IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON DIELECTRICS AND ELECTRICAL INSULATION, VOL. 31, NO.

1, FEBRUARY 2024 3

Investigations on the Suitability of Non-Wood

Kenaf Bast Fiber as an Alternative for Making
Insulating Presspaper for Transformers
N. ‘I. Hashim , M. T. Ishak , Senior Member, IEEE, J. Adnan , N. S. Suhaimi ,
M. M. Ariffin, S. Rufus , Member, IEEE, and M. H. A. Hamid

Abstract— For decades, oil-impregnated paper and I. I NTRODUCTION

presspaper derived from Kraft pulp have been utilized in N THE power system, a transformer is utilized for elec-
high-voltage transformers to fulfill the function of providing
electrical insulation. In response to the growing demand for
wood fiber on a global scale, non-wood fibers have been
I trical transmission and distribution. The efficiency of the
transformers depends on their solid and liquid insulation
developed for use in pulp and presspaper manufacturing conditions. Presspaper, pressboard, and insulating oil have
as alternatives to wood fibers. The purpose of this study been essential insulating materials in transformers for many
is to develop an insulating presspaper for transformer years. In the 1950s, there was a gradual growing interest in
applications using non-wood Kenaf Bast fiber. Specifically,
this article investigates the morphology, thermal properties,
synthetic dielectric materials to replace cellulosic insulation.
tensile strength, and electrical breakdown voltage perfor- The mixture of cellulosic and synthetic materials has been
mance of Kenaf presspaper in order to assess its potential widely used as solid insulation for power transformers [1].
use as presspaper insulation. Results show that Kraft Paper insulation plays a vital role by acting as insulation
presspaper has better thermal stability and tensile strength around the copper conductors and providing structural support
value than Kenaf presspaper. A higher relative bond area in
Kraft presspaper than in Kenaf presspaper is one reason for
within oil-filled electrical power transformers. Meanwhile, the
its mechanical strength. However, in terms of the electrical pressboard forms a barrier to partitioning the oil volumes into
breakdown voltage performance, it has been seen that the smaller oil gaps to enhance the dielectric strength of oil gaps.
Kenaf presspaper performance is greatly improved. The On the other hand, oil is the primary insulation for oil-filled
findings of the study show that additional investigation into transformers used as a cooling medium.
the implementation of Kenaf presspaper in transformers
is recommended. It is possible that the insulating perfor-
Despite extensive research on insulating transformer oil and
mance could be improved by making some modifications other polymers, only a few studies have focused on modifica-
to the production process of Kenaf presspaper. tion or alternative presspaper insulation [2]. Better-performing
Index Terms— Dielectric, insulation, Kenaf, Kraft,
insulating presspaper is in high demand. Huang et al. [3]
presspaper, transformer. investigated the performance of nano-additives (unmodified
nanofibrillated cellulose, cationic nanofibrillated cellulose,
anionic nanofibrillated cellulose, and cellulose nanocrystals)
Manuscript received 19 October 2022; revised 22 August 2023, on the performance of presspaper. According to the find-
5 October 2023, 30 October 2023, and 4 November 2023; accepted ings, the performance of cationic nanofibrillated cellulose
7 November 2023. Date of publication 13 November 2023; date of cur-
rent version 26 January 2024. This work was supported by Fundamental with softwood fiber composite can improve insulation per-
Research Grant Scheme under Grant FRGS/1/2018/TK04/UPNM/02/3. formance. In another study, Huang et al. [4] examine the
(Corresponding author: M. T. Ishak.) appropriateness of bamboo fiber and bamboo/ softwood fiber
N. ‘I. Hashim is with the Department of Electrical and Electronic
Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, as insulating presspaper. As a result, bamboo fiber is not
Kota Samarahan 94300, Malaysia, and also with the Department of ideally adapted for use as insulating presspaper. However, the
Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Faculty Engineering, National performance of insulating presspaper is promising and could
Defence University of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 57000, Malaysia (e-mail:
[email protected]). be improved in the future as bamboo and softwood fiber are
M. T. Ishak, J. Adnan, N. S. Suhaimi, and M. M. Ariffin are with combined.
the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Faculty Engi- Presspaper is formed from a network of wood fibers that
neering, National Defence University of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 57000,
Malaysia (e-mail: [email protected]). are 3-D-structured. Softwood fibers produced during the Kraft
S. Rufus is with the Department of Electrical and Electronic pulping process are utilized to make electrical-grade paper.
Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, Softwood fiber (e.g., southern pine, Douglas fir, spruce, all
Kota Samarahan 94300, Malaysia.
M. H. A. Hamid is with the Department of Electrical and Elec- conifers), which is typically obtained from the timber in
tronic Technology, Sultan Abdul Samad Vocational College, Banting, Scandinavia, Russia, or Canada, has been used for decades as
Selangor 42700, Malaysia. a transformer insulation presspaper because it is more flexible
Color versions of one or more figures in this article are available at
https://doi.org/10.1109/TDEI.2023.3332070. and stronger than hardwood [5]. Furthermore, softwood has
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/TDEI.2023.3332070 a significantly longer fiber than hardwood. Softwood fibers

