Coming 2015

By Chris Dodds on 10th December, 2014

Follow @ThorneanDerrick

 

 

 

 

Your Cable Circuit Is Only As Strong As Its Weakest Link 

 

Why Power Supply By Installing Underspecified Cable Joints?

The purpose of any cable joint is to remove damaged sections of cable and re-instate the electrical performance of the jointed cable as closely as possible to the original manufactured condition. 

The specification, selection and installation of Low Voltage Resin Cable Joints vary according to industry. Without a universal methodology the selection factors are specific to the cable and industry.

Several key factors include : cable function, cable reliability and consequential loss due to outage or downtime.

Standard resin cable joints are often inadvertently installed forming weak links in many industrial cable networks. Selection factors which determine the correct specification of cable joint are discussed in the following blog, not least of which is installation environment.   

3M Scotchcast resin cable joints are designed to joint single or multi-core wire armoured (AWA or SWA) wire braided (copper or phosphur bronze) and unarmoured cables. Whether power, control or instrumentation. 

 

Land, Air or Sea......

3M Scotchcast resin cable joints provide reliable and safe performance in the construction, rail, renewable, airfield, port authority, offshore, marine, mining, nuclear, utilities and hazardous area (oil, gas and petrochem) industries. "Scotchcast" has now become a byword for cable joints. Scotchcast resins are synonymous with reliability, quality and dependability when jointing cables.

 

Land.....

BS5467 

Deep Underground

3M Scotchcast 82-F cable joints are specified for the straight and branch jointing of flexible mining and trailing cables. Utilising flame retardant and flexible 3M Scotchcast 2131 resin with Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) Acceptance 07-KA060002-MSHA. 3M 82-F flexible cable joints do not impair the bend radius of frequently coiled cables. 

Further Reading : Top 10 Deepest Mines In The World

3M Video : 

 

With You In The Trenches

Bent double in a muddy hole in the ground wrestling a post-war imperial PILC cable. And if you're cable jointing in the UK then it's probably raining. We know the score. Hence, 3M cable joints are designed by jointers for jointers.

Large shell 3M cable joints enable crimp tool access or mechanical connector compatibility for simplified cable jointing in tight access cable trenches. 

Cross core and transition cable jointing of multi-core XLPE to PILC is enabled.

Strong impact resistant cable joints shells withstandtrench backfill. Often sand backfill can be mixed with sharp stones, clay and organic detritus.

 

Size Matters

The internal working space permitted by the cable joint shell design impacts upon the ability of the LV cable jointer to work comfortably and safely often in tough site conditions. Ample work-room enables efficient and reliable armour bonding, cross-core jointing, transition jointing and conductor connecting. Large jointing shells enable the use of mechanical shearbolt connectors, ideal for imperial-metric-AWG connections and hydraulic crimp tool heads where close quarter working is needed.

Video: Is The 3M Cable Joint Shell Large Enough For The Crossing Of Phased Cores?

 

Air.....

3M Scotchcast resin 92-NBA cable joints are specfied for the jointing of  primary and secondary 2kV and 5kV airfield ground lighting cables - runway lighting schemes demand highest safety levels achievable and must remain watertight. 3M cable joints are suitable for duct, trench or direct burial.  Pictured : 3M Scotchcast 470W Resin. Providing electrical insulation and mechanical protection of cable joints, Scotchcast 470W resin provides effective impact resistance and durability against moisture and atmospheric corrosion. 

 

Sea.....

 

Offshore 

3M Scotchcast resin cable joints are trusted and specified by the global oil and gas exploration companies for the low voltage jointing of power, instrumentation and control cables. 3M LVI3 resin cable joints suit offshore and marine power and control cable (BS6883, IEEE, UL, UK00A, NEK606 BFOU RFOU types) and instrumentation cable (pair, triple, quad types).

3M LVI3 joints are hydro-carbon resistant based on the specification performance of 3M Scotchcast 1402FR and resist degradation by drilling fluids (mud) - the ability of offshore topside and shipboard cable joints to withstand degradation by hydro-carbons and drilling MUD is vital avoid potential cable faults.

Further reading: How Do Drilling Fluids Work?

Cable damage is common offshore due to the extreme mechanical conditions caused by vibration, shock and movement on oil and gas platforms. 

Overtime, EPR type rubber cable sheaths are degraded and complete cable change-out can be cost prohibitive or actually impossible. 3M LVI cable joints provide an excellent cable repair or full cable joint to damaged offshore cables preventing possible downtime caused by cable failure due to salt sea atmospheres reacting with cable braiding and conductors and causing a short circuit. The wrap-around or snap-on 2 part type cable joint moulds permit mid-span cable repairing or jointing without requiring cable disconnection from the remote end.

 

Polar

3M also have cable joints for underwater and submersible flexible marine cables. This includes empowering seismic survey fleets for remote Artic exploration in the harshest of environments and repairing damaged marine cables in the salvage and shipwreck recovery sectors. 

