StabOx, the laboratory solution for measuring the oxidation stability of insulating liquids, is about to enter Terna’s laboratories; in fact, the factory tests have just been completed and the product is ready for packaging and shipping.

Let’s take a step back. The tool was officially presented at the My Transfo 2018 conference (17th December) and in that event Terna had the opportunity to touch the concentration of innovation contained in the new born in the Sea Marconi home. In fact, StabOx was designed and built entirely by Sea Marconi, initially with the intention of using it in its own laboratory, then, given the positive feedback and the keen interest of Terna, the intention to put the product in the catalog and make it available on the market.

 

StabOx performs the accelerated aging of liquids under controlled conditions with great precision, the instrument fully meets all the requirements of the reference standard (IEC 61125 * ed. 2.0 2018-01) but starting from those it is able to offer much higher quality standards. In fact, Stabox maintains the temperature of the samples and the flow rate of the oxidant at prescribed levels, while ensuring a much higher accuracy for the duration of the test, without any intervention by the operator. The instrument allows you to perform up to three tests in parallel (independent between them) and has preloaded settings that facilitate the execution of the test on different types of insulating fluids: non-inhibited, inhibited in traces, natural esters, synthetic esters, etc.

StabOx represents the maximum synthesis of Sea Marconi skills, which has been able to combine chemistry, electronics, IoT cybersecurity, process and product engineering at the highest levels.

*Test method for evaluating the oxidation stability of insulating liquids in the delivered state”

Halfway through January, a meeting was held to do the sums on the framework agreement between EDF and Sea Marconi relative to diagnostic activities on transformers (and other electrical equipment) installed by EDF in French territory.

18 area managers (responsible for thermal, nuclear, hydroelectric generation and distribution) participated in the meeting. The first half of the meeting consisted in an overview of the activities performed during the last year, whilst the second half of the meeting focused on the objectives and plans for improvement in the year 2015.

The summary data relative to activities performed by Sea Marconi for EDF revealed (compared to the previous year) an increase in the number of analyses and diagnoses performed, with a general improvement in performance indicators.

In addition to recognising a general improvement in the service provided, EDF professionals also commended Sea Marconi for their maximum transparency, ability to identify and assess individual criticalities, and provide innovative solutions.

Just a few minutes ago, the first samples arrived, taken from the transformers in the Persian Gulf, thanks to the three-year agreement signed between Sea Marconi and CEGELEC Saudi. The agreement relates to the diagnostic coverage of about 100 pieces of equipment(power transformers, shunt reactors, auxiliary transformers, tap changers, earthing transformers) operating in the GCC Countries: Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Arab Emirates Oman.This prestigious task has been allocated to Sea Marconi after an international tender that has seen Sea Marconi prevailing thanks to 45 years of experience collected in the largest private and independent data bank in the sector, the accreditationwith international value, the full compliance with international norms (IEC, CIGRE etc.), the independence with respect to manufacturers of oil and electrical equipment and the use of BAT/BEP proprietary techniques.Thus, Sea Marconi is the exclusive partner for the Life Cycle Management – LCM of the electrical equipment with insulating fluids, fundamental elements for the correct operation of high voltage interconnection networks in the Gulf Countries.

In particular, the services offered provide the analysis and diagnosis (Deosvision) of the insulating oil and the equipment, with the identification of functional or environmental criticalities (i.e. spent thermal life, thermal or electric defects, degradation of the fluid, presence or degradation of additives etc.) and the relevant countermeasures.

Sea Marconi is able to offer a unique specialistic consultancy in the sector, since it implements the most advanced normative state of the art and has an international accreditation reflecting in all the phases in the provision of the service: sampling, analysis of the fluid (and relevant measurement uncertainty), study of the trend, anamnesis, evaluation of signs and symptoms, each time compared with the data stored in the largest worldwide data bank in this field. All this supports the users of electrical equipment fleets for the most correct management of the life cycle management LCM in terms of environmental, technical, economic and social sustainability.

On 8^th January 2013 in Toulouse the annual meeting between the highest ranks of EDF and Sea Marconi took place. The meeting had the purpose of apprising the year just expired relative to the activities included in the framework agreement* existing between EDF and Sea Marconi, which since four years ago is charged with the analysis and the diagnosis of strategic transformers (in the thousands) of nuclear, thermal and hydroelectric power plants.

The appraisal provided by EDF has been extremely positive with an increment with respect to 2011 in terms of volumes, quality of the performances, diversification of the services with new analytical methods. Sea Marconi was able to respond positively to the requests by the Customer adjusting, for example, the diagnostic reports or implementing features of the data base systems to enhance communications and the management of the flow of information. The seventeen managers present in Toulouse really appreciated our capability in responding to extreme complex problems and dealing with them as challenges by founding pioneering solutions that under different circumstances have even anticipated what was prescribed by the norms of the sector.

The 2013 activities plan for a consolidation of the results both in quantitative and qualitative terms, investigating new areas of interest with the development of new products already in a research phase.

For Sea Marconi participated to the meeting the founder and main partner Vander Tumiatti, the sales manager Luc Van Den Bogaert and the laboratory manager Riccardo Maina.