1070-9878 © 2023 IEEE. Personal use is permitted, but republication/redistribution requires IEEE permission.
See https://www.ieee.org/publications/rights/index.html for more information.
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4 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON DIELECTRICS AND ELECTRICAL INSULATION, VOL. 31, NO. 1, FEBRUARY 2024

Fig. 1. Molecular structure of cellulose chain fragment.

Fig. 3. Parts of Kenaf stalk.

insulating presspaper by adding organic nanoparticles as an

addictive. The results showed that the ac and dc breakdown
strengths could be up to 21% higher than normal press-
paper with an appropriate concentration and mechanical
strength [3], [11].
Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus) is one of the herbaceous non-
wood, most promising plant fiber sources that can be an
alternative for paper production [12]. Research on Kenaf
in Malaysia has begun assessing Kenaf adaptability, iden-
Fig. 2. Molecular structure of lignin.
tifying suitable cultivars for industrial and agricultural use,
agronomic management and inputs, end products, and cost
are made up of three major constituents: cellulose, hemicel- development [13]. Kenaf is an herbaceous plant with a growth
lulose, and lignin. Cellulose (C6 H10 O5 )n is a linear polymer cycle of around 4–5 months, allowing for two harvest cycles
consisting of numerous β-D-glucopyranosyl units linked to annually, while its stalks can reach 3.7–5.5 m in height [12].
each other [1], as shown in Fig. 1. In general, Kenaf fiber has a length ranging from 2.39 to
The repeating unit constitutes six hydroxyl groups (O-H) 2.82 mm [14], contributing to strength. The Kenaf bast
to form a cellulose fiber and two glycosidic oxygen linkages, comprises 55% cellulose and 8%–10% lignin, which meets
which is one of the parameters that contribute to the mechan-
the Malaysian pulp and paper industry’s criteria [15]. Since
ical strength of the paper [6]. Hemicelluloses are usually Kenaf fiber has advantageous properties, it is perhaps a good
made up of different monosaccharides with a linear backbone material for modifying presspaper insulation. Researchers have
comprised of linked glucose, mannose, xylose, or galactose demonstrated that Kenaf may be used as an alternative raw
units. The structure is more branched than cellulose, and the
material in bio composite research [16], [17]. Fig. 3 shows
chains are shorter. Unlike cellulose and hemicellulose, lignin
the part of the Kenaf stalk. In this study, Kenaf presspa-
does not have a well-defined repeating unit. The 3-D network
per was prepared from Kenaf bast fiber to investigate the
structure of lignin is more complicated as shown in Fig. 2, and
morphology characterization, mechanical properties, thermal
it comprises both aromatic and aliphatic units. During Kraft
properties, and electrical breakdown performance. As a frame
pulping, hemicellulose and lignin are taken out to improve
of reference, the properties of the current Kraft presspaper
the mechanical properties of the paper and get more out of
were used.
the cellulose fibers.
With the depletion of softwood resources, the papermaking II. P REPARATION OF K ENAF P RESSPAPER S AMPLE
industry has focused more on the search for non-wood raw
Equation (1) is used to figure out the percentage of the yield.
materials. Non-wood fibers can have advantages because they
The Kraft and Kenaf pulping process results in a yield of pulp
are abundant, have short cycles, and rapid generation, and
that is in the range of ∼45% and ∼55%. Fig. 4 displays the
a comparatively low price [7]. Examples of non-wood fiber screened Kenaf pulps that were used in the experiment
resources available for paper production are wheat straw,  
rice straw, sugarcane, bamboo, and oil palm empty fruit weight of screened pulp)
Yield(%) = × 100. (1)
bunches (EFBs) [8], [9], [10]. Huang et al. [4] investigated weight of raw material)
the mechanical durability and dielectric response of Kraft At the beginning of this process, Kenaf bast was cut into
and Bamboo presspapers. They discovered that untreated lengths ranging from 30 to 50 mm. Following that, 1 kg of
bamboo presspaper is not suitable for insulating presspa- oven-dried short Kenaf fiber was processed in a rotary digester
per. Besides, some research has been reported on modifying with a highly alkaline solution: sodium hydroxide (NaOH).
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HASHIM et al.: INVESTIGATIONS ON THE SUITABILITY OF NON-WOOD KENAF BAST FIBER 5

To remove the moisture content of the oil and paper, filtered

oil and presspaper were dried in a vacuum oven for 48 h
at a temperature of 90 ◦ C. After that, the dried papers were
transferred to test bottles and later subjected to impregnation
in dried oil for 24 h at a temperature of 90 ◦ C in a vacuum
oven. The amount of oil and paper for each test bottle is set
to the weight ratio 20:1 [21], [22].

