage cycle
20 which is equal to the pre-selected maximum test voltage as it can be generated by a specific DAC
21 system for the test purpose whereas also the test circuit elements and the test object are designated to
22 be tested.
23
24 4. Maximum excitation current ICmax in [mA]: this is a standard parameter of the DAC system and
25 depending on the type of system it can vary between few mA up to tens of mA. It has to be considered
26 that in combination with the CTO and with Vmax this parameter determines the DAC excitation time.
27
28 5. Maximum switching circuit current ISmax in [A]: this is a standard parameter of the DAC system and
29 depending on the type of system it can vary between few A up to several hundreds of A. It has to be
30 considered that this parameter in combination with Vmax determines the maximum test object
31 capacitance CTO.
32
33 6. Switching duration ts in [µs]: this is the time which is needed by a DAC system after the maximum test
34 voltage V max is reached after the excitation to close the resonance circuit of LC and CTO and to start
35 the damped resonance between LC and CTO.
36
37 7. Quality factor QC of the resonance circuit equals to QC = (LC / (CTO • RA 2) whereas RA is the equivalent
38 circuit resistance.
39
40 8. The maximum cable capacitance CTO max which can be tested by a DAC test facility can be calculated by
41 CTO = (ISmax / Vmax)2 • LC. Where Vmax is the maximum applied test voltage and ISmax is the permissible AC
42 current in the resonance circuit and the minimum accepted circuit resonance frequency fr.
43
44
45 Voltage parameters:
46 1. DAC excitation: complete process of excitation the test object capacitance CTO with ICmax to a selected
47 test voltage level VDAC followed by a damped sinusoidal osculation with circuit resonance frequency fr
48 and a given damping factor Df . The time duration of a DAC excitation consists of two parts: the
49 excitation part (in the range of a number of seconds) and the DAC oscillation part (in the range of
50 hundreds of milliseconds) see figure 2.
51
32
1 2. Damped alternating voltage DAC: starting from a (negative or positive) excitation voltage level and
2 having damped sinusoidal oscillation around the zero level. It is characterized by the peak value VDAC,
3 the circuit resonance frequency fr and the damping factor Df.
4
5 3. Circuit resonance frequency fr in [Hz]: equals to reciprocal of the time between two successive peaks
6 of same polarity and it is determined by the CTO and LC and in most cases it can be calculated as fr =
7 1/ 2π√( LC • CTO).
8
9 4. Damping factor Df in [%]: equals to voltage difference between the first and second peak of same
10 polarity, divided by the voltage value of the first peak. The Df factor generally is ranging up to 40 %.
11
12 5. Voltage level VDAC in [kVpeak]: this is the actual test voltage level of the DAC voltage which is equal
13 to the actual test voltage as it has to be generated by a DAC system.
14
15 6. Excitation time tc in [s]: equals to the necessary time at given e.g. maximum current ICmax to charge
16 the test object capacitance CTO up to selected test voltage level VDAC .
17
18 Test parameters:
19 1. Test voltage level VT [kVpeak]: this is the selected test voltage level of the DAC voltage 1st cycle which
20 equals to the actual selected DAC test voltage as it has to be generated by a DAC system. For the test
21 purpose this value has to be selected in accordance to valid test recommendations. Depending on the
22 test procedure the VT can be selected for on one or even more test levels.
23
24 2. Test voltage steps ∆V: applying DAC excitations for an increasing voltage test the steps in the VT
25 voltage increase have to be defined. The ∆VT can be defined in [kVpeak] or in the unit of U0 e.g. 0.1U0
26 or 0.2U0.
27
28 3. Number of excitations NDAC: this parameter describes the number of DAC excitations which have to at
29 generated at given test voltage level VT. The total test procedure can consist of different sequences of
30 NDAC e.g. during voltage withstand test NDAC = 50 excitations [B2][B4] or during diagnostic test where
31 NDAC can be lower.
32
33 4. Test time in [min]: equals to reciprocal of the total time requested to generate at given test voltage
34 level VT the selected number of excitations NDAC
35
36 5. DAC voltage withstand test: series of DAC voltage excitations as applied consecutively to the power
37 cable under test. The duration of the test is determined by a number of DAC excitations which have
38 been applied to the power cable under test at a selected DAC test voltage. The maximum DAC
39 withstand voltage level is determined by the voltage peak values VDAC respectively RMS-values
40 VDAC/√2 of the 1st DAC cycle.
41
42
43 Evaluation parameters:
44 1. DAC voltage withstand test outcome: After applying a number of DAC excitations at a selected voltage
45 level the result can be described as either Pass in the case of no breakdown occurrence or Fail in the
46 case of a breakdown.
47
48 2. PD inception voltage PDIV in [kVpeak]: this is the test voltage level VT at which the repetitive partial
49 discharges have been observed.
50
51 3. PD extinction voltage PDEV in [kVpeak]: this is the test voltage level VT at which the repetitive partial
52 discharges have been extinguished.
53
54 4. PD level in [pC]: PD level as observed after a voltage application. It represents the most repeatedly
55 occurring PD magnitude.
56
33
1 5. PD site location mapping: graphical and/or numerical representation of PD pulse (intensity)

