With what is claimed to be the largest mobile oil regeneration plant in Africa, WEG Transformers Africa (WTA) plays a vital role in extending the life of South Africa’s transformer population and preventing unplanned downtime within electricity transmission systems. According to engineering manager, Ronaldo Bertoldi, ageing transformer oil introduces a number of risks into the performance and longevity of oil cooled transformers. “Moisture and impurities reduce the intended insulating effect that oil has within the windings and produces acid, making it more likely for breakdowns to occur, with potentially severe damage to the transformer itself,” he says.
WTA is able to conduct an oil regeneration service onsite for large transformers. This is done by transporting the regeneration plant by road and setting it up at the location required by the customer. Once linked up to the transformer, the unit circulates the oil through a process which involves filtering it through Fuller’s earth to remove impurities.
Careful sampling of the oil is first conducted in accordance with ISO and SANS sampling procedures by the company’s field teams, so that oil testing can establish the severity of the contamination. Laboratory tests, also conducted by WTA, are able to pick up the extent of cellulose breakdown from the insulation around the windings, oil decomposition and any moisture ingress. “The regeneration process removes acids, as well as absorbing moisture and oil decaying products through a hot oil circulation process through Fullers earth and inline oil purification in a closed loop path,” Bertoldi explains.
The process of purification only is shorter and uses inline micro filters to remove water, alcohol, dissolved gases, oxides and solid impurities. This is also a hot oil circulation process conducted in a closed loop path, and can usually be conducted in less than a day, depending on the condition of the oil. The number of passes that the oil requires through the system is based on the laboratory tests that indicate the level of contamination. Most of this work is conducted for end-users of transformers in various industrial sectors, with municipalities currently doing less oil purification or regeneration than in the past.
World’s fastest 14 bit arbitrary waveform generator Vepac Electronics
Electrical Power & Protection
The ARB Rider AWG-700 from Vepac is the world’s fastest 14 bit arbitrary waveform generator, with a 20 GS/s real-time update rate and 14 bit vertical resolution.
Read more...Transformers for mining house in Botswana ACTOM Electrical Machines
Electrical Power & Protection
LH Marthinusen is completing the manufacture of two 30 MVA transformers for a mining house in Botswana.
Read more...Rethinking power for Africa’s data centres Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
Africa’s digital economy is scaling faster than its power systems. If it wants resilient, competitive and sustainable data centres, the starting point must be a grid-to-chip architecture rather than a genset-first mentality.
Read more...The growing decentralisation of power grids
Electrical Power & Protection
The decentralisation of power generation is changing how national grids function. For electrical engineers, several new challenges and opportunities are on the horizon.
Read more...Custom mini substations for Zambian copper mine
Electrical Power & Protection
Recent orders to supply seventeen specially engineered mini substations for an underground copper mine in Zambia reinforces Trafo Power Solution’s track record in delivering customised electrical solutons for challenging environments.
Read more...Unifying building information into a sea of insight Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
Facility managers realise that in order to gain the most from building automation, they can longer deploy and operate technologies in isolation. Modern, integrated building management solutions address this challenge by bringing data from multiple sources and dispersed locations like HVAC, lighting, access control, lifts, generators, field devices, energy and
Read more...Smart power solutions for a low-carbon future ABB South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
As the world marked Earth Day 2026, ABB is highlighting the role of low-voltage smart power solutions in improving energy efficiency, reducing emissions and enabling more sustainable infrastructure.
Read more...Why digital LV switchboards matter Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
Today’s buildings account for up to 40% of global energy consumption and CO2 emissions. However, buildings are also expected to deliver higher availability and stronger safety performance while also being sustainable. Digital swirchboards make a difference in the way buildings are developed, upgraded and managed.
While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained herein, the publisher and its agents cannot be held responsible for any errors contained, or any loss incurred as a result. Articles published do not necessarily reflect the views of the publishers. The editor reserves the right to alter or cut copy. Articles submitted are deemed to have been cleared for publication. Advertisements and company contact details are published as provided by the advertiser. Technews Publishing (Pty) Ltd cannot be held responsible for the accuracy or veracity of supplied material.
printer friendly version