B. Experimental Procedure
A field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM)
Fig. 4. Kenaf pulp specimen was used in this study. is employed to study the morphologies of Kraft and Kenaf
presspaper at a magnification of 500×. Before conducting
the experiment, each of the samples was given a layer of
To remove the residual black fluid, the softened Kenaf pulp gold plating and then cut into squares measuring 9 by 9 mm.
was washed thoroughly using a hydro pulper. According to To obtain an infrared spectrum of absorption or emission of
TAPPI T275 [18], the Kenaf pulp was screened through a presspaper samples, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy
slot size of 0.05 mm by PTI Sommerville Fractionators. (FTIR) is used in the mode of attenuated total reflection
After that, the pulp went through the drying process with a (ATR). This allows the user to simultaneously accumulate
spin-drying machine and the mixing process with a Hobart high-resolution spectral data over a broad spectral range.
mixer machine. The entirety of the process was depicted in The ATR method is exceptionally useful for determining the
Fig. 5. spectra of presspaper samples that absorb infrared radiation
to a significant degree. The portion of the totally reflected
A. Beating Process light that is attenuated is the one that occurs because of
the presspaper samples absorbing radiation of a particular
After being dried, the pulp was beaten with a NORAM pulp
frequency. The light beam will typically penetrate the sample
flotation instrument (PFI) mill in accordance with the TAPPI
to a depth of between 0.5 and 3 µm. The range of this
T248 Laboratory beating of Pulp (PFI mill method) [19].
measurement is from 4000 to 650 cm−1 .
The process of beating is the most fundamental step in the
Thermal analysis of paper insulation was carried out using
production of paper because it ensures that the pulp produced
the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) technique. TGA is used
from beaten stock is robust, thick, and has a firm consistency.
for the monitoring of the thermal degradation characteristics
In each beating run, a specimen of pulp weighing 24 g was
of both paper insulations. The TGA measurements were per-
taken from a typical sample, and 2000 r/min were performed
formed using Perkin Elmer STA 8000, completed with the
on the disintegrator tank after adding 2 L of water. This was
Pyris software, which operated under a constant nitrogen gas
done to disperse the bundled pulp. After the process was
flow at a rate of 100 mL/min. TGA measurement started by
finished, the pulp that had been disintegrated was placed into
cutting the samples into a small size with a weight of about
the PFI mill, which rotates at a number of different speeds.
10–25 mg. It was then stabilized at 30 ◦ C for 5 min and then
In the course of this inquiry, a pounding that has a rotational
heated to 800 ◦ C with a heating rate of 10 ◦ C/min.
speed of 12 000 r/min was utilized.
Tensile tests were performed on BUCHEL horizontal ten-
sile equipment according to the TAPPI T494 standard [23].
B. Handsheet Process A paper strip of 15 mm width and 100 mm length is clamped
In accordance with TAPPI T205 [20], the pulp needs to at each end between the two jaws. For each kind of presspaper,
undergo the necessary processing to become the stock for the ten samples were tested. The tests were conducted with a
papermaking process. To disperse the pulp, a quantity of 24 g condition of 23 ◦ C and 50% relative humidity.
of pulp was diluted with 2000 mL of distilled water. After The relative permittivity or dielectric constant is one of the
that, 8 L of water were added to the stock, and the stock important parameters for dielectric materials such as paper
was thoroughly mixed in the stock divider to ensure that the insulation. It affects the material’s ability to insulate, store
water was properly distributed throughout the stock. In the electrical charge, and handle electric fields. The determination
end, 400 mL of the stock that had been half-filled was moved of relative permittivity was conducted using an Impedance
to a sheet machine so that presspaper could be made using analyzer, specifically the Keysight E4990A, at room tem-
handsheet. perature. The experimental setup consisted of two identical
circular copper electrodes, each having a diameter of 30 mm.
III. E XPERIMENTAL S ETUP These electrodes were placed with a dry presspaper sample
in between, which had a diameter of approximately 35 mm.
A. Preprocessing of Oil and Paper The entire test was conducted in an ambient air environment.
Initially, the mineral oil was filtered three times using a A sinusoidal voltage with an amplitude of 1 V was applied
Nylon membrane filter with a pore size of 0.2 µm and during the process. The testing frequency spanned a range
both presspaper types were cut into 50 × 50 mm pieces. from 20 Hz to 10 MHz. To assess the consistency and