2 concentration in function of the cable length. If applicable, the location of the cables accessories
3 (joints, terminations) can be indicated. The PD site location mapping can also be evaluated for
4 different test voltage levels VT
5
6 6. Change of PD level in function of the voltage: applying a number of DAC excitations at the same or
7 different voltage levels may provide information about the PD behavior in function of these
8 parameters. Evaluation of this behavior may be valuable for the defect(s) type evaluation.
9
10 7. PD phase-resolved pattern: applying one or more DAC excitations produces a graphic display showing
11 the PD pulse amplitudes and intensity in function of the test voltage cycle. Evaluation of this behavior
12 may be valuable for the defect(s) type evaluation.
13
14 8. Dissipation factor parameter DF in [%]: dielectric loss parameter as observed at a specific excitation
15 voltage level. It represents the power losses in the test object at a designated test voltage .
16
17 9. Change of dielectric loss parameter in function of time / voltage level: applying a number of DAC
18 excitations at the same or different voltage levels may provide information about the dielectric loss
19 behavior in function of these parameters. Evaluation of this behavior may be valuable for the
20 evaluation of oil-impregnated insulation degradation.
21
22 10. PD sensitivity: the lowest calibration signal that can be detected and the lowest calibration signal that
23 can be localised.
34
1 Annex E: Example PD Evaluation for After-laying and -Maintenance Testing

2 When establishing the required sensitivity and maximal acceptable background noise level for the on-site
3 PD measurement, the following aspects should be taken into account.
4
5 1. The type of cable system (i.e. type of cable and the type of accessories). Polymeric cable system
6 are generally quite sensitive to partial discharges, whereas fluid-fill or mass-impregnated systems
7 are usually less sensitive to PD. Regarding accessories, fluid-filled accessories can usually
8 withstand higher PD activity than fluid-free accessories and for a longer time before failure
9 occurs.
10
11 2. The operational electric stress level of the cable systems. In solid dielectrics the severity of PD
12 activity increases quickly with increasing operational stress. As a consequence, HV and especially
13 EHV cable systems, which are designed for operating at relatively high electric fields, are as a rule
14 much more sensitive to PD’s than MV systems, which operate at lower electric stress.
15
16 3. Test voltage level reached during the tests. When testing cable systems at voltages higher than the
17 nominal voltage, the actual electric stress in the system is higher than the nominal stress.
18 Consequently, the severity of the PDs, which are possibly detected, increases with the test voltage.
19
20 4. PD activity or disturbances which may originate outside the test object also increases with the test
21 (over)voltage; for instance corona discharges originating at the HV connection between the
22 voltage source and the test object.
23
24 As an example, severe defects in oil filled MV cables (PILC) or defects in accessories of MV XLPE cables
25 may induce PDs in the range of hundreds of pCs without leading to an immediate failure. Therefore, for
26 those situations, a background noise level in the order of 100 pC can be accepted for the PD test on site. On
27 the other hand, for (E)HV polymeric extruded cables system PDs of a few tens of pCs may already lead to
28 failure within a relatively short time. Consequently, for this case it is important to maintain on-site
29 background noise level as low as possible.
30
31 These two examples also show the complexity of establishing general threshold values for PD levels during
32 on-site measurements on cable systems. The threshold values used today are based on experience, long
33 term observation of measured cable systems and following laboratory investigations of examined parts of
34 the cable system e.g. joints.
35
36 In addition to the apparent charge, the evaluation of the phase-resolved PD patterns as well as the shape of
37 the individual PD pulses can be very helpful for an assessment of the PD severity. In particular it is
38 important to be able to discriminate between internal PD activity (i.e. PDs originated inside the test object)
39 and external PD activity or disturbances (i.e. PDs originated outside the test object).
40 To estimate the criticality of PD, fault-type identification has to be complemented by PD site localization
41 [B53], [B71]. In expanded geometries such as long cables the PD identification without localization would
42 be useless. The most commonly used method to calculate the location of a partial discharge site is based on
43 time-domain-reflectometry. The arrival time of original and reflected PD signals are measured with one or
44 more sensors to calculate the origin based on the difference of the time-of-arrival of electric signals.
45 Another technique, signal reduction analysis is based on the fact that PD pulses propagate through the
46 power cable in different modes [B71]. Depending on the frequency of the propagating signal, the amplitude
47 will be more or less attenuated. For frequencies up to several MHz, the PD signals are only slightly
48 attenuated, whereas for higher frequencies the attenuation is higher. This effect can be used to roughly
49 estimate the origin of the PD signals.
50 For the determination of the insulation condition, several PD parameters are found of importance and can
51 be used to evaluate a PD measurement. For field application of the PD diagnostics, the PD properties as
52 shown below turned out to be of relevance from practical experiences. The properties are measured directly
53 by the detection equipment for the cable system, or derived after analyzing the measurement data for
35
1 individual cable components from the PD mapping. In figures E1-E3 decision flow-charts for after-laying
2 testing of newly installed XLPE cable sections are shown. The final result of PD measurement should be
3 provided in the form of PD measurement report. Based on this report the condition assessment of the cable
4 system can be determined. The PD measurement report should be able to describe the actual condition of
5 the cable system so that the owner can use this report as data input for maintenance decisions.
Figure E1 — Example decision flowchart for PD detection on Damped DAC voltage testing
after-laying cable insulation (XLPE)
PDiV < 1,2xUo 1,2xUo ≤ PDiV ≤ 1,7xUo PDiV > 1,7xUo
no
PD intensity
> 3 per cycle ?
yes
no
PD magnitude
> 100pC ?
yes
no Test repetition
possible ?
yes
Test
Rejected Accepted
repetition
Figure E2 — Example decision flowchart for PD detection on Damped DAC voltage testing
after-laying cable joint.
PDiV < 1,2xUo 1,2xUo ≤ PDiV ≤ 1,7xUo PDiV > 1,7xUo
On-line PD PD asymmetry no
inspection e.g. using between phases
HF probe
yes
PD intensity >3/ cycle no

