Infra-red and ultra-violet imaging techniques applied to the inspection of outdoor transmission voltage insulators

The high voltage transmission network in South Africa contains a relatively high percentage of non-ceramic insulators. Techniques for assessing the condition of these insulators are under investigation. Such techniques include imaging techniques that take either an infra-red image or an ultra-violet image of the insulator. Such images may indicate some changes to either the external (visible) components of the insulator or to the internal (non-visible) components that may impact the long-term integrity of the insulator. This paper discusses the results of an investigation into these two imaging techniques applied to non-ceramic insulators.