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6 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON DIELECTRICS AND ELECTRICAL INSULATION, VOL. 31, NO. 1, FEBRUARY 2024

Fig. 5. Pulping process, beating process, and handsheet.

reliability of the measurements, three samples were measured

for each presspaper variant.
The electrical breakdown strength of a material is of utmost
significance when referring to insulating material. As a result,
the alternating current (ac) breakdown voltage test of Kraft
and Kenaf presspaper was carried out in accordance with
the standards IEC 60243 [24]. Two equal electrodes with
25 ± 1 mm with their edges rounded to a radius of 3 ±
0.2 mm made from stainless steel were used. There was
a total of ten different breakdowns obtained for each test.
The thickness of the test specimen of this study was 3 mm
(25 layers of presspaper) following the requirement in the
IEC60243 standard as shown in Fig. 6. The test cell was
filled with mineral oil, the voltage frequency was 50 Hz,
and the voltage rise was set to 2 kV/s until the breakdown
occurred.
Fig. 6. Experimental setup for ac breakdown voltage testing.
IV. R ESULTS AND A NALYSIS
A. Basic Physical Properties TABLE I
Table I illustrates the selected characteristics of both press- P RESSPAPER AND F IBER C HARACTERISTICS
paper types.
The conventional insulation presspapers have apparent den-
sities between 0.75 and 1.3 g/cm3 while the thickness is
between 12 to 250 µm [25]. The Kraft paper used in this study
is Grade K and was supplied by the industry where all the
presspaper products are produced based on of IEC 60641-3-2,
type P.4.1A standard [26]. The specific characteristics of press-
paper and fiber for both presspaper are presented in Table I.
The apparent density for the Kraft presspaper is 1.0 g/cm3
with the thickness of 0.12 mm and it is comparable to similar
B. Morphology Characterization
thickness of Kenaf presspaper which is 0.8 g/cm3 . Meanwhile
the average fiber length of Kenaf is 2.87 mm, while that of Fig. 7 illustrates the SEM results of the Kenaf presspaper
Kraft is 3.4 mm, showing a relatively shorter length for Kenaf and Kraft presspaper. Both fibers show a relatively not smooth
fibers. and flat surface, and their tubular shapes are only slightly

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HASHIM et al.: INVESTIGATIONS ON THE SUITABILITY OF NON-WOOD KENAF BAST FIBER 7

Fig. 8. FTIR spectra of Kraft and Kenaf presspaper.

Fig. 7. Morphologies of (a) Kraft presspaper and (b) Kenaf presspaper

with 500× magnification.

elongated. This is since the refining step in making paper

causes the lumen to collapse and makes the surface of the
fibers rough. As a result, the fiber will become more flexi-
ble, and the area where the fibers are bonded together will
expand. It is suggested that the external fibrillation process
is responsible for the fact that Kenaf presspaper has fewer
voids between the individual fibers than Kraft presspaper does. Fig. 9. TGA plots for Kraft and Kenaf presspaper.
Delamination of the surface layers is brought about by external
fibrillation, which contributes to the potential for fiber-to-fiber
bonding [27], [28]. Furthermore, the decreased pore size could There has been no observation of -CH stretching in Kraft
potentially contribute to the increased mechanical strength and presspaper, which is attributed to a disparity in the structural
breakdown strength. In terms of fiber width, Kraft presspaper arrangement of the molecules. The absorption peak corre-
demonstrates a narrower width compared to Kenaf presspaper. sponds to the C=O stretching of hemicellulose at 1630 cm−1 .
The characteristics of fiber for both presspaper are presented The content of CH2 or CH3 bending (aromatic ring modes)
in Table I. can be determined from the peak at the region of ∼1430 cm−1 ,
The FTIR spectra of both Kenaf presspaper and Kraft and the bending of O-H can be discovered at ∼1312 cm−1
presspaper are displayed in Fig. 8. The presence of a hydrogen region. The functional group for the two samples showed no
bond can be determined by the presence of a broad absorption clear trend. By comparing the FTIR spectrum of Kraft and
band in the range of 3250–3650 cm−1 (hydrate, hydroxyl Kenaf presspaper, both spectra have a high degree of similarity.
ammonium, or amino). It should then be followed by the
presence of spectra for hydroxyl compounds at wavenumbers
of 1300–1600 cm−1 , 1000–1200 cm−1 , and 600–800 cm−1 . C. Thermal Properties
The -OH stretching and C-O stretching are attributed to The results of TGA experiments are shown in Fig. 9, which
the two prominent absorption peaks that occur at 3344 and depicts curves of weight loss of Kenaf and Kraft presspaper
1030 cm−1 , respectively. It is discovered that there is no sharp as a function of temperature rise with a constant heating
intensity absorption in the areas of 3670 and 3550 cm−1 , rate. The TGA curve shows that as the temperature increases,
which indicates that the compound does not contain oxygen- a variety of distinct reactions cause the weight percentage
related groups. The band at 2920 cm−1 is associated with the to decrease. The thermal decomposition of cellulose and
asymmetric stretching of -CH2, and the band at 2850 cm−1 is regenerated cellulose was divided into two weight loss phases,
due to the stretching of -CH [29], [30]. which corresponded to slow and fast pyrolysis. These phases

