Additive Manufacturing of Biobased Material Used in Electrical Insulation: Comparative Studies on Various Printing Technologies

In the power industry, various electrically insulating materials are used to ensure proper mechanical, thermal, and dielectric performance over decades of equipment operation. In power transformers, cellulose is the predominant material in manufacturing various insulation components. Most of these products are manufactured by wet-molding technology. However, this process is long, labor-intensive, and highly energy-demanding. Under the frame of an EU-funded grant, a new kind of insulation material and manufacturing process were developed. Fully bio-based material (produced in the form of pellets) can be processed using additive manufacturing, allowing for much shorter manufacturing times for insulation products, with considerably less scrap and energy consumption (due to the elimination of the drying stage). The focus of the project was extrusion additive manufacturing technology, but at a later stage, a biomaterial powder was developed, making it possible to print with other technologies. In the paper, comparative studies on various additive manufacturing techniques of newly developed biopolymers have been presented, including extrusion, High Speed Sintering (HSS), and Selective Laser Sintering (SLS). The applicability of such material in power transformers required extensive testing of various properties. These results are discussed in the paper and include: oil compatibility, volume resistivity measurements, permittivity and dissipation factor measurements, determination of partial discharge inception voltage, partial discharges measurement, and breakdown voltage measurements. Although mechanical properties remain below industrial targets, the pioneering results provide a promising route for unique directions toward more sustainable manufacturing of high-voltage cellulose insulation and ideas for improving the material properties during the printing process.