CABLE JOINTS, CABLE TERMINATIONS, CABLE GLANDS, CABLE CLEATS FEEDER PILLARS, FUSE LINKS, ARC FLASH, CABLE

ROLLERS, CUT-OUTS

11KV 33KV CABLE JOINTS & CABLE TERMINATIONS FURSE EARTHING

FirstStepstoReliability
XLPECablePreparation Controllingtheinitialinstallationcostsofanypowersystemiscriticaltooperatingcompanies andcontractorsalike.Systemmaintenanceandrepairarealsosubstantialfactorsinoverallcost. Itisimportantthatinstallationsarenotonlycompletedefficientlyandquickly,butalsodone correctly. Nomaterhowwellacableaccessoryisdesigned,itwillfailifthecableisnotproperlyprepared beforeinstallation.Herearesomeofthemorecommoncausesoffailureduetopoor workmanship. Damagetotheinsulationduringsemiconductivescreenremoval Thisisprobablythenumberonecauseofalljointandterminationfailures.Caremustbetaken whenremovingthesemiconductivescreen,anydamageornicktotheinsulationatthisstage willresultincreatinganunscreenedairvoid.Sincethedielectricstrengthofairislessthanthat oftheXLPEinsulation,theconcentrationofelectricalstressinthisareawillexceedthedielectric strengthofair.Theairwillionizecausingcoronadischargetooccur.Thesedischargesbombard thesurroundinginsulation100timesasecond,andwillresultincuttingthroughtheinsulation andultimatefailure. Damagetotheconductorduringinsulationremoval Bynottakingcareorusingincorrectmethods,conductorscan,quiteoften,benicked,this, particularlyinthecaseofaluminiumconductors,canresultinindividualstrandsbreakingfree, leadingtoaresistivehotspotaroundtheconnectorarea,causingthermalrunawayand eventualfailure. Contaminationoftheinsulationsurface Itisimportantthatthecableinsulationbefreefromallmoistureandcontamination.Common contaminatesinclude,mudontheoutsidesurfacesandsemiconductiveparticles,leftonthe surfaceoftheinsulation,aftertheconductivescreenhasbeenremoved.Ifthesecontaminants remainontheinsulationsurfacesbeingjointedorterminated,aconductivepathcanexist,and

thedifferenceinpotential,betweentheenergisedconductorandearthscreenwillcausecurrent toflowthroughthecontamination,resultinginerosionandultimatelybreakdown.Toavoidthis happening,allcaremustbetakentoensuretheinstallerkeepshishands,aswellashistools cleananddry.Furthertothis,theinsulationsurfacesshouldbecleanedpriortotheinstallation oftheaccessoryandprotectedfromfurthercontaminationuntiltheinstallationiscomplete. AccessoryInstallation Incorrectchoiceofaccessory Thismaysoundstrange,butdoyouknowthedifferencebetweenanindoorandoutdoor termination?Justbecausetheterminationistobeoutsidedoesntmeanyouneedanoutdoor type.IndoorkitsareforterminatingcablesthatwillnotbeconstantlyexposedwithdirectUV lightordirectlyexposedtotheelements.Asealedtakeoffchamberonthesideofatransformer requiresanindoortermination,despitethetransformerbeingoutside. Unfortunately,itisnotunusualforanoperatingcompanyorcontractor,tobealittleunsureof theactualcablespecificationpriortoarrivalorexposureonsite.Caremustbetakenbeforeand duringinstallationtoensuretheaccessoryprovided,suitsboththeapplicationrangeandcable type. Themajorityofaccessoriesarerangetakingmakingoneofthechoiceseasier,butthereis normallyadifferencerelatingtocableinsulation,numberofcoresandsystemvoltageetc.The useofakitdesignedfor11kV,XLPEinsulatedcable,willnotnormallyworkeffectivelyonan11kV paperinsulatedcable. Incorrectinstallationdimensionsorprocedures Unfortunately,thisoneusuallycomesdowntomaleego,theinstallernotwantingtoappear unfamiliarwith,orunsureofhowtheaccessoryisassembled.Hegoesblindlyonwithoutreading theinstallationinstructions,doingwhathethinksistherightthing.Weveallbeenthere,how manytimesdowestarttoassemblethatnewSwedishcabinet,onlytofindweshouldhavefitted thoseshelvesbeforefixingthetopanddoors. Allreputablemanufactureswillincludeaninstallationsheetwithinthekit,thisisnotbecause theywanttocontributetothedemiseoftherainforests,itistheonlywaytheyhaveoftelling theinstallerthekit,maynotbeexactlythesameasasimilarkitfromarivalmanufactureror eventhesamekitfromafewyearsago. Incorrectdimensionorprocedurescouldleadtomisplacedorevenomittedcomponents, resultinginpotentialbreakdown. Incorrectconnector/lugapplication Eachconnectormanufacturerwillrecommendaconnectorandthecorrectdieset,fora particularsizeandformatofconductor,mixingthetoolingandconnectormanufacturerscanin somecircumstancescauseproblems.Withthevariationsinphysicalsizeofthemodern conductors,itissometimesdifficulttoensurecompressionconnectorsareinstalledcorrectly. Theincreaseuseoftorqueshearconnectorsgoessomewaytoalleviatingthisproblem,butat acost.Mostmechanicalconnectorsarelargerindiameterthanthecompressionequivalent.Care

