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Electrical treeing behavior in low density polyethylene and its nanocomposite filled with 1.0 wt% and 3.0 wt% aluminum oxide nanoparticles was investigated by means of a real-time microscope recording system and a synchronized partial discharge measurement. For preparing the nanocomposite, uncoated aluminum oxide nanoparticles with 99.5% purity (Nanodur, CAS 1344-28-1) were used. These were of almost spherical shape with an average diameter of 45 nm. The test objects were prepared in form of the wire-plane electrode geometry [1]. The electrical treeing tests were carried out by applying 50 Hz AC voltage at a ramping speed of 22 V/s. The obtained experimental results indicate that the addition of the nanoparticles has a positive impact on the resistance to electrical treeing. Both the scale and the shape of the distribution of the treeing initiation voltage improved. The magnitude of partial discharge activity associated with the treeing in polyethylene nanocomposites was also lower than in the reference material.

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