Comprehensive Electrical Evaluation of Polyalphaolefin (PAO) Dielectric Coolant
Abstract
We found that Electrical breakdown in a PAO fluid results in the formation of submicron carbonaceous particles and some flammable gas which, more than likely, is hydrogen. An applied electric field generates significant streaming electrification in a PAO fluid. The Navy Oil Analysis Program procedures, which were developed in the 1980s for testing unstable Coolanol fluids, fail to test the degradation of hydrolytically stable PAO fluids currently used by the Navy. All the following measurements of: (1) the frequency dependence of a complex dielectric permittivity (dielectric spectrum); (2) the partial discharge inception voltage using needle-plane electrodes; (3) the viscosity in a thin capillary; and (4) the transmittance in ultra-violet and visible light, appear to be sensitive enough to characterize the PAO fluid degradation under operating conditions typical of Navy aircraft systems. Moreover, these test procedures are simpler, faster, and less expensive than those currently being employed at the Navy laboratories.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Nov 12, 1997
- Accession Number
- ADA363781
Entities
People
- Andreas Acrivos
- Boris Khusid
- Jacob Khodorkovsky
- Michael Beltran