29/10/2015 American wire gauge - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

American wire gauge

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"AWG" redirects here. For other uses, see AWG (disambiguation).

American wire gauge (AWG), also known as the Brown & Sharpe wire gauge, is a standardized wire gauge system used since
1857 predominantly in North America for the diameters of round, solid, nonferrous, electrically conducting wire. Dimensions of the
wires are given in ASTM standard B 258.[1] The cross-sectional area of each gauge is an important factor for determining its
current-carrying capacity.

Increasing gauge numbers denote decreasing wire diameters, which is similar to many other non-metric gauging systems such as
SWG. This gauge system originated in the number of drawing operations used to produce a given gauge of wire. Very fine wire (for
example, 30 gauge) required more passes through the drawing dies than 0 gauge wire did. Manufacturers of wire formerly had
proprietary wire gauge systems; the development of standardized wire gauges rationalized selection of wire for a particular purpose.

The AWG tables are for a single, solid, round conductor. The AWG of a stranded wire is determined by the cross-sectional area of
the equivalent solid conductor. Because there are also small gaps between the strands, a stranded wire will always have a slightly
larger overall diameter than a solid wire with the same AWG.

AWG is also commonly used to specify body piercing jewelry sizes (especially smaller sizes), even when the material is not
metallic.[2]

Contents
1 Formula
1.1 Rules of thumb
2 Tables of AWG wire sizes
3 Stranded wire AWG sizes
4 Nomenclature and abbreviations in electrical distribution
5 USB data & charging cables
6 Pronunciation
7 See also
8 References
9 Further reading
10 External links

Formula
By definition, No. 36 AWG is 0.005 inches in diameter, and No. 0000 is 0.46 inches in diameter. The ratio of these diameters is
1:92, and there are 40 gauge sizes from No. 36 to No. 0000, or 39 steps. Because each successive gauge number increases cross
sectional area by a constant multiple, diameters vary geometrically. Any two successive gauges (e.g. A & B ) have diameters in the
ratio (dia. B ÷ dia. A) of (approximately 1.12293), while for gauges two steps apart (e.g. A, B & C), the ratio of the C to A is
2
about 1.12293 = 1.26098. The diameter of a No. n AWG wire is determined, for gauges smaller than 00 (36 to 0), according to the
following formula:

(see below for gauges larger than No. 0 (i.e. No. 00, No. 000, No. 0000 ).) or equivalently

The gauge can be calculated from the diameter using [3]

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and the cross-section area is

The standard ASTM B258 - 02(2008) Standard Specification for Standard Nominal Diameters and Cross-Sectional Areas of
AWG Sizes of Solid Round Wires Used as Electrical Conductors defines the ratio between successive sizes to be the 39th root of
92, or approximately 1.1229322.[4] ASTM B 258-02 also dictates that wire diameters should be tabulated with no more than 4
significant figures, with a resolution of no more than 0.0001 inches (0.1 mils) for wires larger than No. 44 AWG, and 0.00001 inches
(0.01 mils) for wires No. 45 AWG and smaller.

Sizes with multiple zeros are successively larger than No. 0 and can be denoted using "number of zeros/0", for example 4/0 for
0000. For an m/0 AWG wire, use n = −(m−1) = 1−m in the above formulas. For instance, for No. 0000 or 4/0, use n = −3.

Rules of thumb

The sixth power of is very close to 2,[5] which leads to the following rules of thumb:

When the diameter of a wire is doubled, the AWG will decrease by 6. (e.g., No. 2 AWG is about twice the diameter of No. 8
AWG.)
When the cross-sectional area of a wire is doubled, the AWG will decrease by 3. (e.g., Two No. 14 AWG wires have about
the same cross-sectional area as a single No. 11 AWG wire.)
A decrease of ten gauge numbers, for example from No. 10 to 1/0, multiplies the area and weight by approximately 10 and
reduces the resistance by a factor of approximately 10.
For the same cross section aluminum wire has a conductivity of approximately 61% of copper, so an aluminum wire has nearly
the same resistance as a copper wire 2 AWG sizes smaller, which has 62.9% of the area.