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8 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON DIELECTRICS AND ELECTRICAL INSULATION, VOL. 31, NO. 1, FEBRUARY 2024

were classified according to their rate of weight loss. At tem-

peratures below 150 ◦ C, a weight loss is seen for both the
early and slow pyrolysis stages of the curve for presspaper.
This weight loss is associated with the volatilization and
vaporization of water. Even though the weight percentage of
Kenaf presspaper remained nearly unchanged from 100 ◦ C to
250 ◦ C, Kenaf presspaper showed a continuous weight loss
in that temperature range due to lower intermolecular forces
and hydrogen bonding. Meanwhile, fast pyrolysis occurred at
temperatures between 250 ◦ C and 350 ◦ C. Methylene bonds
are disrupted when the temperature reaches this level [27]. The
random amorphous cellulose, crystalline cellulose, and lignin
all contribute to the rapidity with which additional weight loss
takes place.
The initial decomposition temperature (also known as
Fig. 10. Tensile strength of Kraft and Kenaf presspaper.
onset), Ti of the presspaper sample is investigated in this
study. This temperature is regarded as the point at which the
sample starts disintegrating and is measured as an evaluation volume, making them more durable and less prone to tearing
of its thermal stability. Since the Ti for Kraft presspaper is or damage. This might be the one reason Kraft Paper has
229 ◦ C, and the Ti for Kenaf presspaper is 254 ◦ C, it can higher tensile strength than Kenaf paper.
be deduced that Kenaf presspaper has a higher capacity for Another reason Kenaf paper has a lower tensile strength
withstanding high temperatures than Kraft presspaper. Based in this study is due to the different pulping processes for the
on the derivative of TGA, two weight losses (∼345 ◦ C and Kraft presspaper and Kenaf presspaper. The Kraft presspaper
∼485 ◦ C) have been detected for Kraft presspaper, while only in this study was sourced from the commercially available
one weight loss (∼345 ◦ C) existed in Kenaf presspaper. Weight paper insulation market and is mostly manufactured with the
loss at the first stage of Kenaf presspaper is ∼2.87% higher Kraft pulping method at the factory scale and involves special
than Kraft presspaper. The second stage of weight loss seen in treatment during the manufacturing process. In contrast, the
Kraft presspaper can be attributed to a higher weight residue, production of Kenaf presspaper involves soda pulping at the
which is most likely the result of contaminants that were laboratory level, chosen for its cost-effectiveness within this
kept in the presspaper during the manufacturing process. This scale. The Kraft process is known for producing strong and
may be explained by the fact that NaOH caused damage to durable paper due to its ability to retain most of the cellulose
most of the hydrogen bonds and the cellulose molecular chain, fibers’ strength. This process also effectively removes lignin,
which in turn affected the molecular weight and crystallinity. a component of wood that can weaken paper which cannot
In addition, the low molecular weight accelerated the process be obtained through soda pulping. Hence, the Kraft pulping
of heat breakdown. This coincides with the findings that method yields pulp that has higher and stronger quality, both
Yeng et al. [31] reached the conclusion of. When heated of which can contribute to the results of the tensile strength
to approximately 700 ◦ C, the residue of Kenaf presspaper test. It is possible that changing the pulping process will result
is significantly higher than that of Kraft presspaper. This is in an increase in the tensile strength of the presspaper as well
associated with the lower ash content of the Kraft presspaper. as the strength of the bonds between the individual fibers.
Besides that, the tensile strength increased corresponding to
D. Tensile Strength the increase of the length of the cellulose fiber. As shown in
Table I, Kraft presspaper has a longer fiber length than Kenaf
Fig. 10 depicts the tensile strength of presspaper samples presspaper, which agreed with the result obtained for tensile
made from Kenaf and Kraft fibers, respectively. Presspaper strength. Longer fibers can create stronger bonds within the
made from Kenaf fibers has a tensile strength of 48 ± material, making it more capable of withstanding forces that
1.5 MPa, which is 8% lower than the geometric mean of try to stretch or tear it.
tensile strength of presspaper made from Kraft fibers (52 ±
1.4 MPa). The geometric mean is used to represent the tensile
strength of the Kraft presspaper, as it is an invariant with E. Relative Permittivity and AC Breakdown Properties
respect to the fiber orientation anisotropy for tensile strength. Table II shows the detailed results of the relative permittiv-
According to Huang et al. [3], the tensile strength of paper is ity of dried Kraft and Kenaf presspaper at 50 Hz. For each
determined by the strength of the interfiber bonds in the paper. type of presspaper, the result is the average value of three
During the tensile failure process, the interfiber bonds can measurements. Kenaf presspaper exhibits a higher permittivity
break apart, and the fibers themselves can rupture. In general, value than Kraft presspaper. This result can be attributed to the
papers with higher density are often stronger than papers with reduced presence of pores, resulting in a higher permittivity
lower density. This is because paper density is a measure of due to the enhancement of the material’s effective dielectric
how much mass or material is packed into a given volume. constant, as depicted in Fig. 7. The effective dielectric constant
Higher density papers have more fibers and material per unit of a material is determined by the permittivity of the material

