• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2000.05b
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• pp.190-195
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• 2000

The electrical properties and stability of ZPCE varistors consisted of $ZnO-Pr_6O_{11}-CoO-Er_2O_3$ ceramics were investigated. $ZnO-Pr_6O_{11}-CoO-Er_2O_3$ based ceramics were sintered at $1300^{\circ}C$ and $1350^{\circ}C$, respectively, without and with 0.5 mol% $Er_2O_3$. The varistors sintered at $1300^{\circ}C$ exhibited a better nonlinearity than that $1350^{\circ}C$. The varistors with $Er_2O_3$ of 0.5 mol% exhibited a high nonlinear exponent of 52.8. However, they easily degraded due to the low density below 85% of TD. On the other hand, the varistors sintered at $1350^{\circ}C$ without $Er_2O_3$ exhibited an extremely poor nonlinearity, but the varistors with $Er_2O_3$ of 0.5 mol% exhibited a relatively good nonlinearity, which the nonlinear exponent is 34.8 and the leakage current is $7.4\;{\mu}A$ Morever, they exhibited a very high stability, which the variation rate of varistor voltage, nonlinear exponent, and leakage current are -0.9%, -2.9%, and +2.7%, respectively, under the third stress $(0.80 V_{1mA}/90^{\circ}C/12h)$ + $(0.85 V_{1mA}/115^{\circ}C/12h)$ + $(0.90 V_{1mA}/120^{\circ}C/12h)$. Consequently, it was estimated that $ZnO-Pr_6O_{11}-CoO-Er_2O_3$ ceramics will be usefully applied to develop the advanced $Pr_6O_{11}$-based ZnO varistors.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.499-504
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• 1998

ZnO varistors having a composition of 98.0 mol% ZnO 1.0 mol% $Bi_2O_3$ 0.5 mol% $MnO_2$ were prepared by the Pechini process and the sintering behavior and electrical characteristics were studied. ZnO varis-색 powder with $1.5\mu\textrm{m}$ mean diameter and narow particle size distribution was obtained using the Pechni pro-cess. Typical intermediate stage grain growth of liquid phase sintering was observed by sintering at $1100^{\circ}C$ At this temperature ZnO varistors having uniform grain size and Bi-rich liquid phase distributed uniformly along grain boundaries were prepared. The nonlinear coefficients of the ZnO varistors were in the range of 40-60 The breakdown voltages of the varistors were nearly inversely propeortional to the grain size which reflects that ZnO varistors prepared by the Pechini process have uniform distribution of Bi-rich liquid phase along grain boundaries It is believed that the microstructures of ZnO varistors can be controlled effectively by using the Pechini process which makes the control of the electrical properties of ZnO varistors possible.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.14 no.8
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• pp.640-646
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• 2001

The electrical stability for DC stress of Pr$_{6}$O$_{11}$-based ZnO varistos consisting of ZnO-Pr$_{6}$O$_{11}$-CoO-Cr$_2$O$_3$-Er$_2$O$_3$-based ceramics were investigated with sintering temperature in the range of 1325~1345$^{\circ}C$. A the sintering temperature is raised, the nonlinear exponent of varistors was decreased, whereas the stability was markedly improved. The density of ceramics was found to greatly affect the electrical stability for DC stress. The varistors sintered at 13$25^{\circ}C$ were completely degraded because of thermal runaway attributing to low density. The varistors sintered at 1335$^{\circ}C$ exhibited the highest nonlinearity, with a nonlinear exponent of 70.53 and a leakage current of 1.92$\mu$A, whereas they did not exhibit relatively high stability. On the contrary, the varistors sintered at >134$0^{\circ}C$ exhibited not only a high nonlinearity marking the nonlinear exponent above 50 and the leakage current below 3$\mu$A, but also a high stability marking the variation rate of the varistor voltage below 2%, even under DC stress such as (0.80V$_{1mA}$/9$0^{\circ}C$/12h)+(0.85V$_{1mA}$/115$^{\circ}C$/12h)+(0.90V$_{1mA}$/12$0^{\circ}C$/12h)+(0.95V$_{1mA}$/1$25^{\circ}C$/12h)+(0.95V$_{1mA}$/15$0^{\circ}C$/12h). In particular, ti was found that the varistors sintered at 134$0^{\circ}C$ were more nonlinear and more stable, compared with that of 1345$^{\circ}C$.EX>.}C$.EX>.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.190-197
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• 2002

