Review of Silicone Rubber Nanocomposites for Outdoor Insulation

Polymer nanocomposites have attracted wide interests in high voltage insulation due to their excellent electrical, thermal and mechanical properties. Among the new insulating materials extensively used as high-voltage outdoor insulation, silicone rubber (SIR) has received the most attention. Indeed, SIRs are gaining popularity as an effective counter-measure to handle the high voltage insulation problems. In recent times nano sized fillers (Nano fillers) have sought great deal of research scholars’ attention and has brought revolution in the polymer industry due to its better interaction with polymer. A relatively less quantity of nanofillers in comparison to micro filler is reported to achieve the required properties in SIR. In this review, the effectiveness of the most common nanofillers of SIR for dielectric applications along with various dispersion methods is presented. But numerous experimental investigations on nanocomposites have indicated a significant decrease in electrical, thermal, mechanical and surface properties, due to the agglomeration of nanofillers. Agglomeration can be reduced by using modified nanofillers & optimum quantity of nanofillers, high shear mixing, or by efficient filler dispersion methods but it is almost impossible to entirely eliminate this effect with the presently available technologies.