Detection of Partial Discharges at Square Shaped Voltages

Due to the wide use of electronic converters and the introduction of new powerful power electronics devices, the input waveforms most often used are becoming much different than the traditional power frequent sinusoidal one. In High Voltage (HV) apparatus particularly, this condition can increase the stress on the insulation systems that may lower the reliability of the whole power grid. This type of input voltage, often showing an increased voltage gradient, causes problems in the Partial Discharge (PD) measurement setup and acquisition systems, also due to the increased harmonic content. In this paper, the main aim is to discuss how to suitably approach the measurement technique of PDs at these conditions.