2017 Electrical Insulation Conference (EIC), Baltimore, MD, USA, 11 - 14 June 2017
Review of Field Acceptance Hipot & PD Testing of
Medium Voltage Underground Cables
Ali Naderian Jahromi, SM IEEE
METSCO Energy Solutions Inc.
Abstract—There are some well-defined guides and standards
regarding factory testing of medium voltage shielded cables in
laboratories provided by IEEE, IEC, ANSI/ICEA, and CSA.
These guides cover AC withstand and PD testing of XLPE and
EPR cables and accessories, such as 50/60Hz AC Hipot and PD
tests which are routinely conducted on every reel of cable
produced at the factory. All terminations, splices, and separable
connectors are tested with more or less the same test method
using different test levels and timing.
There is, however, limited literature and guidance available
to clarify the requirements of onsite Hipot & PD testing. IEEE
400.2 has recommendations regarding VLF Hipot testing. IEEE
400.3 provides a general guide for onsite PD testing of
underground cables, but does not cover specifics such as the
Hipot level, timing, acceptable PD levels, PDIV, and PDEV for
each different voltage class. It is critical that owners and test
crew understand the different available options for AC Hipot
and PD testing of new and aged underground cables.
This paper reviews and compares available literature and
guides related to offline Hipot and PD testing including both VLF
and 50/60 Hz AC for Polymeric Cables. The objective is to help
end users, asset managers, consultants, and service companies to
choose the correct test method, parameters and procedures.
Keywords—AC Hipot, VLF Hipot, Partial Discharge,
Underground Cables, PDIV, PDEV.
I. INTRODUCTION
Standards such as IEEE, IEC, ANSI/ICEA, and CSA
recommend high voltage withstand tests to manufacturers of
polymeric cables to be done in the factory [1-4]. There are
several other IEEE and IEC standards that cover AC withstand
testing of the cable accessories including terminations,
separable connectors, and splices [5-8]. The onsite high
voltage withstand test is often called the Hipot test by
contractors, utilities, and test crews. The goal of Hipot testing
is to find any weak insulation point of the underground cable
circuit including the termination, cable, and splices. The ability
of the AC withstand tests to find installation problems will
reduce the premature failure rate which has historically
occurred in new stations. The data provided by the partial
discharge (PD) test will also serve as a useful baseline for
trending the deterioration of such equipment during service.
Traditionally, DC Hipot testing has been employed for
different types of medium voltage (5kV to 44kV) and high
voltage cables (66kV to 230kV) including XLPE, EPR, or oil
filled cables. The new industry standards such as ICEA S-94-
649 and ICEA S-97-682 now warn against applying a DC
978-1-5090-3967-8/17/$31.00 ©2017 IEEE
potential, in any form, to XLPE cables as it is detrimental to
the insulation and to cable life due to possible trapped space
charges. The other disadvantage of DC Hipot is that it is blind
to certain types of defects including voids. Another
disadvantage of DC Hipot is that it is not possible to do PD
measurement. Moreover, the DC stress distribution is sensitive
to temperature.
On the other hand, there are utilities that have been performing
50/60Hz AC Hipot for several decays for commissioning new
cables. In the past 15 years, several other Hipot systems
including Very Low Frequency (VLF), Variable Near Power
Frequency (VNPF), and Damped AC (DAC) have been
developed and promoted by test manufacturers and test
companies worldwide. DAC is a withstand test which is
described by IEEE Std 400.4. Appendix A lists test voltages
not yet acceptable standard values due to the lack of experience
[17]. Dissipation factor measurements are also used to assess
cable condition.
The field Hipot test has been around for 50 years yet there
are challenges and uncertainties involved in today’s testing
practices. Although different Hipot test methods are available
and introduced by IEEE 400.2 and IEEE 400.3 for field testing,
no comprehensive guides are available which provide details
on performing and interpreting the results of Hipot and PD
tests, especially PD inception voltage (PDIV) and PD
extinction (PDEV). This paper reviews available guides for
performing offline AC Hipot and PD tests for commissioning
of underground cables. It also provides recommendations with
regards to test parameters based on industry practice and
expertise of the author.
