Silicone rubber is widely used in polymer insulators,
bushings and cable terminations, owing to its light weight,
high vandal resistance and capability to maintain and
recover surface hydrophobicity in wet and contaminated
conditions [1–3]. However, silicone rubber in contaminated
applications is susceptible to dry band arcing, partial
discharge and corona discharge due to various environmental
and electrical stresses. In the long term, these
electrical discharges could cause degradation of the silicone
rubber in the form of electrical tracking and erosion,