In this thesis, ZnO varistors with various formulation, such as A∼E, were fabricated according to ceramic fabrication method. The microstructure, electrical properties, and surge characteristics of ZnO varistors were investigated according to ZnO varistors with various formulation. In the microstructure, A∼E\`s ZnO varistor ceramics sintered at 1130$\^{C}$ was consisted of ZnO grain(ZnO), spinel phase (Zn$\_$2.33/Sb$\_$0.67/O$\_$4/), Bi-rich phase(Bi$_2$O$_3$) and intergranuler phase, wholly. Lightning impulse residual voltage of A, B, C and E\`s ZnO varistors suited standard characteristics, below 12kV at current of 5kA. On the contrary, D\`s ZnO varistor exhibited high residual voltage as high reference voltage. In the accelerated aging test, leakage current and watt loss of B, C and D\`s ZnO varistors increases abruptly with stress time under the first a.c. stress(115$\^{C}$/3.213kV/300h). Consequently, C varistor exhibited a thermal run away. On the contrary, leakage current and watt loss of A and C\`s ZnO varistors which show low initial leakage current exhibited constant characteristics. After high current impulse test, A\`s ZnO varistor has broken the side of varistor but impulse current flowed. On the contrary, E\`s ZnO Varistor exhibited good discharge characteristics which the appearance of varistor was not wrong such as puncture, flashover, creaking and other significant damage. After long duration impulse current test, E\`s ZnO varistor exhibited good discharge characteristics which the appearance of varistor was not wrong such as puncture, flashover, creaking and other significant damage. After high current impulse test and long duration impulse current test, E\`s ZnO varistor exhibited very good characteristics which variation rate of residual voltage is 1.4% before and after test.

• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers C
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• v.55 no.5
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• pp.257-262
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• 2006

To evaluate the change in protective levels of zinc oxide (ZnO) varistors after the surge absorption, this paper investigated the effects of the number of injection and amplitude of lightning surges on the life of ZnO varistors for low voltages. Leakage currents flowing through ZnO varistors subjected to the $8/20{\mu}s$ impulse currents under 60 Hz AC voltages were measured. The surge simulator system ECAT that can generate $8/20{\mu}s$ impulse currents with a peak short-circuit of 5 $[kA_p]$ was used. The ZnO varistor leakage current increases with exposure to impulse current, and the number of injection of $8/20{\mu}s$ impulse currents to breakdown was inversely proportional to the amplitude of the test current. Behaviors of ZnO varistor leakage currents were strongly dependent on the number of injection and amplitude of $8/20{\mu}s$ impulse currents. ZnO varistors degrade gradually when subjected to impulse current, and the resistive leakage current flowing through ZnO varistors subjected to the $8/20{\mu}s$ impulse currents under 60 Hz AC voltages was significantly increased after a certain number of injection that is dependent on the amplitude of the test impulse current. As a result, the life of ZnO varistors mainly depends on the amplitude and occurrence frequency of lightning surges.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Information and Communication Engineering
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• v.4 no.4
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• pp.793-801
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• 2000

This paper presents the effect of lightning impulse current on ZnO varistors(390[V], 6.5[kA]) used in low-voltage AC mains as a protective device against transient overvoltages. The electrical characteristics of ZnO varistors are deteriorated by overtime impulse current, and a deteriorated ZnO varistor is brought to a thermal runaway and finally destroyed even in normal operating voltage. Therefore, it is important to estimate the changes of the electrical characteristics of ZnO varistors. A lightning impulse current standardized in IEC 61000-4-5 is applied to the varistors to accelerate deterioration, and the energy applied to the varistor at each time is about 12 [J]. In the experiment, various parameters such as leakage current, reference voltage are measured with the number of applied impulse current. Also, micro-structure changes of the varistors after applying the lightning impulse current of 200 times are compared. The electrical characteristics of the varistors are degraded by overtime impulse current, showing increase in leakage current and decrease in reference voltage.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.18 no.7
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• pp.615-621
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• 2005

