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Underground Secondary Cable & Connections

This document summarizes PSE&G's efforts to address failures in their underground secondary cable connections. They were experiencing over 1,800 failures per year costing $1.5 million to repair. Most failures occurred at connectors that were sealed with tape, which would eventually leak and cause corrosion. PSE&G evaluated alternatives and chose to use silicone gel products that displace moisture and encapsulate connections to prevent corrosion. After several years of use, the gel products have eliminated new installation failures and proven their value through increased reliability and cost savings from reduced repairs. PSE&G continues to expand the use of gel sealing technology for various cable connections and applications.

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60 views33 pages

Underground Secondary Cable & Connections

This document summarizes PSE&G's efforts to address failures in their underground secondary cable connections. They were experiencing over 1,800 failures per year costing $1.5 million to repair. Most failures occurred at connectors that were sealed with tape, which would eventually leak and cause corrosion. PSE&G evaluated alternatives and chose to use silicone gel products that displace moisture and encapsulate connections to prevent corrosion. After several years of use, the gel products have eliminated new installation failures and proven their value through increased reliability and cost savings from reduced repairs. PSE&G continues to expand the use of gel sealing technology for various cable connections and applications.

Uploaded by

Anonymous hRePlgdOFr
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Underground Secondary Cable &

Connections

Timothy J. McLaughlin
For ICC Educational Program
Spring 2005 St. Pete Beach, FL.

Presentation adapted from article

How Reliable Are Your Secondary UG


Circuits?
published in

Transmission & Distribution World magazine


August 2003

PSE&G
Facts
2,600 mile service area running diagonally

across NJ
Over 2 million customers
Combined electric and gas utility
Primary voltages 4, 13, & 26 kV
Secondary voltages 120/240 (radial),
120/208 (network), 277/480 (high-voltage
network)

7- Step Program
Realize there is a problem
Evaluate the problems and associated

costs

Search for a new technology?


Evaluate possible solutions
Adapting new technology
Field acceptance
Results of change

Scope
PSE&G installs approx. average 1.5 million ft

(457km) of secondary cable per year.


Engineering and field crews started taking note of
the significant number of failures on secondary
system.
Primary failures are tracked very closely where,
why, how it was repaired etc.
In contrast, secondary failures are numerous and
not tracked in any way

Secondary Cable
UG sizes - #4,#2,2/0,350,500,750
All Copper! (Since 1980)
XPLE insulation on smaller sizes
EPR insulation with a Hypolon jacket on

larger sizes (replaces EPR and Neoprene) =


better mechanical protection

Engineering Studies
Secondary Failures
Study trouble crew work orders - 12 months
Investigation results
> 1800 failures per year on secondary
> $1.5 million estimate in repair costs
Average $700 per repair
Large % of failures occurred at connectors.
Failed connections sealed/insulated with

tape.

Digging Into Cause


Existing hand taping process
Apply mastic sealing tape
Apply rubber and vinyl tape
Quality of installation HIGHLY dependent

on installer
No matter how well tape is applied it will
eventually leak and allow moisture in.

The Failure Process


Root Cause:
Moisture Ingress Into
Connection

Leakage current

accelerates corrosion
reaction

Al + H2O

Al2(OH)3 + H2

Aluminum hydroxide + Hydrogen

Eventually, cables corrodes


and has open failure.

Typical failure

Secondary Connection Failures


Salt water from rain and road salt corrode

connector rapidly
Mechanical connections come loose due to
water ingress
Impossible to seal connection with taping
Large solder-type connections are short
term (solder is a poor conductor and has a
low temp. rating)

Results of inferior sealing

High Failure Rates

Short Service Life Span


High Restoration Costs
Negative Customer Satisfaction

Search for New Technology


Requirements for a new solution
Seals extremely well with long lifetime
Easily repeatable installation regardless of
installer or conditions.
Can install with insulated gloves on for hot
installs.
Solutions must be available for the wide variety
of connections

Alternatives Considered
Heat Shrink Tubes

Cold Shrink Tubes

Pre-molded rubber boots

Gel sealing products

Evaluation
Heat shrink, cold shrink, and pre-molded
Advantages
Seals well
Multiple cable ranges

Disadvantages

Must be placed on cable prior to connector installation


Require additional installation space due to parking on cable
Require larger excavation in direct buried application

Evaluation
Gels
Provided wrap-around installation
Seemed easier to install with consistent performance
and minimal training
Products available for the wide variety of applications
Allows for easy and clean re-entry
Gels met all of our requirements and were adapted

on a trial basis.

The gel technology


What is Gel?
Silicone oil embedded in a cross-linked silicone matrix
Combines the advantages of solid and liquid
insulating materials
9 Solid: Elastic memory
9 Liquid: Wetting, conforms to surfaces
Unique tackiness and thermal long-term
stability
Excellent aging properties
Extremely high elongation and elasticity
Excellent dielectric properties
Gel: Polymer Network with Embedded Fluid

How gel seals and prevents corrosion


Gel: Moisture displacement

Displacement of possible moisture


Gel wets the surface applying a thin
layer of silicone oil

Corrosion cannot occur without


water & oxygen in contact with
metal surface
Gel encapsulates connections

Gel Properties
Dielectric strength 40kV/cm minimum
Good chemical resistance
UV Resistance
Fungus resistant

Field Acceptance of Gel


Critical factors for Field

acceptance:

Belief in product
Makes their job easier,
not more difficult
Product performs as promised

The gels were readily accepted by the crews

and continue to be after more than 3 years


of use.

500 & 350 KCMIL CU Bus


Compression

connection core
Rubber insulated
Totally sealed

Service Bus
350 2/0(2), #2(2)
4/0 - #2(4)
Multiple taps for

flexibility
Totally sealed
Connects to main bus
Eliminates the need
for vice-type
connectors

Results
After several years, gel products continue to

prove their value.


No new installation failures
Failures are NOT occurring on the gel
products.
New applications are still being introduced.

Gel Applications
Common Industry Uses
URD
Man Holes
Street Light Bases (Gel-Cap)
Taps

New Applications (PSE&G Leading)


500 and 750 MCM in-line limiters
Re-Jacketing URD Primary Cable
Gas Application Service Entrance Seal
Sealing submersible elbow installations

Gas Application Service


meter

Conclusion
We are still convinced going to gel technology is

the right move.


We continue to increase the number of
applications which we seal with gel.
We are already seeing real benefit in time savings
and reliability.
Cost avoidance of repair work
Full benefits will be realized in the future due to
reduced secondary failures and greater customer
satisfaction.

Questions?
Comments?

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