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HASHIM et al.: INVESTIGATIONS ON THE SUITABILITY OF NON-WOOD KENAF BAST FIBER 9

TABLE II
R ELATIVE P ERMITTIVITY OF P RESSPAPER AT 50 H Z

Fig. 12. Weibull plots of ac breakdown field of Kraft and Kenaf

presspaper.

caused by statistical coincidence and not by the test procedure

Fig. 11. Individual values from ac breakdown test of Kraft and Kenaf itself.
presspaper samples.
Cumulative probability plots of ac breakdown voltage tests
for Kraft and Kenaf presspaper are presented in Fig. 12.
itself, as well as the relative quantities of the material and Weibull statistics are performed in accordance with the interna-
any voids or pores within it. Kenaf presspaper exhibits fewer tional standard IEC 62539 [33], which serves as a reference for
voids or pores within its microstructure, which diminishes the statistical analysis of dielectric breakdown data. Equation (2)
amount of air present. Consequently, the effective dielectric calculates the probability of the ith breakdown voltage from
constant of Kenaf presspaper is elevated due to the higher the total n tests after ordering the breakdown values from
dielectric constant of the fibers compared to that of the lowest to highest
air. 
(i − 0.44)

The breakdown strength of an insulating material is one of F(i, n) = × 100%. (2)
(n + 0.25)
the fundamental aspects that must be taken into consideration
for a transformer to function properly. The individual values The solid lines in Fig. 12 represent the Weibull fitting of
of ten measurements of the ac breakdown test of Kraft and 10 ac breakdowns field for both presspaper samples. Based
Kenaf presspaper samples are shown in kV/mm in Fig. 11. on the graph, Kenaf presspaper shifted to the rightest side
It is seen that Kenaf presspaper achieves higher dielectric compared to Kraft presspaper, which shows that Kenaf press-
strength results than Kraft presspaper when both types of paper has a better breakdown performance than the Kraft
presspaper were immersed in transformer oil. This is because presspaper. Generally, there were three significant probability
Kenaf presspaper has a greater proportion of fibers as well as distribution percentiles (1%, 50%, and 90%) were identified.
higher permittivity than Kraft presspaper. According to [32], At any percentage, it is noticeable that Kenaf presspaper
it is evident that the ac dielectric strength is significantly achieves a higher breakdown voltage than Kraft presspaper.
influenced by the presence of voids or porosity. As the void This is because Kenaf presspaper has fewer voids and smaller
concentration increases, the ac dielectric strength decreases. pore sizes. Because of this, Kenaf presspaper has a better
This is due to voids within presspaper possessing a lower performance in terms of its breakdown compared to Kraft
breakdown strength in comparison to cellulose fibers, while presspaper.
still needing to endure higher stress levels. Consequently,
under the application of an external electric field, partial V. C ONCLUSION
discharge arises within these voids, ultimately leading to the This study aimed to explore the viability of employing
breakdown of the presspaper. By decreasing the concentration Kenaf fiber for the production of insulating presspaper. The
of voids through a reduction in porosity, the breakdown process involved creating Kenaf presspaper samples using a
behavior of the presspaper can be improved [4]. It is also laboratory papermaking setup, while commercially available
noticeable that the ac dielectric strength results obtained by Kraft presspaper was utilized for comparison. The investiga-
Kenaf presspaper are more consistent than those obtained by tion encompassed an analysis of morphology, tensile strength,
Kraft presspaper that was immersed in oil. The authors believe thermal characteristics, and electrical properties. In summary,
that the apparent downward trend of the Kraft paper values was the resulting conclusions are as follows.