The electrical stability against surge stress of varistors, which are composed of Zn-Pr-Co-Cr-Y oxide system, were investigated at different sintering times. As sintering time increases, the varistor voltage and nonlinear exponent decreased in the range of $279.6\~179.1$ and $52.5\~24.9$, respectively. On the contrary, the leakage current and dielectric dissipation factor increased in the range of $1.2\~9.8\;{\mu}A$ and 0.0461\~0.0651 with increase of sintering time. For all varistors, the variation rates of V-I characteristic parameters against surge stress were more strongly affected in order of varistor voltage ${\rightarrow}nonlnear$ $exponent{\rightarrow}leakage$ current. On the whole, the electrical stability against surge stress increased with increasing sintering time. Conclusively, it is assumed that the varistors sintered for 2 h exhibited comparatively good characteristics, in view of overall characteristics.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2004.07b
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• pp.1142-1145
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• 2004

ZnO surge arresters continuously endure the operating voltages during the operation course, and in the mean time, which need to withstand occasionally transient voltages of lightning and switching overvoltages. Under these voltages, the ZnO varistors inside arresters would have aging phenomena, one important result of aging phenomena is the increasing of resistive currents of varistors, which leads to the increasing of power losses of varistors. And the operating voltage is continuously applied on the ZnO varistors, there is a degradation phenomenon existing in ZnO varistors. When the degradation reaches a certain degree, then the arrester must stop operation. The degradation is related to the applied voltage ratio, the applied voltage ratio is high, the degradation is quickly. When the power loss is higher than the thermal dispersion ability of house of arrester, then the arrester will thermally breakdown. In this study the thermal stability characteristics of surge arresters for high power wil be discussed on the view point of watt losses and thermal breakdown.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2001.11b
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• pp.467-471
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• 2001

DC accelerated aging characteristics of $Pr_{6}O_{11}$-based ZnO varistors, which are composed of $ZnO+Pr_{6}O_{11}+CoO+Cr_{2}O_{3}+Dy_{2}O_{3}$ ceramics were investigated with CoO content in the range of 0.5 - 5.0 mol%. The varistors doped with 1.0 mol% revealing maximum value(66.61) in the nonlinear exponent exhibited excellent stability, in which the variation rates of the varistor voltage, the nonlinear exponent and leakage current are -1.93%, -10.48%, and +288.79%, respectively, under DC accelerated aging stress, such as $(0.85V_{lmA}/115^{\circ}C/24h)+(0.90V_{lmA}120^{\circ}C/24h)+(0.95V_{lmA}/125^{\circ}C/24h)+(0.95V_{lmA}/150^{\circ}C/24h)$. Next the varistors doped with 2.0 mol% exhibiting the nonlinear exponent of 47.39 showed high stability.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.19 no.9
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• pp.862-867
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• 2006

Bi-based nano-varistors and micro-varistors fabricated with each ZnO nano-powder and micro-powder were studied about characteristics on the surge capability in this study. ZnO nano-varistors were sintered in air at $1050^{\circ}C$ for 2 hr. The voltage-current and residual voltage properties of ZnO nano-varistor were compared with their of ZnO micrio-varistor. As a result of these properties, our ZnO nano-varistor has about 3 times at operating voltage as compared with conventional ZnO varistor fabricated with micro-powder and the residual voltage was 8.06 kV at nominal discharge current 101kA in the lighting impulse current test. And then the residual voltage rate 1.72 of our nano-varistor has had better performance than the 1.79 of micro-varistor because ZnO nano-varistor has shown much quick response property because of increasing effective cross-section area. Also, to analysis surge capability took thermal images for pyrexia temperature distribution with each of the varistors after operating varistors. Nano-varistor doesn't have shown local overheating and can confirm accurate temperature grade on the surface of its.