Conductor Material Used In Overhead Power Lines

A conductor is one of the most imperative components of overhead lines. Choosing the right conductor for overhead lines is as necessary as choosing the economic transmission voltage and conductor size. However, a conductor should have the following properties:

• High electrical conductivity
• Lower weight per unit volume
• High tensile strength to resist mechanical stresses
• Relatively lower cost without compromising much of other properties

Conductor Materials

Initially, copper was the preferred material for overhead conductors. But, now aluminum has replaced copper as it is cost-effective and lightweight than the copper conductor of the same resistance. The following materials are considered to be good conductors.

Copper 

Copper has high conductivity and greater tensile strength. Therefore, copper is a hard-drawn stranded form is the best option for overhead lines. It has a high current density and a relatively smaller cross-sectional area. Due to its higher cost and non-availability, copper is rarely used for overhead power lines.

Aluminum

Aluminum has 60% conductivity of copper; that means, for the same resistance, the diameter of an aluminum conductor is about 1.26 times than copper conductor. The tensile strength of aluminum is less than copper. Considering cost, conductivity, tensile strength, and weight, aluminum is preferred over copper.

Cadmium-copper

Cadmium copper alloys contain approximately 98 to 99% and up to 1.5% of cadmium. An additional 1% of cadmium to copper increases the tensile strength by up to 50%. These conductors are helpful for exceptionally long spans. However, due to the high cost of cadmium, such conductors may be unaffordable in many cases.

Other Materials

Some other metals and alloys conduct electricity. Silver is more conductive than copper, but due to its high cost, it is not helpful in many cases. Galvanized steel may also be used as a conductor. Although, steel has high tensile strength, and these conductors are not suitable for transmitting power. High strength alloys such as phosphor-bronze may also be used sometimes in extreme conditions.

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Copper Wires – All You Know About Its Types, Uses, And Popularity

With the advent of electromagnet and telegraph, copper has been used as a common commodity in several electrical applications. Its demand increased when the copper wire cable was used as an electrical conductor, and with time, it became an essential component in power generation and transmission systems.

Copper is a crucial metal that is used for electrical wiring in industrial and domestic use, electronic circuitry, home appliances, telecommunications, and many other areas. It is assessed that half of all copper mined is used to generate electrical copper wire and cable conductors.

Types Of Copper Wires

Copper wires are available in the following types. Today, copper wire manufacturers generate them as per application usage and therefore categorized in different sections.

Standard Wire

When many thin copper wires are twisted together, it is known as copper standard wire. It has high electrical conductivity and is used where there are fluctuating electrical loads and mostly found in industrial applications. 

Solid Copper Wire

A single copper wire, sheathed or bare, in an insulating cover can be used to transfer electricity. This type of wire is called a soil copper wire and used in domestic applications.

Cables

When copper wires are twisted, woven, or braided into a single assembly, we get a copper cable. Such kind of cables is used in industrial applications and electrical appliances.

Why Copper Is Important?

Copper has outstanding chemical and physical properties that turn it into a widely used conductor in many of the heating and electrical appliances. Let’s dive into some of them:

 Electrical and Thermal Conductivity

Copper is a non-precious metal with the best electrical and thermal conductivity. As compared to aluminum, copper wire has minimum resistance to thermal and electrical conduction. Therefore, they are used in lightning rods for safety measures in buildings.

Great Tensile Strength

Copper has great tensile strength and can resist numerous mechanical failures like necking, stretching, breaks, etc. It is one of the major reasons why copper is used instead of aluminum. 

Creep Resistance

When a metal expands and contracts under certain cyclic load conditions, the resultant deformation is known as creep.  Copper has a negligible creep compared to aluminum. From available conclusions, aluminum has a creep rate of 0.022% per 1000 hours under stress if 26 N/mm2 at an ambient temperature of 200C. Copper has 0.022% but the temperature must be as high as 1500C. Copper exhibits insignificant creep rates and therefore it’s an ideal meatal to be used in a copper wire.

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Everything about the Electrical Service Panel: Guide for Homeowners

An electrical service panel is a connection between the internal electrical wires of the home electrical system and external wires coming from the street. It is the central distribution point that connects the service wire to exit wires. These home electrical panels are generally kept far away from household activities. Their location includes a garage, hallway leading to the garage, basement, and closet.

You can find your electrical service panel by locating the service head and service drop on your roof. Mostly, the service panel should be directly below, in one of the home’s stories. If the power lines are hidden, the line will start on the street and connect to the home from the front or side of the house.

Types Of Electrical Service Panels

Main Breaker Panel

It controls the electricity that goes to different areas of your house. It can be used to cut the power to your house including circuit breaker. They are classified based on the number of circuits they can handle and their amperage. 

Main Lug Panel

These panels use lugs and the line wires run into these lugs. They feature the main breaker as the separate disconnect at the meter. You can attach the main plug lung to the breaker at the main panel where the central lug panel operates as a sub-panel.

Fuse Boxes

Fuses boxes are specially designed to prevent circuit overload. These are consist of small fuses that can fit into an electrical panel. The fuse will short out in case of excessive flow of current.

Sub Panel

These are ideal for houses where you need multiple circuits in the same area. The sub-panels get their power from the main panel through a circuit. They don't have dedicated disconnects and enable you to adjust the current distribution throughout the house.

Transfer Switches

These are perfect for circuits where a backup power generator is used. It works by transferring the generator power to electrical power through the panel. There are two main types of transfer switches, manual and automatic. 

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