Fundamental physicochemical properties of SF₆-alternative gases: a review of recent progress

Abstract

Environmental considerations are increasingly taking a front seat in all arenas of our daily lives. Among the major concerns are greenhouse gases and the resulting global warming problem. Although sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) is the most widely used insulation and arc-interruption medium in electrical power equipment, it is an extremely potent greenhouse gas with a very high global warming potential (GWP). Hence, the global power industry has been actively seeking SF6-alternative gases for decades. In recent years, much progress has been made in developing promising new gases that have dielectric properties similar to, or even better than, SF6 but with much lower GWPs. Many engineering-oriented tests have been performed on the technical performance of these gases and some manufacturers have announced their application in pilot projects. However, their large-scale application still seems premature, in particular because of the lack of some critical fundamental physicochemical information for these relatively novel compounds. To provide a better understanding of these SF6-alternative gases, this paper reviews the recent advances in obtaining their fundamental physicochemical properties, emphasizing basic data calculations and fundamental experiments. The most important properties are analyzed comprehensively. These include the basic physical properties of arc plasmas formed from the gases, decomposition characteristics, materials compatibilities, swarm parameters, cross-sections and some dielectric properties. Finally, perspectives on current research and future research directions are presented.

Anomalous First Breakdown Behavior for HFO1234ze(E)

“…Any C 3 H 2 F 4 -containing insulation equipment must be handled with care to minimize soot formation, which could lead to rapidly deteriorated insulation performance. One potential solution is the use of O 2 [10,12] as part of the mixture to promote recombination into CO 2 .…”

“…In [11], the unsaturated double-carbon bonds in C 3 H 2 F 4 drive the fluorinated and hydrogenated molecules to form carbon soot under breakdown or arcing. In [12], it was reported that the addition of O 2 to a fluorinated gas mixture could minimize the formation of solid carbon.…”

Ti3C2Tx as a Sensor for SF6/N2 Nitrogen-Containing Fault Decomposition Characteristic Products: A Theoretical Study

“…SF 6 /N 2 not only has good insulation performance but also solves the problem of high SF 6 liquefaction temperature. It can effectively reduce the use and emission of SF 6 and relieve the greenhouse effect of SF 6 [4][5][6].…”

SF 6 decomposition and insulation condition monitoring of GIE: A review

“…GIE has become the preferred equipment for establishing smart grids and the important symbol of building a modern substation [1,2]. SF 6 is the main insulation medium of GIE and is a greenhouse gas that cannot be arbitrarily discharged; however, this gas presents an excellent insulation performance, and no alternative gas with better insulating properties and environmental performance is available to date [3,4]. SF 6 is expected to be widely used as the gas insulation medium of high-voltage electrical equipment in the future.…”