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10 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON DIELECTRICS AND ELECTRICAL INSULATION, VOL. 31, NO. 1, FEBRUARY 2024

1) Kenaf fiber is shorter and narrower than softwood fiber. R EFERENCES

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT Nov. 2019, doi: 10.1016/j.jmbbm.2019.07.020.
[18] Screening of Pulp (Somerville-Type Equipment), Standard TAPPI T275,
The authors would like to thank the Centre for Research Technical Association of the Pulp & Paper Industry, 2000.
and Innovation Management (CRIM), National Defence Uni- [19] Laboratory Beating of Pulp (PFI Mill Method), Standard TAPPI T248,
Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry, 2000.
versity of Malaysia (NDUM), for their confidence in funding
[20] Forming Handsheets for Physical Test of Pulp,
this project through research grants and Universiti Malaysia Standard TAPPI T275TAPPI T205, Technical Association of the
Sarawak (UNIMAS) for management support. They would Pulp & Paper Industry, 2006.
also like to thank the Forest Research Institute Malaysia [21] K. Bandara, C. Ekanayake, T. K. Saha, and P. K. Annamalai, “Under-
standing the ageing aspects of natural ester based insulation liquid in
(FRIM) for its active participation in the production of Kenaf power transformer,” IEEE Trans. Dielectr. Electr. Insul., vol. 23, no. 1,
presspaper. pp. 246–257, Feb. 2016, doi: 10.1109/TDEI.2015.004744.

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HASHIM et al.: INVESTIGATIONS ON THE SUITABILITY OF NON-WOOD KENAF BAST FIBER 11

[22] V. Sivaramalakshmi, M. Ravindran, M. W. Iruthayarajan, and J. Adnan received the B.Eng. degree in electri-
M. Bakrutheen, “Aging performance of natural ester impregnated cal telecommunication from Universiti Teknologi
Nomex paper insulation,” in Proc. 5th Int. Conf. Electr. Energy Syst. Malaysia (UTM), Skudai, Malaysia, in 2001, and
(ICEES), Feb. 2019, pp. 1–4, doi: 10.1109/ICEES.2019.8719319. the M.Eng. degree in electrical, electronics, and
[23] Tensile Properties of Paper and Paperboard (Using Constant Rate of system engineering from Universiti Kebangsaan
Elongation Apparatus), Standard TAPPI T275TAPPI T494, Technical Malaysia (UKM), Bangi, Malaysia, in 2005.
Association of the Pulp & Paper Industry, 2006. Currently, he works as a Senior Lecturer
[24] Electric Strength of Insulating Materials—Test Methods—Part 1: Tests with the Department of Electrical and Elec-
at Power Frequencies, Standard TAPPI T275IEC 60243, International tronic Engineering, National Defense University
Electrotechnical Commission, 2003. of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. His fields
[25] Pressboard and Presspaper for Electrical Purposes—Part 2: Methods of interests include high voltage engineering,
of Tests, Standard TAPPI T275IEC 60641, International Electrotechnical transformer insulating materials, renewable energy, and neural network.
Commission, 2004.
[26] Pressboard and Presspaper for Electrical Purposes—Part 3: Speci-
fications for Individual Materials—Sheet 2: Requirements for Press-
paper, Types P.2.1, P.4.1, P.4.2, P.4.3 and P.6.1, Standard TAPPI N. S. Suhaimi received the B.Eng. degree in
T275IEC60641, International Electrotechnical Commission, 2007. electrical engineering from the University of Tun
[27] Y. E. Sari, A. D. S. Ritonga, and S. Suwarno, “Comparative study of Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM), Batu Pahat,
Kraft paper aged in natural ester with XRD and TG/DTG analysis,” Int. Malaysia, 2014, and the M.Eng. and Ph.D.
J. Electr. Eng. Informat., vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 596–609, Sep. 2019, doi: degrees in electrical and electronic engineer-
10.15676/ijeei.2019.11.3.10. ing from the National Defence University of
[28] P. Sun, W. Sima, M. Yang, and J. Wu, “Influence of thermal aging on the Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2017 and
breakdown characteristics of transformer oil impregnated paper,” IEEE 2021, respectively.
Trans. Dielectr. Electr. Insul., vol. 23, no. 6, pp. 3373–3381, Dec. 2016, She is currently a Post-Doctoral Fellow with
doi: 10.1109/TDEI.2016.005306. the National Defence University of Malaysia.
[29] F. Carrillo, X. Colom, J. J. Suñol, and J. Saurina, “Structural FTIR Her research interests include high voltage engi-
analysis and thermal characterisation of lyocell and viscose-type fibres,” neering, nanomaterial, dielectric material, and Raman spectroscopy.
Eur. Polym. J., vol. 40, no. 9, pp. 2229–2234, Sep. 2004, doi:
10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2004.05.003.
[30] Y. Hadjadj, I. Fofana, and J. Jalbert, “Insulating oil decaying assess-
ment by FTIR and UV-vis spectrophotometry measurements,” in Proc.
Annu. Rep. Conf. Electr. Insul. Dielectr. Phenomena, Oct. 2013, M. M. Ariffin received the B.Eng. degree in
pp. 1310–1313, doi: 10.1109/CEIDP.2013.6748297. industrial electronic engineering from Univer-
siti Malaysia Perlis (UNIMAP), Arau, Malaysia,
[31] L. C. Yeng, M. U. Wahit, and N. Othman, “Thermal and flexural
in 2011, and the M.Eng. degree in electri-
properties of regenerated cellulose(RC)/poly(3-hydroxybutyrate)(PHB)
cal engineering from Universiti Tun Hussien
biocomposites,” Jurnal Teknologi, vol. 75, no. 11, pp. 107–112,
Onn Malaysia (UTHM), Batu Pahat, Malaysia,
Aug. 2015, doi: 10.11113/jt.v75.5338.
in 2013. She is currently pursuing the Ph.D.
[32] J. Huang, Y. Zhou, L. Dong, Z. Zhou, and R. Liu, “Effect of pulp
degree in electrical engineering with the Depart-
refining on mechanical and electrical properties of insulating presspa-
ment of Electrical and Electronic Engineering,
per,” in Proc. IEEE Conf. Electr. Insul. Dielectr. Phenomena (CEIDP),
National Defense University of Malaysia, Kuala
Oct. 2016, pp. 739–742, doi: 10.1109/CEIDP.2016.7785455.
Lumpur, Malaysia.
[33] Guide for the Statistical Analysis of Electrical Insulation Breakdown Her research interests include transformer insulation aging for high
Data, Standard TAPPI T275IEC 62539, International Electrotechnical voltage and transformer condition monitoring.
Commission, 2006.

