2019 6th International Advanced Research Workshop on Transformers (ARWtr)
On-Site Dry-type Power Transformer Condition
Assessment based on Partial Discharge Activity
C. Engelen and V. Lozano, OMICRON electronics
 Abstract -- As part of the energy transition and the
associated development of renewable energies, the number of
installed dry-type transformers is increasing on the medium-
voltage power grid. Therefore, the paper at hand focuses on on-
site condition assessment of dry-type power transformers which
are often installed in wind turbine nacelles, industrial sites as
well as in marine and civil applications. The assessment of the
insulation condition is based on an induced voltage test in
combination with a partial discharge measurement. In contrast
to laboratory tests under controlled conditions, an increased
level of interference from rotating machinery, power electronics
and other consumers is to be expected on site. The approach of
energizing transformers of power ratings up to 15 - 20 MVA
with a portable, scalable single-phase voltage source is
presented. Due to the single-phase injection the power intake is
reduced, and an individual evaluation of each coil becomes
possible. Practical examples show how partial discharge signals
can be separated from these interferences using a synchronous
multi-frequency PD measurement.
Index Terms-- Condition Assessment, Dry-type transformer,
Partial Discharge, 3CFRD, Electrical Insulation, Medium
Voltage, Insulation testing
I. INTRODUCTION
T HE use of dry-type transformers has proved to be
successful in a range of applications. Such equipment is
often used in medium-voltage power grids in industrial
plants and in the marine and civil sectors, such as in subway
networks. Deciding factors for the use of dry-type
transformers include low-maintenance operation and reduced
fire risk. The latter can be of particular significance for
installation in building complexes and tunnels. Furthermore,
the absence of mineral oil as an insulating medium eliminates
the need for oil sumps. This makes dry-type transformers
particularly advantageous for use in wind turbines, as they
are often installed in areas with high groundwater protection
requirements or at sea.
In the context of wind turbines, the transformers, which
are connected directly to the turbine generator, can be
considered as generator step-up units (GSU). Diagnostic
measurements and the condition assessments of these units
are of corresponding significance. In the following, the
applicability of partial discharge (PD) measurements for the
condition assessment of dry-type transformers with power
ratings up to 15 – 20 MVA is discussed and illustrated with
case studies. Typical voltage ratings are up to 30 kV on the
HV side and up to 690 V on the LV side. For oil-filled
transformers, a dissolved gas analysis (DGA) provides initial
indications about potential internal faults, such as partial
discharges or local overheating [1]. For dry-type
C. Engelen is with OMICRON electronics Germany, 91054 Erlangen
Germany, (e-mail: christoph.engelen@omicronenergy.com).
V. Lozano is with OMICRON Technologies España, 28109 Madrid
Spain (e-mail: victor.lozano@omicronenergy.com).
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transformers a DGA is not applicable. Therefore, partial
discharge diagnosis by means of a single-phase induced
voltage test is discussed below. In contrast to a three-phase
excitation in the factory, the transformer under test is
energized with a single-phase source. Thus, the power intake
is reduced, and a more compact and lightweight source can
be used on-site. This way, measurements in confined spaces
can be conducted rendering a bulky trailer mounted source
unnecessary. A portable test system of 30 kg [2] is used to
energize transformers with power ratings up to 4 – 5 MVA.
For power ratings up 15 – 20 MVA to two additional
amplifiers can be installed. Combining this approach with a
PD measurement offers the possibility to analyse the
insulation system of each coil individually, resulting in a
powerful tool for reliable on-site insulation diagnostics of
medium-voltage transformers.
II. TRANSFORMER DIAGNOSIS
The main difference between oil-filled and dry-type
transformers is the fluid insulation system. Instead of mineral
oil which acts both as insulating and cooling medium, in
most cases the windings of dry-type transformers are casted
in epoxy resin. Thus, the coils are natural air cooled.
Switching on fans allows the dry-type transformer to operate
in a short-time overload condition. Besides, the mechanical
structure has to meet high requirements to withstand short-
circuit currents [3].
