Study on the Characteristics of Jatropha and Ricinnus Seed Oils as Liquid Insulating Materials

Insulation is one of the most important parts in a high voltage apparatus. Petroleum-based mineral oils have been used as insulation for power transformer since long time ago. Recently, peoples pay attention on the environmental aspects of the oils. Researchers are now searching new types of insulating materials, which are friendly to environment. We have investigated the dielectrics-short term characteristics of jatropha and ricinnus seed oils in attempt to find the environmental friendly insulating materials. The samples used including CJO (Crude Jatropha Oil), RJO (Refined Jatropha Oil), CRO (Crude Ricinnus Oil), RRO (Refined Ricinnus Oil) and RROT (Refined Ricinnus Oil with treatment). The losses factors and breakdown voltages of the oils as function of temperature were investigated. The values of flash point, viscosity, neutralization number and dissolved gasses in oils are presented. The results indicated that RROT may be considered as a candidate for biodegradable liquid insulating material with reasonable high breakdown voltage, low tan delta and comply with the existing standard such as IEC, ASTM or British Standard. Dissolved gas analysis also showed that the total combustible gas in the oils was very small and corresponds to condition 1 of C57-104-1991. However, long-term performances of the oils have to be investigated.