Glaze icing formed by supercooled water droplets on the surface of the insulators in service is one of the most severe ice types that threaten the power grid. Different from the constant directional force exerted by a DC electric field on charged droplets

the periodic variation of an AC electric field coupled with the distortion effect of icicles on the electric field and flow field leads to a more complex impact on the motion of charged droplets

but there is little research on it. Based on a three-dimensional simulation model of a glaze ice-covered insulator

the influence of the AC electric field on the motion and collision characteristics of charged droplets under different icicle lengths were studied in the current research. Combined with field tests

the icing growth process and discharge development process of the insulator under the AC electric field were analyzed. The results show that under the influence of the AC electric field

the alternating attraction and repulsion forces on charged droplets lead to oscillation in their motion trajectories

and the density and diameter of icicle decrease

with reductions of 10.3% and 17.6%

respectively

compared to the uncharged case. The quality of ice accretion shows a trend of increasing initially and then decreasing

while the change trend of flashover voltage is opposite.