Transformer Oil

There are different transformer oils available in the marked today and they have different
environmental impacts.
Design guidelines

Avoid spillage of oils.

Read MSDS of the product before making the final selection.

Remember that additives used in oils can be hazardous.

Do not use oils containing chloroparaffins and lead naphthalene.

When a mineral oil is selected, only use highly refined grades.

Used oil should be treated as hazardous waste, since it contains hazardous degradation
products.

Check transporting options before selecting oil (flight, rail way, special transport)

Oil comparison
When selecting oil the dielectric performance of the products should be investigated as well as
toxicity, flammability and viscosity. Table 1 gives a small comparison between different types of
oils used. It is important to note that waste oils generally contain pollutants, such as metal
particles and potentially hazardous degradation products. So even if the oil is environmentally
sound in itself, it must be handled as hazardous waste after use. All types of oils also contain a
number of performance enhancing additives, with various types of effects on health and
environment.
Table 1. Advantages and disadvantages for different types of oils used in transformers.

Mineral oils
Mineral oils are mixtures of several components and they can be either naphthenic or paraffinic
based. Mineral oil cause damage to water organisms and is therefore classified as environmental
hazardous. The high stability of mineral oils gives rise to long-term negative changes in the
water environment due to the slow degradation process. The acute toxicity of mineral oils is

however low. When using mineral oils you should only use highly refined mineral oils.
Ester oils
Ester oils can be either synthetic or bio-based. Their technical performance is quite similar, but
bio-based ester oils are less harmful for the environment. Synthetic ester oils are somewhat more
resistant to degradation.

Palm Oil
Palm oil is the most used vegetable oil and is currently used in food products, cosmetics, candles,
detergents and biofuels. The production of palm oil is 60 million tons per year and the demand is
increasing. More than 80 % of the palm oil production is located in Malaysia and Indonesia
resulting in deforestation. The significant environmental impacts caused by deforestation are
increased amount of emitted greenhouse gases and reduced biodiversity.
Palm oil is a vegetable oil extracted from the fruit of the palm tree, which consist of 50 % oil
making palm oil cheap to produce at a small land area. Malaysia and Indonesia stands for more
than 80 % of the production of palm oil and the cheap labor in these countries also contributes to
the low price. Palm oil is included in many food products (e.g. margarine, chocolate and cookies)
but often indicated as vegetable oil. The UN directive number 1169 from 2011 states that the
specific vegetable oil that is included must be labeled on the product from December 2014. The
demand of biofuels containing palm oil is increasing for more sustainable transportation.
However, the conversion to biofuels results in increased palm oil production that can contribute
to more severe environmental impacts. Indonesia has 6 million hectares of palm oil plantations
today and plans for additional 4 million hectares 2015 only for biofuel production. The
production of palm oil results in deforestation and threatened biodiversity due to large
plantations located in tropical forests. The demand of palm oil has doubled the last decade and is
expected to further significantly increase in the future. The increased production results in
expanded and new plantations in Latin America, Africa and Asia.

A significant amount of the palm oil plantations in Malaysia and Indonesia have
been expanded into tropical forests. Tropical peatlands are the most effective
ecosystem to store carbon per unit area. However, peatlands in Malaysia and
Indonesia are mainly converted into palm oil plantations because it is easiest to
clear. Both fires to clear tropical peatlands and less peatlands that can store CO 2

result in a significant increased amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

About half of Indonesias peatlands have been converted to palm oil plantations and
the deforestation in Indonesia contributes to 4 % of the CO 2 emissions in the world
every year; even though the peatlands in Indonesia cover less than 0.1 % of the
worlds surface. Other social and environmental impacts by palm oil plantations are
ignored rights of local communities, less biodiversity, soil erosion and pollution of
water and soil.
GreenPalm and RSPO (Roundtable on sustainable palm oil) are certificates to make
the supply chain of palm oil from production to product transparent, prevent that
new plantations cause deforestations and prevent habitat losses to preserve the
biodiversity. RSPO is a non-profit organization created to unite palm oil industries
(producers, manufactures, traders etc.) for a sustainable palm oil production.
However, these certificates and actions made by the RSPO to avoid deforestation
and promote sustainable production of palm oil have been criticized by nongovernmental organizations (e.g. Green Peace). Palm oil is a controversial material
due to the environmental impacts associated with its production and to use palm oil
in products therefore contributes to compliance risks for companies.
Today, palm oil can be found in power transformers as insulation oil.
Other Liquids

Various types of liquids other than transformer oils are used in ABB's products and processes,
e.g. as electrical insulation material.
Design guidelines

Avoid spillage of liquids in water or soil.

Working with volatile organic liquids is always a potential fire hazard.

Make sure that the work area is well ventilated and all other safety
precautions are taken.

Assess the additives in liquids by reading the MSDS.

Concentrated acids and alkalis should be handled very carefully.

Acids can produce explosive gas (hydrogen) when in contact with metals.

Wear gloves and goggles when working with organic liquids, e.g.
benzyltoluene and tributylamine.

Silicone Oil
Silicone oil is used in electrical equipment as an insulation medium. Heat treatment
processes can also be carried out with circulating silicone oil. It is not hazardous to

the health or to the environment. It should however be noted that there is a slight
risk of the vapor being irritating to eyes and skin
Capacitor oil
Capacitors often contains glycols, gamma-butyrolacton,
diethylorthophthalate/diethylhexylphthalate (trade name Microflex) and
benzyltoluene/dibenzyltoluene (trade name Jarylec). The glycols and gammabutyrolactone are not environmentally hazardous. However, ethylene glycol and
gamma-butyrolactone are hazardous to health, while propylene glycol is not. Note
that heating of glycols and gamma-butyrolactone causes emission of inflammable
gases which can give rise to explosive mixtures when mixed with air. Data for
benzyltoluene and dibenzyltoluene are not available, however, due to their
resemblance to toluene, they can be assumed to be hazardous to health and also
highly inflammable.
Capacitor electrolytes
Triethylamine and tributylamine are used in electrolytic capacitors. These
compounds are irritating and also have some acute toxic effects. Long term
exposure can cause liver and kidney damage. Avoid skin contact and always wear
gloves when working with liquids containing these compounds. Heating of
triethylamine and tributylamine causes emission of inflammable gases which can
give rise to explosive mixtures when mixed with air.
Battery liquids
Acids and alkalis such as sulphuric acid (H2SO4) and potassium hydroxide (KOH) are
used in batteries. Acids and alkalis are not generally considered to have a damaging
or disturbing effect on the environment. This does not exclude the possibility that
larger emissions or frequent smaller emissions can produce harmful effects on
water organisms through pH changes. The health risk of acid are reduced with a
reduced concentration, e.g. sulphuric acid in concentrations between 20 and 65% is
considered poisonous, but in concentrations between 5 and 20% it is considered
hazardous to health. Concentrated acids and alkalis should therefore always be
handled very carefully. Another aspect is that acids and alkalis can be very
corrosive. It should be noted that most strong acids and alkalis can produce
explosive gas (hydrogen) when in contact with metals.