AC Hipot & Resonant Test Sources
Applied-voltage testing from 0 to 1,200 kV, hipot or resonant
An applied-voltage test is only as good as the source behind it. Too little kVA and the object pulls the voltage down. Too much harmonic content and the partial discharge measurement is buried before it starts. Atlas Energy supplies AC hipot and resonant sources from 0 to 1,200 kV, sized against the object you actually have to test: a bushing, a switchgear cubicle, a large power transformer or a reel of cable.
Hipot configurations cover 5 to 500 kVA. Where the object is capacitive and reactive power is the constraint, the resonant configuration reaches 15 MVA and tunes between 50 and 300 Hz, so the supply only makes up the circuit losses. Measurement uncertainty is held below 1% and total harmonic distortion below 5%, which keeps the voltage record defensible and the partial discharge floor low. Over-voltage, over-current, arc detection and object-breakdown trip protect both the object and the source when the insulation lets go.
Why it matters
A single 0 to 1,200 kV envelope covers transformer, switchgear, cable and instrument transformer applied-voltage tests, so one source anchors the whole test bay.
The resonant configuration supplies only the circuit losses, which is how a 15 MVA test load runs from an input rated at a fraction of that.
Total harmonic distortion below 5% keeps the waveform clean enough that the partial discharge measurement sees the object and not the source.
Measurement uncertainty below 1% is what makes the test report survive a customer witness test or an accreditation audit.
Arc detection and object-breakdown trip clear a failure quickly, protecting the object under test and everything else in the circuit.
Ratings
Output voltage: 0 to 1,200 kV, AC or DC
Power: 5–500 kVA (hipot) or up to 15 MVA (resonant)
Output frequency: 50–300 Hz
Input: 220 / 380 VAC, 50/60 Hz
Measurement uncertainty: <1%
Total harmonic distortion: <5%
Protection: Over-voltage, over-current, arc detection and object-breakdown trip
Extended range
Cylinder-type AC test transformers: 50 kV / 0.1 A to 750 kV / 2 A per module; cascaded to 2,250 kV and 6 A; input 0.22 / 0.38 / 0.4 / 0.6 / 3 / 6 / 10 kV; duty 1 h on / 1 h off, 8 times per day
Tank-type AC test transformers: Up to 1,000 kV and 50 A; high-current variants at 200 kV / 20 A and 300 kV / 30 A; vertical or horizontal, porcelain or polymer bushing, indoor or outdoor
Variable-inductance series resonant: Up to 2,500 kV, 40 A, 24,500 kVA
Tank-type series/parallel resonant: 5 kV to 600 kV, 70 kVA to 48,000 kVA, system current to 80 A; output measured from the bushing capacitive tap
System accessories: Voltage regulator, power line noise filter, compensation reactor, coupling capacitor, damping resistor, corona-free HV tubing
Standards
IEEE Std 4
IEC 60060-1
IEC 60076-3
ABNT NBR 6936 for South American projects
Applications
Applied-voltage dielectric tests on transformers, switchgear, cables and instrument transformers
Factory acceptance and type testing
Insulation integrity verification after installation or repair
Test laboratory core source
Questions engineers ask
When should I use a resonant test system instead of a test transformer?Capacitance decides it. A cable, a gas-insulated bus or a capacitor bank draws reactive power a test transformer has to supply in full. A series resonant circuit tunes the reactor against that capacitance anywhere between 50 and 300 Hz, and the supply then covers only the losses. That is how a 15 MVA test load runs from a modest input.
What is supplied with the source itself?A configured system adds the voltage regulator, power line noise filter, compensation reactor, coupling capacitor, damping resistor and corona-free high voltage tubing. Cylinder and tank-type test transformers, variable-inductance resonant sets and tank-type series or parallel resonant sets all sit inside the same range, so the source is matched to the object rather than the other way round.
Technical documentation
Download HVEX High-Voltage HIPOT Source datasheet (English, PDF)
