Wire and cable classification

Wires and cables are used to transmit electrical (magnetic) energy, information and realize the conversion of electromagnetic energy. Wires and cables in a broad sense are also referred to as cables. In a narrow sense, cables are insulated cables. It can be defined as a collection of the following parts : One or more insulated cores, and their respective possible coatings, total protective layer and outer protective layer. The cable can also have additional conductors without insulation.
definition
Wire products used to transmit electrical (magnetic) energy, information and realize electromagnetic energy conversion.
Wires and cables in a broad sense are also referred to as cables. In a narrow sense, a cable refers to an insulated cable. It can be defined as a collection of the following parts: one or more insulated cores, and their respective coatings, the total Protective layer and outer protective layer. The cable can also have additional conductors without insulation.
classification
1. Bare wires and bare conductor products
The main features of this category of products are: pure conductive metal, no insulation and sheath, such as steel core aluminum stranded wire, copper-aluminum busbar, electric locomotive wire, wire and cable, etc.; the processing technology is mainly pressure processing, such as smelting, Calendering, drawing, stranding/squeezing stranding, etc.; products are mainly used in suburbs, rural areas, user main lines, switch cabinets, etc.
2. Power cable
The main features of this type of product are: squeeze (wind) the insulation layer outside the conductor, such as overhead insulated cables, or stranded several cores (corresponding to the phase wires, neutral wires and ground wires of the power system), such as overhead insulated cables with more than two cores , Or add a sheath layer, such as plastic/rubber sheathed wire and cable. The main process technologies include drawing, stranding, insulation extrusion (wrapping), cable formation, armoring, sheath extrusion, etc. There are certain differences in the different process combinations of various products.
The products are mainly used in the transmission of strong electric energy in power generation, distribution, transmission, transformation, and power supply lines, with large currents (tens of amperes to several thousand amperes) and high voltages (220V to 35kV and above).
3. Wires and cables for electrical equipment
The main features of this type of products are: a wide range of varieties and specifications, a wide range of applications, and the use of voltages of 1kV and below. New products are continuously derived in the face of special occasions, such as fire-resistant cables, flame-retardant cables, low-smoke, halogen-free/low Smoke and low halogen cables, termite-proof, mouse-proof cables, oil/cold/temperature/wear-resistant cables, medical/agricultural/mining cables, thin-walled cables, etc.
4. Communication cables and optical fibers
With the rapid development of the communications industry, the simple telephone and telegraph cables in the past have developed to thousands of pairs of voice cables, coaxial cables, optical cables, data cables, and even combined communication cables.
The structure size of this kind of products is usually small and uniform, and the manufacturing precision is high.
5. Magnet wire (winding wire)
Mainly used in various motors, instruments, etc.
6. Derivatives/new products of wires and cables
Derivatives/new products of wire and cable are mainly due to different application occasions, different application requirements, convenience of equipment and requirements for reducing equipment costs, etc., and the use of new materials, special materials, or changing product structures, or improving process requirements, or different Varieties of products are combined.
Use different materials such as flame-retardant cables, low-smoke zero-halogen/low-smoke low-halogen cables, termite-proof, mouse-proof cables, oil-resistant/cold-resistant/temperature-resistant cables, etc.;
Change the product structure, such as: fire-resistant cables, etc.;
Improve process requirements such as: medical cables, etc.;
Combination products such as: OPGW, etc.;
It is convenient to install and reduce equipment costs, such as prefabricated branch cables.


1. Bare copper wire

Bare wires and bare conductor products refer to conductive wires without insulation and sheath, which mainly include three series of products: bare single wires, bare stranded wires, and profiled wires. Copper and aluminum single wire: including soft copper single wire, hard copper single wire, soft aluminum single wire, hard aluminum single wire. It is mainly used as semi-products of various wires and cables, and a small amount is used in the manufacture of communication wires and electrical appliances. Bare stranded wire: including hard copper stranded wire (TJ), hard aluminum stranded wire (LJ), aluminum alloy stranded wire (LHAJ), steel core aluminum stranded wire (LGJ), mainly used for the connection of electrical equipment and electronic appliances or components , The specifications of the above various strands range from 1.0-300mm2.