Link to the EDF letter of reference relative to the framework agreement in effect since 2009

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*Through the years Sea Marconi obtained and achieved the confidence of EDF which renewed several times the multi-year contract for the assistance contract for the management of environmental crises, the contract for the analysis and diagnosis of transformers and equipment with insulating fluids, the contract for the dehalogenation of transformers with PCBs (concluded last December).

Sea Marconi has recently exhibited at the Middle East Electricity in Dubai (7-9 February 2012), the biggest platform for industry professionals from over 100 countries worldwide. The event, in addition to hosting more than 1.000 exhibitors from over 50 countries, also offers to visitors many interesting technical seminars.

The speech of Sea Marconi took place the 9^thFebruary in the main room reserved for seminars area; the presentation of Vander Tumiatti (founder of Sea Marconi and Ass. Secretary IEC TC 10) was titled Insulating Oil & Transformer – Life Cycle Management (LCM): Diagnostic Coverage & Integrated Treatments 2012.

The intervention of Sea Marconi was a part of a larger thematic area dedicated to “Transformer Oil Diagnostics of Electrical Equipment During the life”, entrusted to Gulf Oil and Ergon companies. Sea Marconi “exports” its know-how in the Middle East and confirms its leadership in the analysis of corrosive sulfur problem (DBDS) and especially in the solutions: really effective, economically advantageous, environmentally sustainable.

After the extension of the accreditation in November 2010, a few weeks ago the Sea Marconi laboratory passed the supervisory control visit by Accredia (the only organization authorised by the Italian government to provide accreditation activities).

The control by Accredia evaluated both the technical and organizational procedures and the human and instrumental resources involved by the test and calibration activities.

Thanks to all the accredited tests (see here below) the Sea Marconi laboratory is one among the very few laboratories worldwide the only one in Italy) capable of offering a package of accredited tests fundamental in the diagnosis of electrical equipment with insulating fluids.

I would like to point out that the participation by Accredita to the Multilateral Agreements for Mutual Recognition (MLA) is such that the test and inspection reports issued by Sea Marconi relative to the accredited tests are recognised and accepted at international level by all the signatory nations for the mutual recognition agreements (see the list of EA countries (European Accreditation); and the list of IAF countries (International Accreditation Forum).

Thus, the accreditation brand on the Sea Marconi test report “operates as a passport in the international markets, where the holder is not required to have its product, service or professionalism subject to additional tests, inspections or verifications” [web site Accredia, pag. Accordi internazionali].

The accreditation of the single tests assures that the Sea Marconi laboratory is fully complying with the procedures and analysis methods on the single matrices. Also, in relation with standard ISO IEC 17025 about the measurement uncertainty, the Sea Marconi laboratory monitors periodically its performances also through the participation to international inter-laboratory circuits (RRT – Round Robin Test o Proficiency Test) achieving scores (Z score) at absolute excellency levels.

Consequently, the Sea Marconi test report achieves a specific relevance in legal terms, when prescribed, and is fully complying with the Directives, implementation Laws or the technical Standards of the sector (IEC, CENELEC, CEI, etc.) assuring an independent and expert evaluation. The Sea Marconi test report, together with the other parameters of evaluation, is dynamically interpreted (with diagnostic algorithms and the Sea Marconi data bank on over 60,000 pieces of equipment) to ensure the best diagnostic coverage for the Life Cycle Management – LCM offleets of equipment with insulating fluids, strategic units in the generation, transportation, distribution and use of power.

Cat.	Material / product / matrix	Designation of the test	Norm/test method
0	Insulating liquids	2-Furfural and derivative compounds : – 2-FAL (2- furfuraldehyde) – 5-HMF (5-hydroximethyl-2- furfuraldehyde) – 5-MEF (5-methyl-2- furfuraldehyde) – 2-FOL (2-furfurylalcohol) – 2-ACF (2-acetylfuran) (> 0,05 mg/kg)	IEC 61198:1993-09
0	Insulating liquids	Dissolved water (> 2 mg/kg)	IEC 60814:1997-08 (excluding point 2 and 4)
0	Insulating liquids	Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) Polychlorobiphényles (PCB) Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) Policlorobifenilos (PCB) (> 2 mg/kg)	IEC 61619:1997-04, CEI EN 61619:1998-11
0	Insulating oils	Dissolved gases in oil (head space): – Oxygen (O2) – Nitrogen (N2) – Carbon dioxide (CO2) – Carbon monoxide (CO) – Hydrogen (H2) – Methane (CH4) – Ethane (C2H6) – Ethylene (C2H4) – Acetylene (C2H2) (Oxygen: > 500 )	Project IEC 60567 ed4.0 (excluding point 3; extraction technique: head space, pont 7.5)
0	Mineral Insulating oils	Total PCBs PCB (> 10 mg/kg)	D.Lgs. n° 209 22/05/1999 GU n° 151 30/06/1999, Dir CE 59/1996 GUCE L243 24/09/1996, EEC Directive 59/1996 GU CE L243 24/09/1996
0	New, used, treated petroleum products, Synthetic or recovered lubricating oils, mixtures of vegetable oils.	Polychlorinated terphenyls (PCT), Polychlorinated benzyl toluenes (PCBT), Poly chloro phenyl (PCT), Poly chloro bencitolueno (PCBT) (PCBT: > 5 mg/kg PCT: > 10 mg/kg )	EN 12766-3:2004, UNI EN 12766-3:2005

