Survey of Micro/nano Filler Use to Improve Silicone Rubber for Outdoor Insulators

Among the new insulating materials widely used in high-voltage outdoor insulation, silicone rubber has received the most attention. Indeed, silicone rubbers are gaining in popularity as an effective counter-measure to insulator contamination problems. However, pure silicone rubber shows little tracking and erosion resistance. So, some properties of silicone rubber need to be improved to extend service life. The fillers are added to the polymer to promote specific properties and also to reduce costs. To improve the surface hydrophobicity, electrical conductivity, relative permittivity and thermal conductivity of polymeric materials, micro/nanofillers are added. In this review, we present the state of the art on the most common micro/nanofillers for dielectric applications. Special attention is put on the property modification of silicone rubber brought about by filler incorporation for outdoor insulation applications. A need for comprehensive and exhaustive review of micro/nanofiller used in the area of outdoor insulator is being felt. This paper is intended to fulfil it. Literature surveys showed some filler as potential candidate for outdoor insulator application. However, much work is still needed to fully characterise and to optimise their property to establish for commercial application.