Morphology of electrical trees in silicon rubber

The main cause of degradation and breakdown in silicon rubber (SIR) is electrical treeing. Based on a series of experiments, this paper discusses the morphology of the electrical trees. The types of morphology of electrical trees in SIR are concluded. The effective factors of the tree initial type are explored. And the propagation characteristics are also studied through long-term electrical tree ageing experiments. These results are also compared with the electrical trees occurred in on-site cable accessories and those in PE which are more familiar to researchers. Based on those experiment results, an explanatory mechanism is proposed.