Like for oil-filled transformers a variety of tests are in
place to check these characteristics after the assembly in the
factory. Common electrical measurements such as no-load
loss, winding resistance and short-circuit impedance
measurements are performed. Besides, applied and induced
voltage withstand tests are carried out to verify the dielectric
strength of the insulation system. Finally, after pre-stressing
the insulation during the aforementioned tests, a partial
discharge measurement is performed to detect localized
insulation defects [4].
III. PARTIAL DISCHARGE MEASUREMENT
Partial discharge impulses are localized dielectric
breakdowns that only partially bridges the insulation system
[5]. Due to the local energy transport the solid insulation
system of a dry-type transformer can degenerate over time.
Thus, affecting the dielectric strength and, in the worst case,
causing an outage of the unit due to an insulation failure. PD
measurements are a powerful tool to detect insulation defects
and irregularities. Compared to integral insulation
diagnostics such as a dissipation factor measurement, local
imperfections can be identified. Therefore, this measurement
is part of the factory acceptance routine testing procedure for
every new dry-type transformer [4]. In addition, on-site
measurements of the transformer can be realized. For this
purpose, both offline and online partial discharge diagnostics
2019 6th International Advanced Research Workshop on Transformers (ARWtr)
are suitable. In the following, the main characteristics of the
FAT and the on-site, offline PD diagnostics are discussed.
A. Factory Acceptance Test
After finalizing all voltage withstand tests during the
factory acceptance test (FAT), the partial discharge
measurement is carried out on each individual unit. For a
three-phase transformer a three-phase voltage source is
connected to the low-voltage winding to energize the device
under test. On the high-voltage winding a coupling capacitor
and a measurement impedance (“coupling device”, “CD”)
are connected to each phase terminal. A PD measurement
system is then installed which is switched between the phases
during the test cycle to record the PD activity. Alternatively,
a three-channel PD measurement system can be used to
simultaneously analyse all three phases. Using the latter
approach, identifying possible cross-talk between the phases
and separating multiple PD sources can be realized. A
schematic overview of the common measurement setup is
given in Fig. 1.
Fig. 1. FAT measurement setup for induced voltage test according to [4].
A pre-defined test cycle is then carried out. First, a pre-
stress voltage of 1.8-times the rated line-to-line voltage (Ur)
is applied for 30 seconds. During this interval, possibly
active partial discharges are not considered for the
transformer assessment. Afterwards, the test voltage is
reduced to 1.3-times the rated line-to-line voltage and held
constant for 180 seconds. In this second part of the test cycle
no partial discharges above 10 pC are allowed for the
transformer to pass the test.
Fig. 2. FAT test cycle for PD measurement according [4].
B. On-site Testing
The on-site partial discharge measurement can be a
powerful tool to investigate possible insulation defects of a
dry-type transformer. In contrast to a factory acceptance test,
certain limitations are in place when testing on-site. Often the
device under test is installed in a confined space which
requires a portable test system. In addition, the available
testing power is limited to a conventional power supply of a
wall socket. To account for both limitations a different
approach compared to the FAT is chosen. Instead of using a
three-phase voltage source a single-phase test system is used
to excite the transformer. This way the apparent power
needed to energize the transformer can be significantly
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reduced compared to a three-phase excitation. Fig. 3 depicts
the power intake in “kVA” at nominal voltage of three
distribution transformers with power ratings between
800 kVA and 1600 kVA. It can be seen that in case of a
single-phase excitation the power intake is reduced by
approx. 50 %.
Fig. 3. Comparison of power intake between a three-phase (blue) and a
single-phase (green) excitation.
Furthermore, the inductive and capacitive components of
the transformer under test form a resonant test circuit. By
tuning the frequency of the test voltage to the resonant point
a maximum impedance of the test setup can be achieved. The
change of impedance and phase angle in dependence of the
frequency is shown exemplary in Fig. 4. The frequency is
changed between 50 Hz and 400 Hz. In this case a suitable
operation point is found at approx. 120 Hz. While the
impedance is at its maximum the phase angle approaches 0°
which means that only the active power intake of the
transformer has to be covered by the test system. Thus, the
excitation current and therefore the power intake is further
reduced allowing the operator to energize transformers with
power ratings of up to 4 – 5 MVA.