2. Power cable

Power cable is a cable product used to transmit and distribute high-power electrical energy in the main line of the power system, including power cables of various voltage levels and various insulations from 1 to 330KV and above. Power cables are classified into low-voltage cables, medium-voltage cables, and high-voltage cables according to voltage levels. According to the insulation conditions, it is divided into plastic insulated cables, rubber insulated cables, mineral insulated cables and so on.

3. Overhead insulated cables

Overhead cables are also very common to us. Its characteristic is that there is no sheath. Many people have three misunderstandings about this type of cable, and I will correct them here.

First, its conductors are not only aluminum, but also copper conductors (JKYJ, JKV) and aluminum alloys (JKLHYJ). Now there is also a steel core aluminum stranded aerial cable (JKLGY).

Second, it is not only single-core, the common ones are generally single-core, but it can also be stranded into a bundle with several conductors.

Third, the voltage level of overhead cables is 35KV and below, not 1KV and 10KV.

Four, control cable

The structure of this type of cable is similar to that of power cables. It is characterized by only copper core, no aluminum core cable, smaller conductor cross-section, and more cores. It is suitable for AC rated voltages of 450/750V and below, power stations, substations, mines, petrochemical enterprises, etc. Single machine control or unit equipment control. In order to improve the ability of the control signal cable to prevent internal and external interference, measures are mainly taken to set up a shielding layer.

Common models are KVV, KYJV, KYJV22, KVV22, KVVP. Model meaning: 'K' control cable, 'V' PVC insulation, 'YJ' XLPE insulation, 'V' PVC sheath, 'P' copper wire shielding.

For the shielding layer, our common KVVP is copper wire shielding, if it is copper tape shielding, it means KVVP2, if it is aluminum-plastic composite tape shielding, it means KVVP3. For shielding layers of different materials, they have their own characteristics and functions.

Mainly used in household and power distribution cabinets, friends who open hardware stores are most familiar with it. The BV line that is often said is a cloth wire. Models are BV, BLV, BVR, RVV, RVVP, BVVB, etc...

For this 'B', in the model representation of the wire and cable, we often see this B. Different places have different meanings.

Take BVVB as an example. The B at the beginning means wiring, and it means the application classification of the cable, just like JK for overhead cables and K for control cables. The flat type represented by B at the end is an additional special requirement for the cable. The meaning of BVVB is: copper core PVC insulated PVC sheathed flat cable.

Five, special cables

Special cables are cables with special functions, including flame-retardant cables (ZR), low-smoke and halogen-free cables (WDZ), fire-resistant cables (NH), explosion-proof cables (FB), rat-proof cables, termite-proof cables (FS), and Water cable (ZS) etc.

Flame-retardant cables (ZR), low-smoke halogen-free cables (WDZ): mainly suitable for important power and control systems. When the line encounters a fire, the cable can only burn limitedly under the action of the external flame, and the amount of smoke is small, and there are few harmful gases (halogen) in the smoke.

When the external flame disappears, the cable can also extinguish itself, so that the fire damage to the human body and property is reduced to a minimum. Therefore, this kind of cable is widely used in important places such as petrochemical, electric power, metallurgy, high-rise buildings and densely populated places.

Fire-resistant cables (NH): Mainly suitable for particularly important power and control systems. When the line encounters a fire, the fire-resistant cable can withstand the high temperature of 750~800 for more than 90 minutes to ensure safe power transmission and win sufficient time for fire fighting and disaster reduction.

In the face of special occasions, new products are continuously derived, such as fire-resistant cables, flame-retardant cables, low-smoke zero-halogen/low-smoke low-halogen cables, termite-proof/mouse-proof cables, oil-resistant/cold-resistant/temperature-resistant/wear-resistant cables Cables, radiation cross-linked cables, etc.