Investigation of partial discharge severity at XLPE cable without termination

Cable terminations are known as the weak point of cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) power cables. Therefore, power companies are constantly seeking new ways to create more effective cable termination designs. In order to improve cable termination design, it is required to understand the nature of weak points at the cable end. Partial discharge measurement is a non-destructive measurement method, which can be used to access insulation quality. Therefore, this work investigates partial discharge severity of unterminated cable ends under various conditions to observe the strongest factor that degrades the insulation quality at the cable end. Factors which determine good cable termination design may also be attained from the measurement results of this work.