However, although resin is a key ingredient in low voltage cable joints, additional factors have led to 3M Scotchcast Cable Joints becoming the "jointers joint". Duability - grater cable uptime

T&D have supplied 3M Scotchcast LVI-3 type kits for the jointing of mains, small power, lighting, control and instrumentation cables in hazardous area Zone 1 and Zone 2. 3M LVI-3 cable joints utilise Scotchcast 1402FR hydrocarbon resistant, halogen free and flame retardant resin.

Further reading: Hazardous Area Cable Joints With ATEX Certification?

 

Whatever the Weather

Cable damage is common offshore due to the extreme mechanical conditions caused by vibration, shock and movement on oil and gas platforms. Challenging offshore weather conditions vary from brutal hurricances in the Gulf of Mexico to violent Atlantic nor'easters. Closer to home, the North Sea UK continental shelf regularly experiences violent Force 10 storms inflicting extreme wind and wave effects on offshore assets.

 

Video Project : Offshore Noth Sea F3-FB Platform

F3-FB, in which Oranje-Nassau Energie (ONE) has a 12.6% stake, is an oil and condensate field discovered in 1974, in the northern part of the Dutch North Sea. Located in the southern part of the Central Graben and consists of three 

separate reservoirs; the Lower, Middle and Upper Graben Sands of Jurassic age. Developed in 1992/1993, using a concrete production- and wellhead platform bridge-linked to a steel accommodation platform.

Production started October 1993 from 3 wells and another 4 wells were added in subsequent years, of which the most recent one (F3-B109) was brought on line April 2012. The main production unit has a capacity of 24,000 bbls/d of condensate/oil and 660 boe/d of gas, which was later upgraded to 800 boe/d. The oil and condensate from F3-FB is loaded offshore directly from the concrete platform, which can store up to 200,000 bbls of oil and condensate. The gas is sent through the NOGAT system to the Den Helder terminal 220 kms away.

 

3M Standing Out From The Crowd

3M Scotchcast low voltage cable joints are designed to ensure the installation process is simpler, quicker and safer. The selection and specification considerations.. 

• Safety - 3M's unique Advanced Delivery system provides integrated resin pour for the cable jointer eliminating vapour inhalation or direct skin contact.
• Simplicity - one part, wraparound cable joint shell enables rapid installation. Reduced man-hours cuts installed cost and drive labour productivity gains often during tight time schedule shutdowns.
• Reliability - eliminate or reduce to minimum cable fault 
• Service - all round 
• Specify and buy 3M Scotchcast cable joints for first class safety and service record without any hidden dangers. 

 

Just How Do 3M Do It? 

 

• Single Piece Cable Joint Mould Shell - simpler installation process for the cable jointer. No cutting or sawing cable mould to size. Range taking foam seals at the ends of the cable joint shells provide an excellent tight and reliable seal - this adaptable 3M cable sealing system eliminates the need for the cable jointer to cut and tape the joint shell to size. Folding cable mould meets at the top of cable joint, not along bith side reducing potential resin leakage paths.

           3M cable joint moulds resist cracks or breaks even at low temperatures. Suitable for direct burial.

Video: Why Don't I Need To Cut 3M Cable Joint Shell To Fit The Cable?  

 

• Earthing - 3M's robust armour continuity earthing system suits both wire armoured (AWA single core and SWA multi-core), wire braided (copper and phosphur bronze) and lead sheathed cables. To avoid awkward manipulation of armour wires while trying to fit worm drive clips over the cable support rings, 3M have chosen to use constant force springs for earthing.

            Constant force springs offer significant advantages over “single wire type” earth continuity                           systems, which can fail if poorly positioned within wire armour cores that have “spread”. The flat,               soft copper earth braid ensures good electrical contact.

Safe & Sound With Constant Force Springs : Cable joints move and expand due to earth shift and heat from electrical current. Constant force springs react to this movement and maintain a sound electrical connection between the steel wire armouring and the earth continuity braid. 

 

• Mechanical Connectors -  fast, simple and range-taking conductor jointing of copper and aluminium conductors, whether stranded, sectoral or solid. Suits jointing of metric, imperial and AWG conductors.

 

• Resins - high quality cable jointing resin with good moisture resistance and always enough in the joint kit for the application. No need for "topping-up".

 

• Scotchcast 1402FR Resin,  Halogen Free - for public areas where fire, smoke and toxic fumes potentially threated lives and equipment
• Scotchcast 1402FR Resin, Hydrocarbon Resistant - suit air exposed and contaminated ground installations
• Scotchcast 2131 Resin, Seawater Resistant - salt water solution resistant to ISO 175

 

Let 3M Help Locate Fault, Pull Cable, Clean Cable, Repair Cable, Protect Cables & Cable Joints Against Fire.

 

Did You Know?

3M Scotchcast resin cable joints, typically used for 600/100 volts cables, can be up-rated for 3.3kV cable jointing.

Category:  LV Cable Jointing & Terminating

Go back to blog index