II. FACTORY ACCEPTANCE TEST
Table 1 shows a summary of high voltage withstand and
partial discharge tests recommended by different standards for
underground cables [1-4]. Table 2 provides a summary of tests
for accessories such as terminations and splices [5-8]. U0 is the
cable rated phase-to-ground rms voltage and UC is the cable
rated voltage, where UC = 1.73U0.
According to both IEEE and IEC standards for factory PD
testing, the voltage shall be raised to 20% above the specified
partial discharge voltage level. If partial discharge exceeds the
limit of 5 pC (IEEE) or 10 pC (IEC), the test voltage shall be
lowered to the partial discharge voltage level specified and
shall be maintained at this level for at least 1 minute. If partial
discharge readings still exceed the limit, the cable accessory
does not meet the requirements of this standard.
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 Manufacturers typically have an electromagnetically determining the economic replacement interval for deteriorated
shielded high voltage lab to shield EMI coming from the cables. Field diagnostics are performed periodically thereafter
outside, and an input filter to provide a clean power supply. during service (maintenance testing) to determine if the cable
This helps to minimize the background noise usually to be in system remains reliable.
the range of 3 pC or less. In order to satisfy the 5pC
requirement of the IEEE, the measurement background noise at A. 50/60Hz AC Hipot
test voltage has to be 2.5 pC which is usually hard to achieve. The size of the power frequency AC Hipot equipment can
In this regard, the IEC requirement of 10pC is more practical. be substantially reduced by using the principle of resonance. If
Table 1 Factory high voltage withstand test for cables rated 5kV to 46kV, the effective capacitance of the cable is resonated with an
100% insulation – 5 minutes inductor, the multiplying effect of the resonant circuit, often
U0 UC ICEA S-94-649 IEC 60502-2 CSA C68.3-97 called the Q factor, allows the use of a smaller test source. In
Rated ICEA S-97-682
[kV] voltage PD PD
the ideal case of perfect resonance, the test source will only be
50/60Hz PD 50/60Hz 50/60
[kV] AC Hipot AC Hz AC EV required to supply energy to balance the true resistive loss in
[kV] Hipot Hipot [kV] the inductor and cable system. In practical resonant test
[kV] [kV] systems, provision is made for varying both the magnitude of
2.9 5 18 (6U0) 10 18 11.5 the inductance and the system voltage. IEEE 400-2001
8.7 15 35 (4U0) 30 35 35 proposed duration of acceptance testing on a new cable system
5pC
at AC 10
to be 15 minutes but does not specify the waveform type or
14.4 25 52 (3.6U0) 50 52 52 type of AC test voltage.
Hipot pC
16.2 28 56 (3.5U0) Test 56 @ 56 56
Level 1.7U0 Unfortunately, IEEE 400 does not specify any 50/60Hz test
20.2 35 69 (3.5U0) 70 69 69 voltage or PDEV/PDIV for a given voltage class. Historically,
26.6 46 89 (3.3U0) - 89 89 Ontario Hydro has implemented guides to perform power
frequency AC Hipot and PD tests [13]. NETA proposed that
the user can choose between DC Hipot, AC Hipot, and VLF
Table 2 Factory high voltage withstand test for accessories rated 5kV to 46kV
Hipot to test underground cables. NETA does not differentiate
U0 UC IEEE 48 IEC 60502-4 IEEE 386 between XLPE, EPR, and PILC cables. NETA does not specify
Rated Terminations & Both terminations Separable the duration of the tests but it refers to ANSI/ICEA S93-639,
[kV] voltage IEEE 404 joints & joints connectors and ANSI/ICEA S-94-649 [12]. NETA does not specify the
[kV] 50/60Hz PD 50/60Hz PD 50/60 Hz PD PDEV for 25kV and higher-rated voltage cables. Ontario
AC Hipot AC AC EV
[kV- Hipot Hipot [kV] Hydro’s recommendation is currently used by some utilities in
1min] [kV] [kV - Canada and suggests to use 70% of the factory test levels for
1min] field testing [13]. On the other hand, Australian electric utility
2.9 5 18 - Ergon Energy refers to IEC 71-1-1993 insulation co-ordination
8.7 15 35 34 and has proposed to choose AC Hipot test voltage equal to the
4.5 U0 -
5 min
“standard short duration power frequency withstand voltage”
14.4 25 52 5pC 10pC 40 3pC specified by IEC 71-1 for each voltage class. Table 3 provides
and
at @ @ a summary of available guides for 50/60Hz AC Hipot test. The
16.2 28 - 4 U0 -15 50
1.5U0 1.7U0 1.3U0
min test voltages specified by NETA and Ergon Energy are very
20.2 35 69 50
close to each other and to 100% of the factory acceptance test
26.6 46 80 - levels presented in Table 1.