External PD Magnitude >100pC ?
yes yes
no
no Test repetition
possible from the opposite side ?
yes
Rejected Test Accepted

repetition
Figure E3 —Example decision flowchart for PD detection on Damped AC voltage testing
after-laying cable termination.
36
1000
Detectable PD pulse charge [pC]

100
10
1
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Power cable length [km]
Figure E4 — PD detection sensitivity versus the cable length calculated on the basis of
a reference value of 10 pC achievable for a power cable of 1 km length [B82]
1 Sensitive PD measurements according to [B43],[B44] can only be applied for a cable length up to several
2 kilometers. For longer cable lengths e.g. 10km and longer the PD threshold level is increased substantially
3 due to attenuation and dispersion of propagating PD pulses, see Fig. E4.
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
37
1 Annex F: Results of International Survey of the Use of Damped AC

2 Voltages for Testing MV and (E) HV Power Cables
3 To evaluate the use and the experiences of DAC technology for testing and diagnosis of power cables
4 circuits, an international survey was conducted in the fall 2012. Since 1999 to test MV voltage cable
5 networks (6-35kV) and (E) HV cable networks (36-230kV) in total 5 international suppliers have provided
6 the DAC technology to about 300 users. About 38% (HV users 69,2% and MV users 34%) of 120 users
7 contacted have responded to the survey, Table F1. All users have been divided into three categories, Table
8 F2.
9
Table F1 —The geographic distribution of survey response
Europe 72%
Asia 21%
Africa 5%
Americas 2%
10
Table F2 —The period of testing experiences with DAC
More than 5 years 35%
Between 1 and 5 years 53%
Below 1 year 12%
11
12 By the majority of users DAC voltages are being used for after-laying-, after repair- and condition
13 assessment, Table F3. In general about 90% of survey responders testing E(HV) cables are using DAC for
14 condition assessment purposes and about 67% of those users are testing with DAC for after-laying and/or
15 after repair purposes.
Table F3 —Purpose of testing with DAC
after-laying testing MV 58.8%
(E) HV 66.7%
after repair testing MV 82.53%
(E) HV 66.7%
condition assessment testing MV 76.5%
E (HV) 88.9%
16 Regarding the cable insulation type every survey responder is testing XLPE cables with DAC. The
17 majority of responders is also testing oil-filled cables with DAC, Figure F1.
XLPE Oil-filled PILC EPR Other
MV
users
100% 32.4% 76.5% 26.5% 11.8%
XLPE Oil-filled PILC EPR Other
HV
users
100% 55.6% 33.3% 11.1% 11.1%
Figure F1 — Cable Insulation types being tested per survey responder.
38
1 The test procedure as applied by the majority of responders is monitored voltage testing, which means a
2 combination of DAC voltage test with PD measurement, Table 5. The majority of survey responders that
3 apply DAC voltage for (E) HV uses DAC voltage for withstand testing, Table F6. The maximum test
4 voltage levels as well as the number of DAC excitations for MV and (E) HV cables as applied for different
5 types of tests are in accordance with the Tables B1-B2 from Annex B, Table F7.
Table F5 — Testing methods

