When to use medium-voltage cables

OCTOBER 21, 2014 BY MARY GANNON LEAVE A COMMENT

Medium voltage cables, such as these from TPC Wire & Cable, are often used in mobile
substations or for power distribution.

Three ranges of voltages are available for cables today. Low-voltage designs—often
those used in industrial settings—are rated to 2,000 V or lower. Medium voltage designs
range from 2,000 to 35,000 V and high-voltage cables are those rated above 35,000 V.

Medium-voltage cables are commonly used in mobile substation equipment, for

distribution of power in industrial settings and in mining to supply power to drills,
shovels, haulers, etc., said David Sedivy, Senior Product Manager at TPC Wire & Cable
Corp. These cables often come in standard voltages, including 5,000; 8,000; 15,000;
25,000; and 35,000 V.

A common application for medium-voltage cables is in maintenance and repairs, said

Sedivy. Utilities personnel use mobile workstations to provide scheduled downtime
maintenance for substations or to conduct repairs due to damage caused by a storm,
for example.

In addition, industrial facilities might have an in-house team or contractors that install
and repair these types of cables for distribution of power, as some facilities have
responsibility for some of the power that is coming into them.

Preventing charge accumulations

Proper termination is critical in medium voltage cables. Here, a pneumatic crimper is used to
ensure that the lug is securely fastened to the cable.

Perhaps the biggest difference between low- and medium-voltage cables is their
construction. Most medium-voltage designs offer extra protection to prevent the build-up
of potential charges anywhere along the cable.

A typical, single-conductor, low-voltage design is usually constructed of the following:

• An aluminum or copper conductor,
• Insulation and
• Jacketing

Medium-voltage designs are usually constructed as follows:

• An aluminum or copper conductor,
• A conductor shield—which is usually made of some type of semiconductor material,
• Insulation,
• Insulation shield, which again can be a semiconductor or a metallic braid or tape, and
• Jacketing

The conductor and insulation shields help reduce the effects of imperfections on the
cable or the effects of the cable coming in contact with a ground potential, where
voltage can accumulate. Electricity will always find the lowest point of resistance, so the
semiconductor, copper tape or metal braid is there to spread out the charge more
evenly. “No application or cable is perfect so there are going to be points on that cable
where there might be a slightly thinner jacket or contact with ground, so you might have
a lower point of resistance,” Sedivy said. “That’s where a charge will try to accumulate
because it’s trying to find ground potential. And without the conductor shield or the
insulation shield, these charges can build up and discharge.”

This safety mechanism prevents possible discharges that can damage the cable,
equipment or worse yet, cause injury.

Unshielded designs
 Another step in proper termination is to add electrical stress control tape to secure the
connection and prohibit a possible electrical arc in the termination.

A variation of the typical medium-voltage cable is the unshielded jumper design, which
features a conductor, a conductor shield, insulation, and jacket. They are usually used
inside equipment, where space is at a premium and where they will only be accessed
by authorized personnel.

Unshielded jumper cables should only be specified by end-users who fully understand
their restrictions and who do not need a shielded design, cautioned Sedivy. “Where I’ve
seen them used most is in manufacturers of original equipment that are installing in tight
spaces and very compact areas so they need something a little bit easier to work with
and they are controlling access to their equipment,” he said. “This is the type of
equipment or application where if there’s a problem, you’re going to call a trained
technician, not try to fix it yourself.”

For the majority of applications, end users are looking for National Electrical Code
(NEC) rated designs. According to the NEC, medium voltage applications must use a
type MV cable. The majority of these cables are stiffer because they use coarser
stranding and copper tape or braid insulation that can make them difficult to work with
as far as flexibility. On the other hand, utilities have their own codes to follow and are
not necessarily required to follow the NEC, so they can use Type SH shielded cables.

Materials
 A jacket is added to the termination to protect the insulation. The heat from the flame will
cause the jacket to shrink to fit the termination which will form a protective seal. This is
important because any foreign matter on the insulation will lead to a failure.

Copper and aluminum are the two main conductor materials. Copper is used mostly in
medium voltage designs, while the lighter weight aluminum is used more often in high
voltage cables.

A variety of materials are used in medium voltage jacketing. Cross-linked polyethylene

or XLPE is one of the most recommended, but ethylene propylene rubber or EPR,
chlorinated polyethylene or CPE, and Neoprenes are also used. The most important
factor cable manufactures must consider when selecting a cable and its jacket material
is whether the wall thickness is suitable, especially according to UL and CSA standards.
The end-user should consider how the jacket will hold up to its environment, such as
sunlight, heat, cold, etc.

Finally, different design requirements exist if medium voltage cables are going to be
direct buried. For example, if there is a fault the copper tape or copper braid insulation
shield must carry a current. As a result, the cable must have a specified area or mass
for the shield to be able to carry a fault if something goes wrong.

Termination is critical
A high-pot test should be conducted on all medium-voltage cable terminations to ensure they
are correctly and safely manufactured.

When purchasing medium voltage cable, most companies like TPC will build the
complete assembly for the customer and put terminations on one or both ends for them.
“Terminating a medium or high voltage cable is not only a process but an art,” Sedivy
said. “You can give someone the instructions on how to terminate these cables but that
in itself really isn’t enough. They really need to go through training because there are
certain techniques that you have to follow and that you have to know.”

For example, even the smallest imperfection in these cables—a speck of contamination,
a nick or a cut strand that is stuck where it doesn’t belong—can lead to a failure of the
cable. It can take skilled personnel anywhere from a half-hour to a full hour to terminate
an assembly because everything must be as exact and precise as possible. Sedivy said
that TPC also puts the cable through a high-pot test, to test the integrity of that
termination and ensure that there isn’t a path for electricity to find its way through.

“With medium voltage cables, everything gets amplified so any little problem can
become a big problem,” Sedivy concluded. “There is no room for error.”

TPC Wire & Cable Corp.

www.tpcwire.com