Trafoboard® HD-PH approved by the state energy supplier PGCIL in India
New possibilities for transformers up to 765 kV
India's largest energy supply company, Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL), has successfully approved the Trafoboard® HD-PH insulation material from Röchling Industrial for use in power transformers. Trafoboard® HD-PH is a laminated pressboard that Röchling Industrial developed especially for the construction of oil-filled high-voltage transformers.
Power Grid Corporation of India Limited is an Indian state-owned utility company based in Gurugram, India. PGCIL transmits on its transmission grid more than half of all electricity generated in India. In this function, the PGCIL controls expansions and modernizations with regard to the energy supply in India. PGCIL has high standards and specifications for the approval of new materials and products that are used in the field of power generation and distribution. The mechanical and electrical product properties, the production process, the sustainability of the supply chain and on-site serviceability in India are checked by the corporation.
Digital audit
In a digital audit, PGCIL audited Röchling Industrial in Haren, Germany, and checked the production process as well as the processes for manufacturing Trafoboard® HD-PH. With the successful approval, transformer manufacturers in India are now allowed to use Trafoboard® HD-PH as insulation construction element for highest electrical field strengths in their power transformers.
The Röchling Industrial location in Vadodara, India, was also successfully audited in a follow-up audit and approved for the manufacturing of Trafoboard® HD-PH components. This means that Röchling Engineering Plastics (India) Pvt Ltd. can process Trafoboard® HD-PH on site for transformers with a voltage class of up to 765 kV, thus benefitting the Indian transformer manufacturers with local processing availability.
New opportunities for transformer manufacturers
With the successful approval of Trafoboard® HD-PH, Röchling offers its customers in India new possibilities for the design and development of their transformers. Manoj Kumar, Managing Director of Röchling Engineering Plastics (India) Pvt. Ltd .: “We are very proud to have passed the demanding PGCIL audit. With this approval, we are the only supplier of laminated pressboard with phenolic resin bonding in India.“
Kirti Dhandukiya, Vice President Composites in India: "Trafoboard® HD-PH stands for a high level of quality as well as excellent electrical and mechanical properties. With its excellent properties, Trafoboard® HD-PH is especially suitable for transformers in the high voltage range of up to 765 kV.”
Excellent electrical and mechanical properties
Röchling developed Trafoboard® HD-PH in 2011. The premium insulation material had established itself in the market in a short time and is now used by the leading transformer manufacturers worldwide.
Trafoboard® HD-PH combines excellent electrical and mechanical properties with high chemical purity and tight tolerances. Compared to polyester and casein-bonded insulation materials, the phenolic resin-bonded Trafoboard® HD-PH offers several advantages. Trafoboard® HD-PH is characterized by high partial discharge-free electric strength and compared to casein, Trafoboard® HD-PH has higher mechanical strength and better drying behavior. In comparison to polyester-bonded pressboard, no styrene is released during machining.
Trafoboard® HD-PH consists of highly compressed pressboard sheets made of pure cellulose in accordance with IEC 60641 which are laminated with a special phenol-based bonding. For the electrical properties the glue line between the pressboard layers is crucial. Therefore, the partial discharge inception field strength was tested at the Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences, Germany. Trafoboard® HD-PH achieves an outstandingly high dielectric strength without the onset of partial discharge, which leads to increased safety in the transformer. In addition, Trafoboard® HD-PH meets the requirements of the standard for laminated pressboard IEC 60763 type LB 3.1A.2 (non-aqueous).
For the approval of Trafoboard® HD-PH by PGCIL, Röchling was able to fall back on its decades of experience with its branded material Lignostone® Transformerwood®. Lignostone® Transformerwood® is a laminated densified wood that has been used in oil-filled power transformers worldwide for almost 60 years and is approved by PGCIL in India in 2003 already. For 18 years, manufacturers in India have been using Lignostone® Transformerwood® for the manufacture of transformers with a rating of up to 765 kV, supplied by Röchling Engineering Plastics (India).
Trafoboard is newly approved for transformers up to voltage class 765 kV for highest electrical requirements within the transformer. With the approval by the PGCIL, manufacturers in India can now source on a proven branded material from Röchling Industrial for transformers in the very high voltage range.
Specialist in machined components
Trafoboard® HD-PH is available as a semi-finished product and as a machined finished part in many dimensions for different requirements. With a modern machine park, Röchling Industrial also delivers tight tolerance finished parts made of Trafoboard® HD-PH according to customer design using state of the art CNC machines. Typical components are, for example rings, platforms, cleats and leads or segments.
Dimensions for semi-finished and finished parts are as follows:
- 4150 x 2150 mm x 10…120 mm
- Rings up to Ø 3100 mm
- Platforms up to 3150 x 3150 mm
Premium materials for the transformer industry
Insulation materials from Röchling have been used in transformers for over 60 years and meet the highest dielectric and thermal requirements. In addition to Trafoboard® HD-PH and Lignostone® Transformerwood®, the product range for transformers also includes the glass fiber reinforced plastic Durostone® CR. All materials support transformer manufacturers in the development of powerful and safe transformers.
As a member of the TRANSFORM network, the partner network of European premium suppliers for the transformer industry, Röchling has set itself the task of helping to shape the standards of the transformers of tomorrow.
More information about Trafoboard® HD-PH