Table 3 Field 50/60Hz AC Hipot test levels for cables rated 5kV to 46kV,
100% insulation
III. ONSITE HIPOT TEST U0 UC Ontario Hydro Ergon Energy- NETA [12]
Rated [13] Australia [14]
Although medium voltage cables are carefully tested by the [kV] voltage AC PD AC PD AC PD EV
manufacturer, defects such as damage during shipment, [kV] Hipot EV Hipot Hipot [kV]
storage, incorrect cable installation, and defects in accessories [kV- [kV]* [kV] [kV]
may occur. Field testing of completed circuit installation 5min] *
2.9 5 9 4.5 20 18/28 4
including joints and terminations prior to being placed in
service provides a piece of mind to utilities, asset owners, and 8.7 15 19 14 33 35/44 11
others involved in a new installation. The field Hipot and PD 14.4 25 17.5* 24 50 52 -
test is intended to assure owners that the cable and accessories -
were not damaged during transportation, handling, and 16.2 28 39* 26 - 56 -
installation and the circuit is ready for energization. 20.2 35 48* 33 70 69 -
Additionally, users find that with time, these cable systems 26.6 46 62* 44 90 89 -
degrade and service failures become troublesome [10]. The * calculated based on 70% factory test levels provided in Table 1
desire to reduce or eliminate cable failure has led cable users to ** calculated based on 95% UC
perform periodic tests after some time in service. As well,
cable users need special diagnostic tests as an aid in TXU Electric and Gas has implemented 60Hz AC Hipot at

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3Uo [15]. This utility suggested that 60 Hz testing may be - It has no moving parts and no mechanical systems to
used successfully to determine the condition of cable and maintain. The core can be designed with a distributed gap
accessories, but that the cable is more susceptible to failure to reduce the size and weight.
than the accessories [15]. - It has typically higher Q (~80 to 150) compared to 60Hz
variable inductor systems (Q=25 to 50) resulting lower
input power.
B. VLF Hipot - By reducing the test frequency, a larger capacitive load can
Using very low frequency (VLF) high voltage sources has be tested.
some advantages for cable testing mainly due to weight and IEC 60840 provides a guideline for field AC Hipot testing
cost reduction. The power requirement of the capacitive load of cables 30kV to 150kV [11] which allows using a NPF
drops by a factor of 500 when comparing the commonly used power supply with frequency of 20Hz to 300Hz. The field
0.1Hz with the 50/60Hz AC Hipot test. Two common VLF Hipot test level for 46kV class cables is 52kV for 1 hour.
waveforms are as follows: Allowable PDEV is 39kV. The suggested Hipot test voltage of
- Cosine-rectangular VLF AC voltage waveform 1.7U0 and PDEV of 1.5U0 is in line with the IEC 60502-2
- Sinusoidal VLF AC voltage waveform factory test levels.
IEEE 400.2 is the guide for VLF Hipot testing of medium
IV. OFFLINE ACCEPTANCE PD TESTS
voltage underground shielded cables [11]. It introduces three
testing voltage levels (installation, acceptance, and For acceptance testing of cables, it is very common to do
maintenance). The suggested “acceptance test voltage” is based both Hipot and PD tests. IEEE 400.3 is the guide for partial
on the most used practices of 2U0 to 3U0, for cables rated discharge testing of shielded power cable systems in a field
between 5kV and 69kV. The recommended maintenance test environment. Hipot and PD testing has been employed more
level is 75% of the acceptance test level. The IEEE 400.2 than before in the past 15 years. Colorado Springs Utilities,
recommended minimum testing time for an acceptance VLF Oklahoma Gas and Electric, PECO, Xcel Energy, TXU
withstand test on new cable circuits is 60 minutes. The test Energy, BC Hydro, Hydro One, and Ontario Power Generation
time can be reduced to 30 minutes if the monitored have successfully implemented Hipot and PD testing programs
characteristic such as voltage, leakage current, and PD remains that help them to detect cable defects [15]. However, there are
stable and no failure occurs [11]. A 2006 CIGRE study showed concerns about the difficulty of PD assessment and the
that the VLF withstand test is the most preferred Hipot test accuracy of PD location needs improvement.
method in USA [9].
