Oil can inflict molecular damage on the compounds used for
cable insulation and jacketing that will ultimately result in cable failure,
downtime and replacement costs. Of all the chemical exposures that can affect
the life and performance of electrical cables, oil is one of the most damaging.
Used as a coolant and lubricant in many industrial and infrastructure settings,
oil can inflict molecular damage on the compounds used for cable insulation and
jacketing. Awareness of oil damage has been on the upswing in recent years,
thanks to regulatory changes and the increased performance characteristics in
renewable energy, automotive assembly and other advanced production facilities.
Fortunately, there are oil resistant cables that have been designed from the
ground up to resist the effects of cooling and lubricating oils.
Oil resistant cables can be used in locations in which fuel,
organic compounds or oil scatter. They are used for analog/digital electric
signal transmission and viscosity/flow sensing by encoders and various types of
control.
Oil resistant cables’ specific application will determine if
oil is used as a lubricant, coolant or both. Acting as a lubricant, oil might
be applied to a gear system driven by motors to prevent premature wear down and
ensure smooth operation. Acting as a coolant, oil might be applied during the
machine lathing process to keep metal from becoming too hot.
Oil exposures can happen in infrastructure applications as
well as in factories. In wind turbines, for example, cables high up in the
nacelle can potentially see constant exposure to lubricating and cooling oils
for very long periods of time. Temperature extremes and other chemical
exposures can exacerbate the damage caused by oils. Wind turbine applications,
for example, subject cables not just to oils but also to temperature extremes.
Oil rarely makes up the sole threat to cables. Instead, it works in concert
with other degradation mechanisms, including temperature. In general, the
greater the intensity of the oil exposure and ambient temperatures, the faster
oil will start the deterioration process.
Once it gets underway, oil damage is not reversible, but it
can be prevented by selecting cables with inherent oil resistance. Without a
deep knowledge of the specific polymer compounds used in the cable you’re
considering, it can be difficult to know which products can stand up to oils.
That’s why testing is so important. To avoid oil resistance problems, engineers
should pay close attention to UL tests, which help determine how a cable will
react in the industrial oil environment. These tests are more commonly referred
to as the Oil Res I and Oil Res II tests, which involve continuous immersion of
the cable samples in IRM 902 oil at elevated temperatures for a specified
period of time. Passing results are determined by the evaluation of mechanical
properties and observations of physical damage caused by the oil exposure. In
2000, Lapp approached UL about creating tougher standards, which resulted in
the creation of AWM style 21098, which takes oil resistance to a new level.
Oil resistant cables have now become a critical performance
parameter when electrical contractors, engineers and installers specify cables.
As time moves forward, superior oil-resistant cables will become standard
rather than the exception.
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