DC Surface Flashover of Epoxy Nanocomposites in Vacuum: Using Rare Methodologies to Achieve Unique Results

For the studies discussed in this article, epoxy resin (EP) was selected as a matrix and nanotitania (TiO2) was chosen as the nanoparticles. Five kinds of samples with different nanoparticles loadings were prepared, i.e., 0 wt%, 0.5 wt%, 1 wt%, 5 wt%, and 10 wt%. Rather than applying an impulse f lashover voltage, a dc flashover voltage was used. This method has rarely been studied and was conducted using EP TiO2 samples in a vacuum. To increase the dc surface flashover voltage, our research team used a nanodielectric surface. To explore the relationship between the nanocomposite characteristics and the surface flashover, a scanning electron microscope and volume/surface resistivity measurements were used, and trap characteristics and dielectric responses were examined.