A. PD Limits
Table 4 Acceptance VLF Hipot test for cables rated 5kV to 46kV
U0 UC IEEE 400.2 Utility A NETA IEEE 400.3 proposed a minimum PDIV of 2U0 as an
Rated example. Regarding PDEV, the only available
[kV] voltage Sine wave Cosine Sine Sine
[kV] [kVrms] rectangle wave wave recommendation is from Ontario Hydro [13] suggesting
Wave [kVrms] [kVrms] PDEV = 0.95UC = 1.65U0. Ontario Hydro’s recommendation
[kVrms] for onsite maximum PD is 3pC, and IEEE 400.3 recommends
2.9 5 10 (3.4U0) 14 10* 10 5pC. These levels of PD are typically very hard to achieve
8.7 15 21 (2.4U0) 30 20 20 onsite due to the power supply or background noise.
14.4 25 32 (2.2U0) 45 32* 31 B. PD Frequency
16.2 28 36 (2.2U0) 51 34 34* Most of above standards refer to IEC 60270 as a classic
20.2 35 44 (2U0) 62 45* 44 PD measurement protocol, with a center frequency of around
300kHz and a bandwidth of 300kHz (f = 300kHz ± 150kHz).
26.6 46 57 (2.14Uo) 81 60 55*
IEC 60270 frequency bandwidth applies to lumped
* calculated by extrapolation of adjacent data (lower and higher numbers) capacitances as per this standard. IEC frequency may not be
suitable for long run of cables. Higher frequencies of typically
C. Variable Frequency Hipot 3MHz to 20 MHz are recently used for field testing. The test
Variable Frequency AC Hipot, or near power frequency frequency shall also be selected by looking at the FFT of the
(NPF) AC Hipot, has been implemented in the past 10 years background noise to search for low ambient noise. A proper
due to the progress of power electronics devices. The test setup sensitivity check and calibration is required for any selected
has a fixed reactor fed by a variable input frequency AC/AC PD test frequency.
converter with an output frequency between 20Hz and 300Hz.
Once the frequency of the input power is tuned to the C. Background Noise
resonance frequency by an initial frequency sweep, the voltage PD background noise can come from different sources:
is raised to Hipot or PD test levels. The test frequency depends - Input power such as portable generator or power plug
on the capacitance (i.e. cable length, insulation material, - Environment EMI such as corona, working machinery at
thickness, etc). The main advantages of NPF power supplies the site, rain, and damped weather
are as follows: - Testing transformer

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 Background noise can be permanent or intermittent. It is Table 6 Recommended VLF Sine Hipot & PD acceptance test voltages for
polymeric cables
possible to reduce the power supply noise by using an input
Air termination Separable connectors
isolating transformer as well as a high voltage filter at the U0 Rated AC PDEV AC PDEV
transformer output. If the background noise is still high due to voltage withstand [kV] withstand [kV]
the nature of the environment, the PD measurement frequency [kV] [kV] [kV]- 1.5U0 [kV] - 1.3U0
has to be adjusted. 30 min 10 min 30 min 10 min
2.9 5 10 (3.4U0) 5* - -
D. Onsite PD localization
8.7 15 21 (2.4U0) 13 21 11
One of the challenges of onsite PD measurement is
14.4 25 32 (2.2U0) 22 25 18
localization in the event of PD presence. To fix the problem it
is necessary to determine if the PD is in the terminations, or 16.2 28 36 (2.2U0) 24 28 21
splice, or inside the cable. Most PD equipment is equipped 20.2 35 44 (2U0) 30 35 26
with PD time domain reflection analysis that allows users to
26.6 46 57 (2.14Uo) 40 - -
estimate the location of the PD and see how far it is from the
source. *selected equal to Uc

V. RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION In the absence of this data, it is proposed to use PDEV of
The recommendation is based on available reviewed 1.5U0 for air terminated cables and 1.3U0 for separable
documents and limited experience of the author. Table 5 connector terminations. More systematic research is necessary
summarizes the recommendation for field AC Hipot and PD to improve the proposed test parameters. It is expected that
acceptance tests for XLPE and EPR cables. The recommended IEEE 400 series standards will improve and cover the existing
acceptance level for 50/60Hz AC Hipot testing is 70% of the gaps.
