US EPA

2203061 

Technical Report 

Safe use of fully enclosed askarel-filled electrical equipment 

Durand, P 

1994 

NTIS/02989896_3 

GRA and I 

GRA and I 

Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) have been used in the electrical industry, under the generic term askarel, as insulating and cooling liquids in power transformers where low flammability is of prime importance. They have been used also in power capacitors owing to their dielectric properties. Askarels have good electrical and thermal properties, and are chemically stable. However, they also possess a number of potential environmental disadvantages: being persistent in the environment and resistant to chemical and biological decomposition. They also bio-accumulate: tending to accumulate up the food chain. Furthermore, potential environmental problems can arise should askarels be involved in uncontrolled fire conditions; the consequences are such that restrictions may have to be placed on future access to the fire-affected areas. This paper is a draft european standard which specifies the precautions to be observed to avoid pollution of the environment by the correct installation, maintenance, operation, storage and transportation of Askarel-filled electrical equipment. It gives guidance on the safety precautions to be taken when handling askarels or when askarels have been affected by fire. It defines the measures to be taken for the disposal of askarel-contaminated waste and the retro-filling of transformers with an acceptable replacement liquid. (author). 2 tab.