Fig. 4. Frequency dependency of the impedance of the device under test.
In the following the setup for a single-phase excitation is
discussed on the example of a YNd11 transformer, Fig. 5.
The complete test cycle consists of three consecutive
measurements. This means each phase of the transformer is
separately energized to facilitate the evaluation of each
single coil. As a first step phase “A” on the HV side shall be
measured. Therefore, the voltage source is connected to the
corresponding terminals on the low-voltage side. In addition,
a coupling capacitor and a partial discharge system are
installed at the HV terminal of phase “A”.
One major difference between a three-phase and a single-
phase excitation is the voltage distribution across the
transformer windings. Energizing only one coil will induce a
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2019 6th International Advanced Research Workshop on Transformers (ARWtr) – Cordoba - Spain, (6)7-9 October 2019

voltage across the remaining two windings of the transformer

due to the magnetic coupling. However, the magnetic flux
distribution in the core limbs depends on the transformer
design and the voltage frequency [3]. Thus, some uncertainty
is introduced regarding the electrical stress of the de-
energized windings. By applying a short-circuit to the unused
terminals of the star-winding an equal magnetic flux
distribution is achieved in those two core limbs. This way the
electrical stress on all three coils is clearly defined. Fig. 5
depicts that only phase “A” is stressed with the full test
voltage Up while on the other two phases only a voltage of
0.5 * Up is induced [6]. Consequently, each of the three
phases can be energized and checked for partial discharge
activity. The clearly defined voltage distribution can be
utilized to cross-check the PD results and draw conclusions
regarding the origin and the inception voltage of the PD
source.
Fig. 6. Schematic 3CFRD star-diagram.
In the following the application of the 3CFRD method to
an actual on-site measurement is shown. Fig. 7 depicts the
star-diagram with two distinct clusters. The centre
frequencies are set to 160 kHz, 1 MHz and 2 MHz with a
bandwidth of 160 kHz. Different filter settings have to be
tested on-site to obtain an optimal separation. Like the PRPD
diagrams, the amount of impulses in a cluster is represented
by the colour coding. To make full use of the 3CFRD
method, the cluster representation is used to separate noise
and possibly individual PD sources. By selecting an area in
the star diagram, as marked in red in Fig. 7, a back
transformation to the PRPD is performed. This way each
cluster can be selected and evaluated individually.

Fig. 5. Setup for on-site single-phase induced voltage test.

IV. ELECTROMAGNETIC INTERFERENCES

In contrast to a factory acceptance test during which the
partial discharge measurement is carried out in a shielded
room, on-site PD measurements can be heavily affected by
electromagnetic interferences (“noise”). In most cases the
root cause of the interferences, such as power electronics,
cannot be removed or switched off during the measurement.
If there are no means to eliminate the noise, a common way
to cope with these external signals, is tuning the
measurement frequency in way that the influence is
minimized. Recommendations regarding appropriate
frequency ranges can be found in [5]. However, a suitable
frequency range always depends on the individual frequency
characteristics of the setup and the device under test. Fig. 7. Star-diagram with noise (middle) and a PD source (marked red).
Therefore, care should be taken to avoid selecting a
frequency range in which the signal-to-noise ratio of the For the example at hand the corresponding unfiltered
partial discharge impulses is minimized. PRPD is depicted in Fig. 8-a). A clear PD activity can be
In the following, the three-centre frequency relation observed which is to some extent overlapped with a high
diagram method (3CFRD) is introduced as a measure to noise floor. When activating the 3CFRD functionality all
separate external noise and PD signals. The following measured impulses are automatically used to create the
technique of three band-pass filters is used to simultaneously aforementioned star-diagram. It is worth mentioning that
record each impulse entering the measurement system. only those impulses are depicted which are picked up at all
Depending on the frequency spectrum of the impulse each three centre frequencies. After selecting the corresponding
filter response will result in a different charge value. The cluster in the 3CFRD star-diagram, a back transformation to
charge values are plotted as vectors in a star-diagram in the PRPD is performed. Since now only those impulses are
which each axis is associated with one band-pass filter, Fig. shown which belong to the partial discharge source of
6. The length of each vector corresponds to the magnitude of
interest, a much clearer pattern is obtained, Fig. 8-b). In this
the charge. By geometrically adding all three vectors a single case a symmetric pattern in both halfwaves of the voltage
point in the diagram is obtained. Each impulse with a similar signal is observed. Consequently, each cluster in the star-
frequency spectrum will add another point in the same area diagram can be selected and analysed. Eventually, an
of the diagram. Thus, each PD source, including external individual evaluation of each PD source without any negative
noise, will generate an individual cluster in the star-diagram influences such as a high noise floor or external disturbances
[7]. is made possible.