N. ‘I. Hashim received the B.Eng. and M.Eng.

degrees in electrical engineering from Universiti S. Rufus (Member, IEEE) received the Diploma
Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM), Batu Pahat, degree in electrical and electronic engineering
Johor, Malaysia, in 2010 and 2013, respectively. and the B.Eng. degree in electrical engineer-
She is currently pursuing the Ph.D. degree with ing from the MARA Technology of University
the National Defense University of Malaysia, (UiTM), Shah Alam, Malaysia, in 2004 and 2007,
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. respectively, and the M.Eng. degree in electrical
She works with the Department of Electrical engineering from Universiti Tun Hussein Onn
and Electronic Engineering, Faculty of Engi- Malaysia (UTHM), Batu Pahat, Johor, Malaysia,
neering, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS), in 2012.
Kota Samarahan, Malaysia. Her research inter- She works with the Department of Electrical
ests include transformer insulating materials, transformer condition and Electronic Engineering, Faculty of Engineer-
monitoring, and high voltage engineering. ing, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS), Kota Samarahan, Malaysia.
Her research interests include lightning, artificial intelligence (AI), data
M. T. Ishak (Senior Member, IEEE) received science, and high-voltage engineering.
the B.Sc. degree in electrical power engineer-
ing from Universiti Tenaga Nasional, Kajang,
Malaysia, in 2002, the M.Sc. degree in electrical
power engineering from UMIST, U.K., in 2005,
and the Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering M. H. A. Hamid received the Ph.D. degree in
from the University of Manchester, Manchester, electrical and electronic engineering from the
U.K., in 2010. National Defence University of Malaysia, Kuala
From 2013 to 2015, he was the Head with Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2021.
the High Voltage Laboratory, National Defence She is currently a Lecturer with Sultan Abdul
University of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Samad Vocational College, Banting, Malaysia.
and where he is currently a Professor with the Department of Engineer- Her research interests include high voltage
ing. His fields of specialization include transformer condition monitoring, engineering, power systems, and sustainable
insulation aging, diagnostic, asset management, alternative insulation energy.
materials for high voltage power equipment, and renewable energy.

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