Apparent charge
Updated 2026-10-27
Data records
- Apparent charge is the quantity by which a partial discharge is measured in conventional testing: the charge which, if injected in a very short time across the terminals of the test object, would produce the same change in terminal voltage as the discharge pulse itself. It is not the charge actually transferred at the discharge site, which cannot be measured directly.
- In instrument practice the conventional measuring circuit is calibrated once it is in place so that the apparent charge the instrument reports in picocoulombs represents the discharges occurring inside the asset, referred to the test terminals. Non-conventional methods that capture the high-frequency electromagnetic transients of a discharge cannot be calibrated in this way and report their results in decibel units instead.
Elsewhere in the family
- Partial Discharge Offline related entry on Electrical Testing Reference
- Partial Discharge Offline related entry on Motor Testing Reference
Sources
- Electrical Testing Reference editorial taxonomy, Electrical Testing Reference editorial taxonomy of test methods, 2026-10 edition, Electrical Testing Reference. Held as: Own observation.
- Megger Electrical Tester article, Q&A: Partial discharge testing, 2021-10-29 edition, Megger. Held as: Public page. Publisher page
Changelog (5 entries)
| Date | Revision | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-27 | created (gloss.apparent-charge.definition) | |
| 2026-10-27 | review_status unreviewed -> software_reviewed (gloss.apparent-charge.definition) | |
| 2026-10-27 | created (gloss.apparent-charge.usage) | |
| 2026-10-27 | revised (gloss.apparent-charge.usage) | |
| 2026-10-27 | review_status unreviewed -> software_reviewed (gloss.apparent-charge.usage) |
Cite this page
Cite the governing standard for the fact itself; cite this page as the finding aid.
"Apparent charge." Test Instrument Reference. 2026-10-27. https://www.testinstrumentreference.com/glossary/apparent-charge/.
Test Instrument Reference, Apparent charge (Oct. 27, 2026), https://www.testinstrumentreference.com/glossary/apparent-charge/.
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organization = {Test Instrument Reference},
publisher = {Test Instrument Reference},
year = {2026},
note = {last substantive change 2026-10-27}
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