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2019 6th International Advanced Research Workshop on Transformers (ARWtr)
Fig. 8. a) Original PRPD showing all picked up impulses, b) filtered PRPD
showing only impulses of the PD source.
V. CASE STUDIES
A. 27.5 kV / 10.5 kV / 1.6 MVA Transformer
During a routine measurement of a 27.5 kV / 10.5 kV /
1.6 MVA / YNy0 transformer a PD measurement is
requested. A single-phase induced voltage test with
combined partial discharge measurement is carried out.
Therefore, a variable voltage source [2] is connected to the
low-voltage side of the transformer. As a PD measurement
system, a MPD600 [11] from OMICRON is installed on the
HV side. Fig. 9 depicts the schematic of the measurement
setup. Due to the short-circuit on the low voltage terminals a
defined voltage distribution across the core limbs is
achieved. Thus, only the phase under test is stressed with the
full test voltage. Consequently, each phase is tested one after
the other.
Fig. 9. Measurement setup for the excitation of a YNy0 transformer.
The test cycle of the FAT, as shown in Fig. 2, remains
unchanged in terms of testing time. However, a reduced pre-
stress voltage of 1.2 x Un (33 kV) and a test voltage of
1.0 x Un (27.5 kV) are agreed upon with the operator.
The voltage amplitude is reduced to avoid excessive
electrical stress on the insulation system. On the other hand,
the test time of 3 minutes is kept to account for a possible
delayed inception of the PD activity. The test frequency was
set to 68 Hz which was found to be a resonant point. It is
observed that on phase U considerable discharges are
recorded up to 800 pC, Fig. 10. Besides, the pattern
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evaluation reveals typical signs of internal discharges in a
solid insulation system [8]-[10]. The inception voltage is
determined to be 26 kV while the extinction voltage is
around 20 kV.
Fig. 10. PRPD obtained during single-phase excitation on phase U.
Close to the voltage minimum a single PD cluster is
visible. Typically, impulses only recorded around 270° of the
voltage phase are related to discharges in air, also called
“Corona” [9]. Since these discharges occur in air and not in
the solid insulation system, they are regarded as external
noise and are not considered during the evaluation. To
separate the PD signals from all external influences, the
3CFRD method is applied. As discussed previously, a
simultaneous measurement using three band-pass filters is
performed to build the corresponding star-diagram, Fig. 11.
The centre frequencies are set to 160 kHz, 2 MHz and 4
MHz with a bandwidth of 160 kHz. Several clusters are
formed, each of which representing an independent PD
source. Marked in red are the two clusters identified as the
Corona discharges and the internal PD source.
Fig. 11. 3CFRD star-diagram obtained during the PD measurement.
Marked in red are the clusters for internal PD and Corona discharges.
After selecting the areas of interest, a back transformation
is performed to show the PRPD patterns of the marked
clusters. The lowest cluster in Fig. 11 is identified as the
internal PD source. Typical signs such as the symmetrical
pattern distribution for the positive and the negative
halfwave, as well as the occurrence in the 1st and 3rd quadrant
of the sine wave can be observed. In addition, the “bended”
structures, following the slope of the sine wave can be seen
as another indicator for a gaseous void inside an insulating
material [8] – [10], Fig. 12.
Due to the low inception voltage and the classification as
internal PD, the criticality of the insulation defect was rated
as high.
2019 6th International Advanced Research Workshop on Transformers (ARWtr)
Fig. 12. PRPD of the isolated internal PD.
