CONTINUOUSLY TRANSPOSED CONDUCTOR - 2012

PPE Continuously Transposed Conductor CTC is an assembly of two parallel

adjacent stacks, composed by an odd number of rectangular shaped conductors
enamelled insulated with or without self bondable overcoat. The enamel provides the
insulation of each single conductor. The number of conductors can be an odd number
from 5 up to 61.
The main feature of CTC is that each conductor, successively and repeatedly, is
transposed through every possible position in the entire conductor cross-section, in a
rotating movement. During the transposition, each single conductor stays parallel to
the others, without any twist. (See fig. 1).

1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9 10

11 12 13 14 15 16

Figure 1 - Transposition Process

There are two main CTC families:

Paper insulated CTC - After the transposition, the CTC is over wrapped with an
appropriate number of layers with electrical grade paper tape, applied in spiral, to
provide electrical insulation to the adjacent conductors of the transformer coils. The
number of paper layers wrapped as external insulation can be up to 32 allowing overall
increase in external measures between 0.4 mm and 6 mm, that means an isolation
thickness between 0.2 mm and 3 mm.

Stringex CTC - For special purposes CTC can be manufactured without paper, using
a cord to tie the cable, replacing the paper tape wrap.

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CTC - CONSTRUCTIVE ELEMENTS AND DIMENSIONAL DATA

Elementary Conductor Construction

Elementary Conductor construction is showed in fig. 2. The conductor is enamelled

insulated and may have a bondable over coat varnish.

BONDABLE
OVERCOAT

INSULATION

METALIC
CONDUCTOR
b b

h h
ENAMELLED WIRE ENAMELLED BONDABLE WIRE
Figure 2 Conductor Construction

Elementary Conductor Dimension and Mechanical Proprieties

Copper ETP / OFHC and Copper-silver alloy
Aluminium 1350 and Aluminium alloy (ASTM 8000 series).

Copper

Conductor dimensions
- Thickness b: from 1.3 mm up to 3.0 mm
- Width h: from 3.25 up to 12.5 mm;
- Ratio h/b: from 2.5 up to 6.5.

Figure 3 shows graphically the range of copper conductor dimensions.

Cu - Conductor Dimensions

4
3,5
3
2,5
b (mm)

2
1,5
1
0,5
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
h (mm)

Figure 3 Copper Conductor Dimension Range

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For cables having 33 up to 61 conductors conductor dimensions should be preferentially in the
area inside the red lines. Other dimensions, out of the range, can be studied under consultation.

The elementary copper conductor mechanical properties can be soft (fully annealed), or having
controlled yield strength. Table 1 shows tolerances on yield strength values.

Table 1 Yield Strength Tolerances

Yield strength range
Tolerance (MPa)
(MPa)
60 130 + 30
131 - 160 + 50
> 161 + 30 MPa or + 20% whichever is higher

Elementary copper conductor, having controlled yield strength, can be produced according to
British Standard BS 1432 (CPR Rp 0.1% designation) or other designation (Rp 0.2%). See table 2.

Table 2 - Single conductor mechanical properties according toBS1432

Controlled Yield Strength (BS 1432)

Rp (0.2%) Rp (0.1%)

Designation Value (MPa) Designation Value (MPa)

Annealed 60 - 100 CPR1 140 - 200
CPR05 100 - 140 CPR2 170 - 220
CPR3 220 260

N o t e 1 - Ma x im u m R p 0 . 2% is 32 0 M P a .
2 R p 2 5 0 M Pa Si l v er A l lo y w i l l b e u s e d .

Aluminium
Conductor dimensions
- Thickness b: from 1.5 mm up to 2.5 mm
- Width h: from 4.0 up to 10.0 mm
- Ratio h/b: from 2.5 up to 6.5

Figure 4 shows graphically the range of aluminium conductor dimensions.

Al - Conductor Dimensions

4
3,5
3
2,5
b (mm)

2
1,5
1
0,5
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
h (mm)

Figure 4 Aluminium Conductor Dimension Range

Other dimensions, out of the range, can be studied under consultation.

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The elementary aluminium conductor can be soft (fully annealed) or having controlled yield
strength. Table 3 shows the ranges and tolerances on yield strength values.

Table 3 Yield Strength (0.2%) Tolerances

Yield strength range
Tolerance (MPa)
(MPa)
30 60 + 20
60 - 100 + 30
100 - 120 + 30
No te 1 - Rp 60 MPa 8000 se ries Alloy will be used.

Elementary Conductor Insulation

Elementary conductors can be insulated with different enamels according to the table 4.