factory test voltage for 5 minutes. The test voltage must be VI. REFERENCES
selected based on the termination type. The recommended
[1] ANSI/ICEA S-94-649-2013- STANDARD FOR CONCENTRIC
minimum PDIV is 2U0 proposed by IEEE 400.1. The NEUTRAL CABLES RATED 5 THROUGH 46 kV.
recommended PDEV is based on the termination PDEV [2] ANSI/ICEA S-97-682-2013- STANDARD FOR UTILITY SHIELDED
proposed by IEEE 48 for air-terminated and IEEE 386 for POWER CABLES RATED 5 THROUGH 46 kV.
separable connectors which is 1.5U0 and 1.3U0, respectively. [3] IEC 60502-2-2005 Power cables with extruded insulation and their
10pC is recommended as a limit with a maximum of 5pC of accessories for rated voltages from 6 kV up to 30 kV (Um = 36 kV).
background noise. In case of NPF variable frequency, the [4] CSA-C68.3-97 - Shielded and Concentric Neutral Power Cables Rated
5-46 kV.
same test voltage can be used (Table 5). If 5pC of background
[5] IEEE 48-1996 EEE Standard Test Procedures and Requirements for
noise is not achievable, it might be possible to select a better Alternating-Current Cable Terminations 2.5 kV Through 765 kV.
PD frequency range to achieve a reasonable PD background. [6] IEEE 404-2006 - IEEE Standard for Extruded and Laminated Dielectric
Shielded Cable Joints Rated 2.5 kV to 500 kV.
The VLF sinusoidal AC withstand test voltage for air [7] IEEE 386-2006 - IEEE Standard for Separable Insulated Connector
terminated cables is selected based on IEEE 400.2. The test Systems for Power Distribution Systems Above 600 V.
voltage for cables with separable connectors in Table 6 is [8] IEC 60502-4-2005 Power cables and their accessories for rated voltages
selected based on the cable line-to-line voltage rating. The from 1 kV up to 30 kV- Part 4: Test requirements on accessories.
proposed 30-minute test time is accepted when the monitored [9] CIGRE Brochure B1-301, “Experience with withstand testing of cables
PD and leakage current does not increase during the 30-minute in the USA”, 2010.
test. Otherwise, the VLF AC Hipot will continue for 60 [10] IEEE 400- 2012 - Guide for Field Testing and Evaluation of the
minutes. Although there are several publications comparing Insulation of Shielded Power Cable Systems Rated 5 kV and Above.
VLF and 50/60Hz PD data, there is not enough information [11] IEEE 400.2-2013 - Guide for Field Testing of Shielded Power Cable
Systems Using Very Low Frequency (VLF).
regarding VLF PDEV and PDIV.
[12] ANSI/NETA ATS-2013 Standard for Acceptance Testing Specifications
Table 5 Recommended field AC Hipot &PD acceptance test voltages for Electrical Power Equipment and Systems .
Air termination Separable connectors [13] M. T. G. Gillespie, G. B. Murchie, and G. C. Stone, Experience with AC
U0 UC AC PDEV AC PDEV Hipot and Partial Discharge Tests for Commissioning Generating
Rated withstand [kV] withstand [kV] Station Cables and Switchgear, IEEE Power Engineering Review,
[kV] voltage [kV] - 1.5U0 [kV] - 1.3U0 September 1989.
[kV] 5min 1min 5min 1min [14] Neil Dwyer, Ergon Energy Reference SP0407R02- Testing of HV
2.9 5 12.5 5 - 5 Cables.
8.7 15 24.5 13 24 11 [15] Harry E. Orton, “Partial Discharge Testing of InSitu Power Cable
Accessories – An Overview”, Electricity Energy, 2002.
14.4 25 36.5 22 28 18 [16] IEC 60840- 2011 Power cables with extruded insulation and their
16.2 28 39.0 24 28 21 accessories for rated voltages above 30 kV up to 150 kV – Test methods
and requirements.
20.2 35 48.0 30 35 26 [17] IEEE 400.4-2015: Guide for Field-Testing of Shielded Power Cable
Systems Rated 5 kV and above with Damped Alternating Current
26.6 46 62.0 40 - 35
Voltage

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