B. 19 kV / 3 kV / 9.5 MVA Transformer
The second case study deals with the on-site testing of a
19 kV / 9.5 MVA / Dyn11 dry-type transformer. The unit is
installed in a cavern power plant and part of the excitation
system of a 400 MVA asynchronous generator. As one sister
transformer showed PD activity the operator decided to
check all remaining units for partial discharges. Since the
transformers are all installed in the cavern, it became
necessary to perform the requested measurements with a
portable test system. The single-phase excitation of the
transformer is realized by using two synchronized test
systems [2] to provide the needed power. In addition, a 0.4
kV / 3 kV transformer stepped up the output voltage U of the
test system to the LV rating of the transformer under test.
The complete connection diagram can be seen in Fig. 13. As
a PD measurement system, a MPD600 [11] from OMICRON
is installed on the HV.
Fig. 13. Single-phase measurement setup including step-up transformer.
The test cycle is again derived from the one proposed by
the FAT. In this case a pre-stress voltage of 1.3 x Un (25 kV)
and a test voltage of 1.0 x Un (19 kV) are agreed upon.
Due to excessive electromagnetic interferences, typical
filter frequencies for the PD measurement are not applicable.
Therefore, it is decided to select a narrow-band filter with a
bandwidth of 9 kHz. On the one hand a narrow-band filter is
very selective and can thus be used to select a frequency
range with minimum interferences. On the other hand, if the
frequency spectrum of a PD impulse shows a local minimum
at the selected frequency range, the signal-to-noise ratio can
be worse compared to a wideband-filter. This possible
disadvantage is countered by using the above described
3CFRD method. Three narrow-band filters with different
centre frequencies are selected to minimize the risk of
measuring at a local minimum of the frequency spectrum. In
this case the centre frequencies are set to
375 kHz / 756 kHz / 3900 kHz. In addition, the frequency
spectrum of the ambient electromagnetic noise and the
spectrum of the calibrator impulse have been recorded. Fig.
14 shows that the signal strength of the calibrator impulse is
well above the noise level up to a measurement frequency of
approximately 10 MHz. The red bars indicate the positions
of the three narrow-band filters. All three of them show an
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adequate signal-to-noise ratio. This way a measurement
range with a noise floor of 5 – 10 pC is achieved.
Fig. 14. Frequency spectrum of noise and calibrator impulse, filter
frequencies marked in red.
While there are no signs of PD activity on phase A, phase
B clearly shows the inception of partial discharges at 15 kV.
After visual inspection of the coil it was is found that the top
part of the winding body is polluted with dirt. Since a
comprehensive cleaning of the winding surface is not
feasible, it is decided to change the setup of the
measurement. While the excitation of the transformer
remains unchanged, one side of the tested HV winding is
connected directly to ground. First the coupling capacitor
stays connected to the terminal on top of the winding where
the pollution is the heaviest, Fig. 15-a). Afterwards, the
connection of the coupling capacitor and the ground
connection are exchanged. This way the main insulation of
the winding is electrically stressed in the same way while
there is no electrical stress on the terminal next to the
polluted winding surface, Fig. 15-b).
Fig. 15. Polluted side on a) high-voltage and b) on ground.
Using the first setup, again the partial discharge activity is
observed. In this case discharge levels of up to 80 pC are
recorded, Fig. 16-a). In contrast to this, the PD measurement
using the second setup does not show any PD activity above
the recorded noise floor of 3 pC, Fig. 16-b). The evaluation
of the 3CFRD star-diagram is used to make sure that no
additional PD sources are hidden in the noise floor. In this
case the 3CFRD method can be used as inverse filter. The
noise cluster is selected and all impulses except for the noise
are shown. This way it is made sure that no overlapping of
PD signals and noise floor is taking place. Since the
electrical stress on the main insulation is the same for both
setups, it is concluded that the origin of the partial discharges
are surface discharges along the polluted surface of the
winding body. In addition, the comparison of the results with
well-known patterns from literature indicate surface
discharges [8]-[10].
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Fig. 16. PRPD for polluted side on a) high voltage and b) on ground.
Finally, phase C is energized and checked for any PD
activity. Again, partial discharges occur below nominal
voltage, at 14 kV, in both haft-waves of the test voltage.