Table 4 - Elementary conductor Insulation

Dimensions
Designation Enamels Grade
Increase (mm)
1-S 0.11 0.02
INVEFORM 120 Polyvinylformal
2-H 0.15 0.03
1-S 0.12 0.02
INVETERM 180 Polyesterimide
2-H 0.15 0.03
1-S 0.12 0.02
INVEMID 200 Polyesterimide + Polyamideimide
2-H 0.15 0.03

INVEFORM 120 1-S 0.17 0.03

Polyvinylformal + Epoxy Bondable Resin
BONDABLE 2-H 0.19 0.03

INVEFORM 120 1-S 0.17 0.03

Polyvinylformal + B - Stage Epoxy Bondable Resin
BONDABLE B 2-H 0.19 0.03

IINVETERM 180 1-S 0.17 0.03

Polyesterimide + Epoxy Bondable Resin
BONDABLE 2-H 0.19 0.03

INVETERM 180 1-S 0.17 0.03

Polyesterimide + B - Stage Epoxy Bondable B Resin
BONDABLE B 2-H 0.19 0.03

INVEMID 200 Polyesterimide + Polyamideimide + Epoxy Bondable 1-S 0.17 0.03

BONDABLE Resin 2-H 0.19 0.03

INVEMID 200 Polyesterimide + Polyamideimide + B - Stage Epoxy 1-S 0.17 0.03

BONDABLE B Bondable Resin 2-H 0.19 0.03

The enamelled elementary wires are produced in accordance with the standards IEC standards
(IEC 60851, IEC60317-0-2, IEC 60317-18, IEC 60317-28 and IEC 60317-29).

The bondable enamel over coating (thickness 0.03-0.05 mm) allows adhesion of the strands
after the heat treatment at 120C 24 h. The bondable over coat has a shelf life up to 8 months
(or up to 6 months for treatment at 110C 48 h) for storage at temperature not greater then 32C.
Good bonding results are achieved in laboratory specimens after treatment at 130C for 16
hours or 120C for 24 hours or 100C for 48 hours.

The bondable coat can be applied around all the surfaces of the wire or in a special
application process, Stripbond only over the radial flat surfaces of the elementary conductor.
See Bonding Properties in page 11.

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Bonding Properties
PPE offers two types of bonding enamel, both based on Epoxy resins.
The regular Epoxy has very good electrical properties mainly concerning partial discharges,
good application over all the surfaces of the wire, and its performance is better for temperatures
up to 110 C.
The B Stage Epoxy is recommended for temperatures greater than 110 C.
The bondable coat can be applied over the elementary conductors in two different ways:
- Conventional enamelling process - bondable coat all around each elementary wire;
- Stripbond - special enamelling process, where the bond coat is applied only over the radial
flat surface of each elementary conductor.
Better electrical results on partial discharges are achieved when Stripbond process is used,
mainly for B Stage Epoxy.

Elementary Conductor Assemblage: Transposition

The proper winding of CTC on the transformer core is the first property to be satisfied.
Generally the length in which there is a complete transposition of one strand (called
stranding pitch) should be, at least, the perimeter of the inner circumference of the core.
This requirement is to assure a minimum flexibility to the CTC to avoid possible
damage on its structure.
Three elements must be defined: transposition pitch, transposition length,
stranding pitch Fig. 5.

S Transposition Pitch

lt - Transposition Length
lt (0.5 x S)
Figure 5 CTC Transposition Pitch and Transposition Length

Transposition pitch - S
The transposition pitch is the distance between two transpositions. The regular
transposition pitch S must be greater or equal to 56 mm.
In some cases it is possible to have the transposition pitch less than 56 mm down to 40
mm for certain products. Please consult PPE for further details.

Transposition length lt
Transposition length (also known as crossover) is the length required to the wire to go
from one side to the other side on the CTC between stacks during transposition.
The lt value should be less or equal than 50% of the transposition pitch, to increase the
slip among the wires in the transposition area, in order to reduce the value of the radial
coefficient Kh (see the section Calculation of paper insulated cable - outer
dimensions).

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Stranding Pitch
Stranding Pitch is the length where all the strands are transposed.

Stranding Pitch = S x n

S = Transposing pitch n = Number of conductors in the cable

Minimum winding diameter

The minimum winding diameter can be calculated with the dimensional characteristics
and the stranding pitch by the following formula:

S n
Di (Minimum Winding Diameter)

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Feasibility of the CTC

The following figures must be checked to define if a certain CTC is feasible:

1 Minimum Transposition Pitch S

The transposition pitch S must be greater than 56 mm.

It is very important to calculate the Transposition Pitch according to minimum winding

diameter in the transformer. Thus, to calculate the maximum Transposition Pitch:

Di
Maximum Transposition Pitch S
n

If S value is less than 56, the cable is not feasible. If S value is equal or bigger than 56,
the cable will be feasible if transposing factor M is greater than 6.