– Ricerca dei laboratori accreditati ACCREDIA  (Search for the ACCREDITA accredited laboratories)

– EA (European Accreditation)

– IAF (International Accreditation Forum)

The German National Committee hosted the Plenary Meeting of TC10 ( IEC Fluids for electrotechnical applications) held on the 19^th and 20^th September, Burghausen, a nice town in Bavaria.

The Meeting was hosted by WACHER SILICONES, a German Company World Leader in the production of liquid insulations with silicon base.

CEI (Italian Electrotechnical Committee) holds since 1998 the Secretariat of this Committee with Prof. Massimo POMPILI (Secretary) of the University “La Sapienza” of Rome and Mr Vander TUMIATTI SEA MARCONI TECHNOLOGIES of Collegno (Turin).

50 delegates participated at the 2011 TC10 Plenary Meeting representing 20 P-Members (over a total of 26 P-Members, i.e. Nations having the right to vote in TC10). Chief of the Italian delegation was (as already in Paris in 2007 and Milan in 2009) Dr. Claudio Puliti of ACEA SpA.

TC10 of IEC is one of the most important groups of IEC, also at historical level, since it has been created in 1924 under the designation “ Oils for transformers”, reflecting the only applications of those years. In 1926, the name of TC10 was changed into “Insulating oils” to cover other liquids of synthetic origin that stated to have a use in the electrical sector, as an alternative to mineral oils (i.e. deriving from petroleum oils).

A further widening of the scope of TC10 occurred in 1961, when to the same committee was allocated the task of arranging the Norms relative to gaseous insulations, such as sulphur hexafluoride (SF6). Finally, in 1980, the current designation “Fluids for electrotechnical applications” has bee assigned, since TC10 had also been charged with the task of developing Norms in the field of lubricants for turbines.

Currently, the TC10 of IEC has a portfolio of about 50IS (International Standards) and TR (Technical Report) falling within the 3 following categories:

– Test methods;

– Product specifications;

– Guides for the correct management of fluids for electrotechnical applications.

One of the most important results decided in the Burghausen Meeting, relates to the proposal by the Italian Secretariat for anticipating the revision of Standards 60376 and 60480 (relative to l’SF6) to include information about the methods for the determination of leakages of SF6, notoriously a greenhouse gas, in accordance with the Kyoto protocol. The modalities for the determination of these leakages shall be particularly useful for Electric Companies in arranging their Reports on Environmental Sustainability. To carry out this activity, Prof. Massimo Pompili (IT) has been nominated Project Leader and Convenor.

The revision of the TC10 Norms on sulphur hexafluoride shall be done also considering what has been stated both in the Technical Report IEC 62271-303 (High-voltage switchgear and control gear: Use and handling of sulphur hexafluoride) issued in July 2008 by SC17A and the CIGRE Brochure 276 (2005). Also, the report of October 2010, prepared within the European Commission “Preparatory study for the Review of Regulation (EC) No 842/2006 on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases – Appendix A and B) shall be considered.

Moreover, the proposal by the Italian Secretariat (Prof. Massimo Pompili e Mr. Vander Tumiatti) to maintain the IEC Norms on PCBs, has been confirmed, since this problem doesn’t result being solved yet at global level and these Norms can provide a considerable help to the PEN (PCBs Elimination Network) of UNEP (United Nations for Environment Programme), recently started to guide the applicative phase that prescribes the elimination of PCBs at global level within 2028.

Instead, the Italian proposal about including in the current revision of IEC Standard 60422 Ed. 4 “Mineral insulating oils in electrical equipment – Supervision and maintenance guidance” a maximum limit of DBDS possibly present, in accordance with Brochure CIGRE 378. We remind that it is due, most of all, to Italy (SEA MARCONI TECHNOLOGIES and TERNA SpA), the unexpected discovery of this antioxidant additive that, unfortunately, caused, and still causes, several catastrophic failures in the world of transformers and compensation reactors in generation, transportation, distribution and use of power. The theme has been the topic of two Days of Studies held by CEI in 2007 – thanks to the support by TERNA SpA and SEA MARCONI TECHNOLOGIES – involving a large participation by technicians and engineers of the electrical sector. This Italian discovery, attributable mainly to Mr Vander Tumiatti of SEA MARCONI TECHNOLOGIES and Dr. Fabio Scatiggio of TERNA SpA, has been subsequently shared at worldwide level, both within IEC and ASTM and IEEE and DOBLE.

During the next meeting of the CT10 of CEI (October 2011) the possible solutions shall be examined for introducing, at least at Italian level, limits for the content of DBDS in the insulating oils of electrical equipment in operation, in accordance with internatuional standard and publications.