Effect of Voltage Level on the Performance of Silicone Rubber in the Inclined Plane Tracking and Erosion Test

This paper investigates the effect of the test voltage level on the performance of silicone rubber in inclined plane tracking and erosion test. Silicone rubber composites, filled with either alumina tri-hydrate or ground silica to 30 wt% or 50 wt%, are tested in inclined plane tracking and erosion test under 2.5 kV, 3.5 kV, and 4.5 kV. The degradation patterns of the tested silicone rubber surfaces are found dependent on the test voltage level during the inclined plane tracking and erosion test, as the dry-band arcing on silicone rubber tends to form tracks under relatively mild test voltages and deep erosion under the critical test voltage. These findings confirm the importance of employing the critical voltage while evaluating the erosion resistance of silicone rubber in the inclined plane tracking and erosion test. In addition, the critical test voltage of silicone rubber is found dependent on the amount of filler added to the composite.