2 Transposition Factor - M

The feasibility of the CTC is defined by the Transposing Factor M that is calculated as:

S
Transposing Factor M
h

Where: S = Transposing pitch and h = Single conductor width

According to M value the feasibility of the CTC is:

- M 8 - The CTC is feasible;

- 6 < M < 8 - The CTC is possibly feasible but it is critical;

- M 6 - The CTC is not feasible.

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 CTC DATA SHEET

Table 6 - CTC data sheet

Elementary Conductor CTC Cable

Copper Aluminium Number of strands (n) 5 to 61

Max. Width (h) 12.5 10.0 Separator thickness (ip) 0.09 or 0.105

Min. Width (h) 3.25 4.0 Max. radial dimension (B) 70 (1)

Max. Thickness (b) 3.0 2.5 Min. radial dimension (B) 4

Min. Thickness (b) 1.3 (2) 1.5 Max. axial dimension (H) 25

Preferred ratio h/b 2.5 6.5 2.5 6.5 Min. axial dimension (H) 6.5

Preferred Radial /Axial B/H

h Width
Ratio h/b =
b Thickness B/H =
n 1 b i 8
4 h i

All dimensions in millimetres (mm)

1
Dimension without insulation paper
2
Depending on the preferred ratio value

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 CTC Paper Insulation

The CTC can be finished by wrapped paper insulation. The papers used in the
insulation can be seen in the table 7.

Table 7 - Insulation papers main characteristics.

RECOMMENDED
TYPE OF
THICKNESS APPLICATIONS MAIN PROPERTIES
PAPER
(mm)
Calendared kraft
0.065 0.105 General purpose High tan , high density and dielectric strength
paper
Calendared crepe Inner and outermost
0.076 High mechanical characteristics
paper layers
Inner and outermost
Upgraded paper 0.06 0.09 High thermal properties
layers
Polyaramide Paper
0.05 General purpose High thermal and mechanical properties
Nomex
No bulging of the paper; CTC free from oil pocket
Wound cord - among the windings; Better cooling efficiencies;
0.45 Paper-less application
Stringex Better space factor of the windings; Smaller O.D: of
the transformer
Note: All electrical insulation papers are according to IEC554.

Papers arrangement

Unless otherwise agreed with Customer, the insulation shall consist of three layers of
90 m upgraded paper at least. The paper covering shall be applied according to the
following arrangement:
Papers are wound in the same direction.
The inner layers papers shall be butt lapped and staggered from 25% to 40%. The
two outermost layers shall be wound interlocked by 50%. See fig 6.

Agreement with the Customer will be required in case of change of thickness of one or
more papers or the type of arrangement, in order to reach the required paper insulation
thickness.

Figure 6 Paper Arrangement

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Calculation of the paper insulated cable outer dimensions

ic/2
Maximum dimension in axial direction:
H 2 h i ip ic Kh (1.1)
Maximum dimension in radial direction
n 1
B b i ic Kb (1.2) B
2

Where:
H = Axial cable dimension;
B = Radial cable dimension ip
h = Axial single bare conductor dimension;
b = Radial single bare conductor dimension
Kh = Maximum plus tolerance 0.10 mm for axial dimension H
Kb = Maximum plus tolerance for radial dimension (values in table 8)
n = Number of single conductors in the cable
iE = Increase in dimensions due to enamel (For example 0.12 for PVF and 0.17 for PVF plus
Epoxy )
ip = Thickness of separator between the stacks
ic = Paper covering (in case of cable without paper ic/2 is the thickness of the plastic wire)

Table 8: Kb values
Number of strands S/h 7 and b < 2 mm and All other cases
Rp02< 180MPa
Up to 21 0.20 0.30
From 23 to 27 0.25 0.50
Form 29 to 35 0.35 0.60
Greater than 35 0.70 1.00

S = Transposing distance (Transposing pitch), distance between two transpositions

Unless specified by the Customer, the tolerances of CTC dimension are:

H: +0 / -0.5mm;
B: + 0 / -0.5mm

Interleaving paper
An interleaving paper between the two stacks is inserted if required by the Customer.
We suggest 0.105 mm thickness if there is no specified value by the Customer.
The width (W) of the interleaving paper is calculated by the following formula:

W
n 3 b E
2
Standard Thickness: 0.09 0.105 mm.
Width of the paper is the W value with approximation to the lowest pair unit (example: if
W = 7.36 we choose 6 mm paper). The minimum W value to be used shall be 6 mm.

External dimensional tolerances

External dimensions, obtained by formulas (1.1 and 1.2), are tested under pressure of
100 N/cm or other pressure value required by the Customer.