Tables of AWG wire sizes

The table below shows various data including both the resistance of the various wire gauges and the allowable current (ampacity)
based on plastic insulation. The diameter information in the table applies to solid wires. Stranded wires are calculated by
calculating the equivalent cross sectional copper area. Fusing current (melting wire) is estimated based on 25°C ambient
temperature. The table below assumes DC, or AC frequencies equal to or less than 60 Hz, and does not take skin effect into account.
Turns of wire is an upper limit for wire with no insulation.

Turns of
wire, NEC
Copper Fusing current,
Diameter no Area copper wire
resistance [6] copper[8][9]
insulation ampacity Approx.
AWG with metric
60/75/90 °C equivalents
insulation Onderdonk,
(per (per 2 (Ω/km) (Ω/kft) [7] Preece,
(in) (mm) (kcmil) (mm ) (A) 32
in) cm) (mΩ/m) (mΩ/ft) ~10 s 1s
ms
0000 195 / 230 / 33 182
0.4600* 11.684* 2.17 0.856 212 107 0.1608 0.04901 3.2 kA
(4/0) 260 kA kA
000 165 / 200 / 26 144
0.4096 10.405 2.44 0.961 168 85.0 0.2028 0.06180 2.7 kA
(3/0) 225 kA kA
00 145 / 175 / 21 115
0.3648 9.266 2.74 1.08 133 67.4 0.2557 0.07793 2.3 kA
(2/0) 195 kA kA
0 125 / 150 / 16 91
0.3249 8.251 3.08 1.21 106 53.5 0.3224 0.09827 1.9 kA
(1/0) 170 kA kA
110 / 130 / 13 72
1 0.2893 7.348 3.46 1.36 83.7 42.4 0.4066 0.1239 1.6 kA
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145 kA kA
95 / 115 / 10.2 57
2 0.2576 6.544 3.88 1.53 66.4 33.6 0.5127 0.1563 1.3 kA
130 kA kA
85 / 100 / 8.1 45
3 0.2294 5.827 4.36 1.72 52.6 26.7 0.6465 0.1970 196/0.4 1.1 kA
115 kA kA
6.4 36
4 0.2043 5.189 4.89 1.93 41.7 21.2 0.8152 0.2485 70 / 85 / 95 946 A
kA kA
5.1 28
5 0.1819 4.621 5.50 2.16 33.1 16.8 1.028 0.3133 126/0.4 795 A
kA kA
4.0 23
6 0.1620 4.115 6.17 2.43 26.3 13.3 1.296 0.3951 55 / 65 / 75 668 A
kA kA
3.2 18
7 0.1443 3.665 6.93 2.73 20.8 10.5 1.634 0.4982 80/0.4 561 A
kA kA
2.5 14
8 0.1285 3.264 7.78 3.06 16.5 8.37 2.061 0.6282 40 / 50 / 55 472 A
kA kA
2.0 11
9 0.1144 2.906 8.74 3.44 13.1 6.63 2.599 0.7921 396 A kA kA
84/0.3
1.6 8.9
10 0.1019 2.588 9.81 3.86 10.4 5.26 3.277 0.9989 30 / 35 / 40 333 A
kA kA
1.3 7.1
11 0.0907 2.305 11.0 4.34 8.23 4.17 4.132 1.260 56/0.3 280 A
kA kA
1.0 5.6
12 0.0808 2.053 12.4 4.87 6.53 3.31 5.211 1.588 20 / 25 / 30 235 A
kA kA
798 4.5
13 0.0720 1.828 13.9 5.47 5.18 2.62 6.571 2.003 50/0.25 198 A
A kA
633 3.5
14 0.0641 1.628 15.6 6.14 4.11 2.08 8.286 2.525 15 / 20 / 25 64/0.2 166 A
A kA
502 2.8
15 0.0571 1.450 17.5 6.90 3.26 1.65 10.45 3.184 140 A
A kA
30/0.25
398 2.2
16 0.0508 1.291 19.7 7.75 2.58 1.31 13.17 4.016 — / — / 18 117 A
A kA
316 1.8
17 0.0453 1.150 22.1 8.70 2.05 1.04 16.61 5.064 32/0.2 99 A
A kA
250 1.4
18 0.0403 1.024 24.8 9.77 1.62 0.823 20.95 6.385 — / — / 14 83 A
A kA
24/0.2
198 1.1
19 0.0359 0.912 27.9 11.0 1.29 0.653 26.42 8.051 70 A
A kA
158 882
20 0.0320 0.812 31.3 12.3 1.02 0.518 33.31 10.15 16/0.2 58.5 A
A A
125 700
21 0.0285 0.723 35.1 13.8 0.810 0.410 42.00 12.80 13/0.2 49 A
A A
551
22 0.0253 0.644 39.5 15.5 0.642 0.326 52.96 16.14 7/0.25 41 A 99 A
A
440
23 0.0226 0.573 44.3 17.4 0.509 0.258 66.79 20.36 35 A 79 A A