Discharge levels of up to 800 pC are recorded. The pattern
evaluation shows comparable results compared to phase V,
Fig. 17-a). However, the symmetrical patterns in both half-
waves show a tendency to follow the shape of the voltage
sine-wave. Typically, those characteristics point towards
internal discharges in the solid insulation system [8]-[10].
Again, the same approach as discussed above is applied, Fig.
15. In contrast to the previous phase, changing the
connection setup does not have any influence on the partial
discharge activity, Fig. 17-b). As the voltage stress across the
turn-to-turn insulation of the winding remains unchanged this
emphasizes the assumption that PD impulses are caused by
gaseous voids inside the main insulation.
Fig. 17. PRPD for top of the winding on a) high voltage and b) on ground.
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The PD activity of phase V is rated with a low criticality
since cleaning the winding surface should eliminate the
source of the discharges. On the other hand, the discharges
observed on phase W are rated as critical as they are
occurring inside the main insulation even below nominal
voltage.
VI. CONCLUSION
The article at hand focuses on the insulation assessment of
dry-type medium voltage transformers. A comparison is
drawn between the three-phase induced voltage test of the
factory acceptance test and a single-phase approach for on-
site testing purposes. Due to expected interferences, the
3CFRD-method is introduced. This synchronous multi-
frequency measurement allows the operator to separate
electromagnetic noise from PD signals. Besides, individual
PD sources can be distinguished and analysed independently.
Two case studies are presented which show that a single-
phase induced voltage test on three-phase transformers can
be utilized to identify insulation defects. Due to a defined
voltage distribution, each coil can be examined individually.
Finally, all obtained information during the PD measurement
such as the type of the PD source and the inception voltage
are factored in the evaluation of the criticality of the defect.
VII. REFERENCES
[1] Mineral oil-filled electrical equipment in service - Guidance on the
interpretation of dissolved and free gases analysis, IEC 60599,
Sept. 2015.
[2] CPC100 – Technical Data Sheet, OMICRON electronics, 2016.
[3] Martin J. Heathcote, "J&P Transformer Book", 13th edition, Elsevier
Ltd., 2007.
[4] Power transformers – Part 11: Dry-type transformers, IEC 60076-
11:2004, Jun. 2005.
[5] High-voltage test techniques – Partial discharge measurements,
IEC 60270, Ed. 3.1, Nov. 2015.
[6] A. Carlsson, F. Wegschneider, G. Schemel, J. Fuhr, "Testing of power
transformers and shunt reactors", ABB, 2nd ed., Chapter 8.5.4,
May 2010.
[7] M. Krüger, A. Kraetge, K. Rethmeier, “Improved Partial Discharge
Measurements by Real-time Impulse Waveform Analysis”, CIGRÉ
Workshop on Power Transformers, Iguacú, Apr. 2010.
[8] Partial Discharges in Transformers – Working Group D1.29,
CIGRÉ, Brochure 676, Feb. 2017.
[9] Recognition of Discharges – Working Group 21.03, CIGRÉ, 1969
[10] J. Fuhr, "Procedure for Identification and Localization of Dangerous
PD Sources in Power Transformers", IEEE Transactions on
Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation, Vol. 12, No. 5, Oct. 2005.
[11] MPD 600 – Technical Data Sheet, OMICRON electronics, 2015.
VIII. BIOGRAPHIES
Christoph Engelen was born in Aachen, Germany, in 1989. He received
his B.Sc. and M.Sc. in electrical engineering from RWTH Aachen,
Germany in 2011 and 2013, respectively. In 2014 he joined OMICRON
electronics as application engineer in the field of power transformer and
rotating machine diagnostics. Since 2017 he focuses as product manager on
medium voltage transformer diagnostics.
Victor Lozano was born in Madrid, Spain, in 1976. He received his high
technical degree in electronic product development in 1999. He was
working for 15 years in Unitronic electric as technician in the calibration
laboratory and specialized in Power transformers and rotating machines
testing. In 2014 he joined OMICRON Technologies España as Sales &
Application Engineer. He is concerned with sales, technical support and
training regarding substation assets and rotating machines diagnostics.
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