Abstract
Aging characteristics of the crosslinked polyethylene have been measured after applying electrical, thermal and combined stresses. ICP and FT-IR measurements confirmed diffusion of low molecular weight components such as antioxidant and presence of carbonyl group. Carbonyl group of aged crosslinked polyethylene under combined stress was detected by FT-IR. As deterioration of the crosslinked polyethylene progresses, crystallinity degree and density decrease. Also, dielectric properties have been measured by tan $\delta$ and $\varepsilon$$_{r}$ measurements. The three-parameter Weibull distribution was found to be the best suited among other probabilistic distribution representing the dielectric breakdown strength of aged crosslinked polyethylene. The scale parameter and location parameter decreases as the applied stress increases. The shape parameter increases as the stress increases.s.