1/0.5,
348
24 0.0201 0.511 49.7 19.6 0.404 0.205 84.22 25.67 7/0.2, 29 A 62 A
A
30/0.1
276
25 0.0179 0.455 55.9 22.0 0.320 0.162 106.2 32.37 24 A 49 A
A
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1/0.4, 218
26 0.0159 0.405 62.7 24.7 0.254 0.129 133.9 40.81 20 A 39 A
7/0.15 A

174
27 0.0142 0.361 70.4 27.7 0.202 0.102 168.9 51.47 17 A 31 A
A
137
28 0.0126 0.321 79.1 31.1 0.160 0.0810 212.9 64.90 7/0.12 14 A 24 A
A
110
29 0.0113 0.286 88.8 35.0 0.127 0.0642 268.5 81.84 12 A 20 A
A
1/0.25,
30 0.0100 0.255 99.7 39.3 0.101 0.0509 338.6 103.2 10 A 15 A 86 A
7/0.1
31 0.00893 0.227 112 44.1 0.0797 0.0404 426.9 130.1 9A 12 A 69 A
1/0.2,
32 0.00795 0.202 126 49.5 0.0632 0.0320 538.3 164.1 7A 10 A 54 A
7/0.08
33 0.00708 0.180 141 55.6 0.0501 0.0254 678.8 206.9 6A 7.7 A 43 A
34 0.00630 0.160 159 62.4 0.0398 0.0201 856.0 260.9 5A 6.1 A 34 A
35 0.00561 0.143 178 70.1 0.0315 0.0160 1079 329.0 4A 4.8 A 27 A
36 0.00500* 0.127* 200* 78.7 0.0250 0.0127 1361 414.8 4A 3.9 A 22 A
37 0.00445 0.113 225 88.4 0.0198 0.0100 1716 523.1 3A 3.1 A 17 A
38 0.00397 0.101 252 99.3 0.0157 0.00797 2164 659.6 3A 2.4 A 14 A
39 0.00353 0.0897 283 111 0.0125 0.00632 2729 831.8 2A 1.9 A 11 A
40 0.00314 0.0799 318 125 0.00989 0.00501 3441 1049 1A 1.5 A 8.5 A
Turns of NEC
wire, Copper
copper wire Fusing current,
Diameter Area
no resistance
ampacity Approx. copper
insulation with metric
AWG
60/75/90 °C equivalents Onderdonk,
(per (per (Ω/km) (Ω/kft) insulation Preece,
(in) (mm) (kcmil) (mm2) 32
in) cm) (mΩ/m) (mΩ/ft) (A) ~10 s 1s
ms

*Exact (by definition)

In the North American electrical industry, conductors larger than 4/0 AWG are generally identified by the area in thousands of
circular mils (kcmil), where 1 kcmil = 0.5067 mm2. The next wire size larger than 4/0 has a cross section of 250 kcmil. A circular
mil is the area of a wire one mil in diameter. One million circular mils is the area of a circle with 1000 mil = 1 inch diameter. An
older abbreviation for one thousand circular mils is MCM.