shouldbetakenwhensizingtheaccessory,toensuretheyfitwithintheaccessorymanufacturers recommendedparameters. SiteCleanliness Withoutexceptionallaccessoriesaretypetestedinnicewarmandcleanlaboratories, unfortunately,acoldandmuddybuildingsiteplaysnopartinthetypeapprovalprocess.Any contaminationwithintheassemblycouldhaveadetrimentaleffectonitsefficiencyand longevity. Dirtorgreaseonthehandsiseasilytransferredtoanytapesorcomponentsapplied,mudisone ofthosethingsthatnoamountofdegreasingsolventwillremove.Acommonmisconception whenusingheatshrinkableaccessoriesisanywaterpresentwilldisappearwhenthetubesare shrunkinplace.Unfortunately,weliveinatimewhentheraincontainsmorethanjustpure water,andonabuildingsite,theraincancarrywithitthingslikecementdustorcarbonparticles fromthatannoyingdumptruckthatkeepsdrivingby.Itistruethemoisturewillevaporateonce heated,butitwillleavebehindallofthepollutants. Keepingthejointareafreefromcluttercanpreventaccidentalandevenunnoticed contaminationoftheassembly,thiscanonlybeagoodthing,butmoreimportantly,youll probablyloosefewertools. Finally Mostaccessoriesfromreputablemanufacturerswillmeetandsurpassnormaloperating requirements.However,goodpreparationwillhelpalowerqualityaccessory,andpoor preparationwillhinderabetterproduct.Takecarewheninstallinganyaccessory,rememberthe costofaterminationorjointisafractionoftheworthofthetotalinstallation.Anysystemisonly asgoodastheweakestlink,ajointorterminationfailurecouldbringdownthewholesystem, withallthecoststhatentails.Afewextraminutesspentinthepreparationandinstallationof anyaccessorycouldsavethousandsinthelongterm. CABLE JOINTS, CABLE TERMINATIONS, CABLE GLANDS, CABLE CLEATS FEEDER PILLARS, FUSE LINKS, ARC FLASH, CABLE ROLLERS, CUT-OUTS
UNITE3CROWNWAYCROWNPARKINDUSTRIALESTATERUSHDENNORTHANTSNN106FD FURSE EARTHING www.cablejoints.co.uk TEL:+44(0)1933356758FAX:+44(0)1933413821E:[email protected] Thorne and Derrick UK WEB:www.shrinkpolymersystems.co.uk 0044 191 477 5371 Tel 0044 191 490 1547 Fax
Tel 0044 117 977 4647 Fax 0044 117 9775582

11KV 33KV CABLE JOINTS & CABLE TERMINATIONS