DAC voltage test without PD measurement MV 28%
(E) HV 22%
DAC voltage test with PD measurement MV 72%
(E) HV 78%
6
Table F6 — Application of the DAC voltage withstand test
MV cables (6-35kV) Yes 38%
No 62%
(E) HV cables (36-230kV) Yes 89%
No 11%
7
Table F7 — DAC testing procedures
Parameter after-laying testing after repair testing condition assessment
testing
Maximum MV (6-35kV) 1.7 - 2.0 U0 1.7 - 2.0 U0 1.7 U0
test voltage (E) HV (36-230kV) 1.4 - 1.7 U0 1.4 - 1.7 U0 1.4 U0
Number of DAC voltage 1 – 10 excitations
excitations /voltage level
Number of DAC voltage 50 excitations 50 excitations in agreement
excitations for withstand test at / 1 hour / 1 hour or in
maximum test voltage agreement
8
9 Regarding the experiences during testing 40% of survey responders have observed during test an insulation
10 breakdown and in more than 70% of these breakdown cases PD has been detected before breakdown,
11 Figure F2.
Breakdown No 27.8%
observed
Yes 41.9%
Yes 72.2%
No 58.1%
PD detected
Figure F2 — DAC user experiences with insulation breakdown and PD presence.
12
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IEEE P400.

4/D7, February 2014

6 Prepared by WG F05 of the

7 Insulated Conductors Committee of the

Copyright © <year> IEEE. All rights reserved.

Copyright © <year> IEEE. All rights reserved.

1 This page is left blank intentionally.

Copyright © <year> IEEE. All rights reserved.

19 Laws and regulations

31 Updating of IEEE documents

23 Edward Gulski, Chair

24 Ralph Patterson, Vice Chair

3. Definitions and acronyms

6. Damped AC Test Circuit and Parameters

7 DAC Voltage Withstand Testing

8. Partial Discharges (PD) Measurement Using DAC

9. Dissipation Factor (tan δ) Estimation Using DAC

1 Draft Guide for Field-Testing of

13 IEC 60270 Partial discharges measurements;

21 IEC 60060-2, High Voltage Test Techniques – Part 2: Measuring Systems.

9 NEMA WC74-2006/ANSI/ICEA S-93-639 Shielded Power Cables 5,000 - 46,000 V8

10 NFPA-70E, Standard for Electrical Safety Requirements for Employee Workplaces.9

12 3. Definitions and Acronyms

14 shielded cable: A cable in which an insulated conductor is enclosed in a conducting envelope.

28 non-monitored or simple withstand test: a diagnostic test in which a voltage of a predetermined

31 monitored withstand test: a diagnostic test in which a voltage of a predetermined magnitude is

23 Df DAC damping factor

25 DF dissipation factor also referred to as tan delta (tan δ)

26 NDAC number of DAC excitations

28 PDEV partial discharge extinction voltage, Ve

29 PDIV partial discharge inception voltage, Vi

30 TDR time domain reflectometry

31 U power cable rms rated voltage, phase-to-phase

32 U0 nominal rms operating voltage, phase-to-ground

33 VT test voltage, phase-to-ground

Safety ground lead

Figure 1 — Recommended DAC test connection diagram.

0 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150

Energizing phase LC resonance phase

Figure 3 — Schematic overview of withstand test by damped sinusoidal AC voltage

New installed cables Service aged cables

Acceptance test Maintenance test

1 5.2 Types of DAC Testing

2 6. Damped AC Test Circuit and Parameters

14 6.1 DAC Test Voltage Circuit

46 6.2 DAC Parameters

DAC maximum test voltage

step phase hold phase step phase hold phase

Step phase hold phase step phase hold phase

16 7. DAC Voltage Withstand Testing

1 The tests can be further subdivided into two classes:

DAC voltage hold level Test duration NDAC e.g. 50

Figure 7 — Schematic overview of DAC voltage application procedure, PD detection

10 7.2 DAC Test Parameters and Procedures

30 7.3 DAC Evaluation Criteria

2 8. Partial Discharges Measurement Using DAC

PD detection PD detection PD detection PD detection

Figure 8 — Principles of off-line PD detection methods as connected to a power

Figure 9 — Example of PD patterns at DAC test voltages [B25]: (a) 2-dimensional

1 a) the maximum PD amplitude,

Figure 10 — Principles of the determination of PD inception (PDIV) and PD

15 8.3 PD Evaluation criteria

21 9. Dissipation Factor (tan δ) Estimation Using DAC

Test voltage DF phase yellow DF phase red DF phase blue