Stranded wire AWG sizes

AWG gauges are also used to describe stranded wire. In this case, it describes a wire which is equal in cross-sectional area to the
total of all the cross-sectional areas of the individual strands; the gaps between strands are not counted. When made with circular
strands (see Circle packing), these gaps occupy about 10% of the wire area, thus requiring a wire about 5% thicker than equivalent
solid wire.

Stranded wires are specified with three numbers, the overall AWG size, the number of strands, and the AWG size of a strand. The
number of strands and the AWG of a strand are separated by a slash. For example, a 22 AWG 7/30 stranded wire is a 22 AWG wire
made from seven strands of 30 AWG wire.

Nomenclature and abbreviations in electrical distribution

Main article: Electric power distribution
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Alternate ways are commonly used in the electrical industry to specify wire sizes as AWG.

4 AWG (proper)
#4 (the number sign is used as an abbreviation for "number")
No. 4 (No. is used as an abbreviation for "number")
No. 4 AWG
4 ga. (abbreviation for "gauge")
000 AWG (proper for large sizes)
3/0 (common for large sizes) Pronounced 3 aught
3/0 AWG
#000
#3/0

The industry also bundles common wire for use in electric power distribution in homes and businesses, identifying a bundle's wire
size followed by the number of wires in the bundle. The most common type of distribution cable, NM-B, is generally implied:

#14/2 (also written "14-2") is a nonmetallic sheathed bundle of two solid 14 AWG wires. The insulation surrounding the two
conductors is white and black. This sheath for 14 AWG cable is usually white when used for NM-B wiring intended for
electrical distribution in a dry location. Newly manufactured cables without a separate ground wire (such as #14/2) are
obsolete.
#12/2 with ground (also written "12-2 w/gnd") is a nonmetallic sheathed bundle of three solid 12 AWG wires having a bare
ground in the middle of two insulated conductors in a flat-shaped NM-B yellow-colored sheath. The color is a North American
industry standard for cables made since 2003, and aids identification.
#10/3 with ground (also written "10-3 w/gnd") is a nonmetallic sheathed bundle of four solid 10 AWG wires having a bare
ground and three insulated conductors twisted into a round-shaped NM-B orange-colored sheath. The insulated conductors are
black, white, and red. Some cable of this type may be flat to save copper.

USB data & charging cables

AWG is also used to describe USB cables, such as the common USB A to micro-B USB data / charging cables used to charge and
sync smartphones and many other mobile devices. This is of particular concern to consumers, since thicker cables can potentially
charge the device faster and with greater efficiency. When describing USB cables, AWG is specified with two numbers: First the
gauge of the data transfer wires, followed by the gauge of the charging wires within the cable. Most USB cables are 28/28 AWG.[10]
However some cables that ship with tablets, and higher quality third-party cables, can be 28/24 AWG, 30/24, 28/21, etc, meaning
the charging wires are thicker.[10]

Pronunciation
AWG is colloquially referred to as gauge and the zeros in large wire sizes are referred to as aught /ˈɔːt/. Wire sized 1 AWG is
referred to as "one gauge" or "No. 1" wire; similarly, smaller diameters are pronounced "x gauge" or "No. X" wire, where x is the
positive integer AWG number. Consecutive AWG wire sizes larger than No. 1 wire are designated by the number of zeros:

No. 0, typically written 1/0 and is referred to as "one aught" wire

No. 00, typically written 2/0 and is referred to as "two aught" wire
No. 000, typically written 3/0 and is referred to as "three aught" wire,

and so on.[11]

See also
Electrical wiring
Gauge chart comparing all known wire gauges (PDF)
IEC 60228 for international standard wire sizes
Number 8 wire, a term used in the New Zealand vernacular
Standard wire gauge (former British standard)
Stubs Iron Wire Gauge