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STRINGEX dimensional properties
Calculation of the axial and radial dimension is according to the following:

Dimension in axial direction

H k 2 h i ip ic TOLL
Tolerance 0.15 mm
B
n k iC iP
11 - 61 1.01 0.45 0.10- 0.30
b 2.10 mm h 9.30 mm k = 1.02 ip
H
Dimension in radial direction
n 1
B k ' b i cB ic TOLL
2
Tolerance: 0.50 mm.
For single conductor with h 6.0 mm tolerance is + 0.30 mm 0.80 mm

n k' iC
11 - 21 1.04 0.45
23 - 27 1.035 0.45
29 - 37 1.03 0.45
39 - 49 1.025 0.45
51 - 61 1.015 0.45

Where:
H = Axial cable dimension (100 N/cm)
B = Radial cable dimension (100 N/cm)
h = Axial single bare conductor dimension
b = Radial single bare conductor dimension
k = Axial shape factor (for b > 2.10 mm and h > 9.30 mm k =1.02)
k = Radial shape factor (values in table )
n = Number of strands in the cable
iE = Increase in dimensions due to enamel (0.12 mm for enamelled strands and 0.17 mm for
enamelled + epoxy coated strands)
ip = Thickness of separator between the strands stacks (Upgraded 0.09 mm or Upgraded High
Density 0.105 mm paper or according to Customer requirements)
ic = Plastic wire covering (0.45 mm)
cB = Thickness of the bottom separator (generally is used calendared crepe paper or Nomex 3
paper)
TOLL = Tolerance (axial or radial)

Note: Other types of insulation may be analysed upon request.

During the measuring under pressure there is a penetration of the plastic wires in the
spacer. For this reason the axial measure is reduced by 0.25 mm to 0.30 mm.
A protection paper is applied in order to avoid contamination. To take away, before the
winding point, there is a plastic wire inserted along the Transposed Conductor.
An adhesive tape takes together the cut sacrifice paper.

3
Nomex is a DuPont registered trademark.

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Following the requirement of the customer, a protection paper can be inserted in the
bottom side of the cable. In this case, the type and the thickness of the protection
paper shall be specified by the customer. Our proposal is to use a single or double
calendared crepe 0.076 mm thickness paper.

USEFUL HINTS FOR WINDING TRANSPOSED CONDUCTORS

During winding operations it is necessary to use some criteria in order to get the best
winding of the Transposed Conductor on the transformer core, particularly if the CTC
has a high ratio H/L. Distance between transformer core and the reel axis shall be
multiple of the stranding pitch Pc

In case of core with diameter less than 15 times the radial dimension of the CTC, it is
useful to following those procedures:

When the core diameter is greater than 25 times

the radial dimension H, it is possible to wind the
CTC leaving it free between the reel and the core
during wounding.

CTC shall be held up and guided by rollers in order

to avoid flexions in the length between core and
reel.

In order to avoid CTC twisting, rollers shall have

adjustable flanges.

Rollers must have adjustable flanges to allow

adapt to the axial dimension of the CTC keeping
well guided avoiding wrong positioning and
torsions

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 REELS FOR TRANSPOSED CONDUCTORS
In the Table 9 below, it is presented the main dimensions of the wooden reels used for
the Transposed Cables.

width Capacity (kg) Dimensions (mm)

Reel Type
traverse Copper Aluminium flange barrel bore width traverse
flange B100 1100 350 1350 1000 82 610 486
barrel
B130 2100 700 1650 1290 82 810 686
bore B140 4000 1300 2000 1400 82 1010 860
B160 3000 1000 2000 1600 82 1010 860
P100/L 1600 500 1200 800 82 710 590
P160/L 2800 900 1600 900 82 710 550

Table 9 - Standard wooden reels (returnable reels).

Wooden reels B100, B130, B140 and B160 can be fitted with separators, allowing
having multiple cable lengths on one single reel. This feature can be useful in case of
several cables simultaneously wound on the core of the transformer.

ORDERING
When ordering PPE Continuously Transposed Conductors, the following information
are requested:
number of strands and their nominal dimensions
type of copper and type of enamelling wires (with or without bondable epoxy
varnish)
minimum winding diameter
total paper thickness and paper type
interleaving paper and its thickness
required length and type of reel
Please use our card for Contract Review that is available by PPE Sales Dept. or
use the e-mail esmaltados.ppe@ppefios.com.br

Please, complete the CTC Data Sheet form.

Page 13 of 14
 CTC DATA SHEET

Customer Order

Specification Conductor Copper ( ) Aluminium ( )

Number of conductors
Width (bare conductor) mm
Thickness ( bare conductor) mm ic/2
Radius (bare conductor) mm
Proof Stress (0.2%) N/mm
Type of insulation
Insulation increase mm
B
Number of papers
Type of enamel (base + over)
Type of enamel (bond coat)
ip
Enamel increase (base + over) mm
Enamel increase (bond coat)
H
Type of separator
Thickness of the separator mm
Minimum winding diameter mm

External Dimensions H= mm B= mm

Tolerances H mm B mm

Number of Number of
Number of lengths Meters per length (m) Reel type
reels Separators

Total (kg) Total insulated

Observations

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