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References
1. "ASTM B258 - 14 Standard Specification for Standard Nominal Diameters and Cross-Sectional Areas of AWG Sizes of Solid Round Wires
Used as Electrical Conductors". West Conshohocken: ASTM International. Archived from the original on 22 July 2014. Retrieved 22 March
2015.(subscription required)
2. SteelNavel.com Body Piercing Jewelry Size Reference — illustrating the different ways that size is measured on different kinds of jewelry
(http://www.steelnavel.com/reference.asp)
3. The logarithm to the base 92 can be computed using any other logarithm, such as common or natural logarithm, using log92x = (log x)/(log
92).
4. ASTM Standard B 258-02, page 4
5. The result is roughly 2.0050, or one-quarter of one percent higher than 2
6. Figure for solid copper wire at 68 °F, (Not in accordance to NEC Codebook 2014 Ch. 9, Table 8) computed based on 100% IACS
conductivity of 58.0 MS/m, which agrees with multiple sources:
http://www.eskimo.com/~billb/tesla/wire1.txt
Mark Lund, PowerStream Inc., American Wire Gauge table and AWG Electrical Current Load Limits, retrieved 2008-05-02
(although the ft/m conversion seems slightly erroneous)
Belden Master Catalog (http://www.belden.com/products/catalogs/mastercatalog/), 2006, although data from there for gauges 35 and
37–40 seems obviously wrong.
High-purity oxygen-free copper can achieve up to 101.5% IACS conductivity; e.g., the Kanthal conductive alloys data sheet
(http://www.kanthal.com/C12570A7004E2D46/062CC3B124D69A8EC1256988002A3D76/F6421C7808255963C12572BB001C8704/$file
/5-C-4-3%20conductive%20alloys.pdf?OpenElement) lists slightly lower resistances than this table.
7. NFPA 70 National Electrical Code 2014 Edition (http://bulk.resource.org/codes.gov/). Table 310.15(B)(16) (formerly Table 310.16) page
70-161, Allowable ampacities of insulated conductors rated 0 through 2000 volts, 60°C through 90°C, not more than three current-
carrying conductors in raceway, cable, or earth (directly buried) based on ambient temperature of 30°C. Extracts from NFPA 70 do not
represent the full position of NFPA and the original complete Code must be consulted. In particular, the maximum permissible overcurrent
protection devices may set a lower limit.
8. Computed using equations from H. Wayne Beaty; Donald G. Fink, eds. (2007), The Standard Handbook for Electrical Engineers (15th
ed.), McGraw Hill, pp. 4–25, ISBN 0-07-144146-8
9. Douglas Brooks (December 1998), "Fusing Current: When Traces Melt Without a Trace" (PDF), Printed Circuit Design 15 (12): 53
10. billcprice.com (http://billcprice.com/futureimperfect/2013/09/not-all-micro-usb-cables-are-equal-if-you-have-a-tablet-watch-out-for-2828-
awg-vs-2824-awg/)
11. Glossary of Power Terms | Event Solutions (http://www.event-solutions.com/web_extras/february_2006/glossary_of_power_terms)

Further reading
Donald G. Fink and H. Wayne Beaty, Standard Handbook for Electrical Engineers, Eleventh Edition,McGraw-Hill, New York,
1978, ISBN 0-07-020974-X, page 4-18 and table 4-11.

External links
How to Gauge Traces (http://www.ultracad.com/articles/wiregauge.pdf)
Conversion and calculation of cable diameter to AWG and vice versa (http://www.sengpielaudio.com/calculator-cross-
section.htm)
Table of wire resistivities for bigger gauge (insulation included) (http://www.bnoack.com/index.html?
http&&&www.bnoack.com/data/wire-resistance.html)
Bare copper wire AWG NEMA/IEC metric standard sizes (http://www.litz-wire.com/wirediminsions.html)
Reference for conversions and maximum safe current loads (http://www.powerstream.com/Wire_Size.htm)
Glossary of common Electrical Terms & Reference Chart (http://www.dsmt.com/resources/glossary-of-common-electrical-
terms)

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