Sei sulla pagina 1di 4

CROPICO

...Don't settle for less

www.cropico.com

Application Note Measurement of Wires and Cables


Introduction
It is necessary to measure the resistance of all wires and cables that are used to distribute power e.g. cable used to wire your house. The resistance needs to be low enough to ensure that the cables will not heat up to much when the maximum rated current is passed through it. The higher the resistance the hotter the cable will become with a set current flowing through it. The cable manufacturer must ensure that the resistance per meter of the cable conforms to the published specification and any international standards that may apply. It is; however, very important to the manufacturer that the maximum permitted resistance per meter is achieved. From the manufacturers point of view the lower the resistance value per meter the larger the diameter of the cable and hence the greater amount of copper that is used. Copper is expensive and is the main contributor to the cables cost; the minimum copper used the higher the manufacturers profit. Accurate and reliable resistance measurements enable the cable manufacturer to achieve the minimum cable diameter whilst remaining within the declared specification. This is a very powerful argument for good resistance measurements in the cable industry. The accepted method of measuring meter lengths is to use a 1-metre cable clamp.

26/03/04

Method
To ensure meaningful measurements it is necessary to define the measurement conditions. The length of cable to be measured, the temperature at which the cable is to be measured, the current used to measure the resistance, all need to be defined.

Cable Length
It is normal practice to measure a metre length of cable and special cable clamps (see fig.1) are available for holding the wire. The clamp should include connections for the current and connections for the potential points.
Fig. 1

CROPICO

...Don't settle for less

www.cropico.com

The use of a current clamp eliminates inconsistent readings due to small changes in the length of cable measured. Care should be taken not to stretch the wire when placing it into the clamp, as this will increase its resistance. The clamp should also have provision for shielding the wire against draughts, which can cause temperature variations. An additional desirable feature of the clamp is the provision for mounting a temperature sensor adjacent to the cable to be measured. The diagram below (Fig. 2) shows the connections to the wire being measured, note that the current connections are placed out side the potential and the exact 1 metre length is measured between the potential connections.

Connections

128.50

Current Fig.2

Potential 1 Metre

Potential

Current

Four Terminal Measurement


The Cropico range of digital microhmmeters all use the four terminal principle of measurement sometimes referred to as the 'Kelvin' or 'Thompson' principle. It is advisable to employ this measurement technique for determining values below 100 ohms as lead resistance is eliminated from the measurement. When measuring, a current is passed through the cable to be measured and the volt drop between the potential connections is measured. The potential leads carry a negligible current, and according to ohms law (Resistance = Volts/current) if no current is flowing then the resistance of the potential connection wire is zero. The resistance of the potential leads is therefore not included in the wire measurement it is important to position the connections correctly to ensure the correct value is measured. The Current wires should be placed a few centimetres outside the potential connections, and the potential points located exactly at the points to be measured.

CROPICO

...Don't settle for less

www.cropico.com

Influence of Temperature
All wires and cables have a temperature coefficient, their resistance value will vary according to the temperature. Some materials have a relatively high temperature coefficient (e.g. copper = 3250ppm/C) and the measured resistance value will depend upon the temperature. This temperature is influenced either by ambient temperature changes or the heating effect of passing the measurement current through the cable. The effects of ambient temperature changes can be compensated for when using the Cropico microhmmeter type DO5000. This temperature compensation operates by measuring the ambient temperature with a Pt100 temperature sensor and then correcting the measurement by the samples temperature coefficient and referencing the measurement to 20C, by using this facility all measurements are relative to the same temperature. To compensate for the heating effects caused by the measuring current is not quite so easy. The temperature compensation method used for ambient temperature changes can be used, but to be effective the cable should be submerged in a tank of liquid (water is normally used) and the temperature sensor used to monitor the liquid. The liquid bath will dissipate and stabilise the temperature from the cable, however this solution can be costly and messy. A better solution is to limit the measurement current and the time the current flows through the cable thereby reduce heating effect. The DO5000 has the ability to Both vary the measurement current and reduce the measurement time to a single shot measurement of approx. 0.5 seconds or in fast mode 0.02 seconds. Fig.3 Change in resistance with temperature MATERIAL Copper Aluminium TEMP. COEFFICIENT 3930 ppm/C 4100 ppm/C @ 20 Deg. C 0.001 0.001 @ 23 Deg. C 0.01279 0.0123

Possible Causes of Measurement Errors


Inconsistent measurement conditions Proper cable clamp not used, positioning of potential measurement connections vary. Ambient temperature variations not compensated for measurement varying due changes in temperature. Draughts blowing across cable sample causing small changes in cable temperature. Cable being heating by measuring current causing a continual drift in measurement. Poorly made connections, oxides or dirt on cable producing high resistance at connection points

CROPICO

...Don't settle for less

www.cropico.com

Measurement Solution
CROPICO can offer a measurement solution for all your wire and cable applications. The high accuracy microhmmeter type DO5000 combined with one of our cable clamps will ensure that your measurements are accurate and consistent.

DO5000 High Accuracy Microhmmeter

9 9 9 9 9
Cable Clamp CO2

Measuring Range 3m...30k with resolution 0.1 on 3m range High Measuring accuracy 0.03% Programmable current Automatic temperature compensation Cable length calculation

1 Meter Cable Clamp consists of a robust, warp-resistant, light-metal rail with one movable and one fixed clamping device. It allows the measurement of samples 500-mm to 1000 mm long. The clamping device is designed to accommodate cable cross-sections of 0.1 mm2 to approx. 100 mm2

Cable Clamp CO3

The measurement length is 1000 mm. The clamping device is designed for cross-sections of 1...1000 mm2. The type CO3 is equipped with a water bath whose temperature is controlled with an integrated thermostat. The integrated circulation pump ensures a uniform distribution of temperature in the water bath.

Distributed By: CROPICO Ltd Hampton Road Croydon CR9 2RU United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0)208 684 4025 Fax: +44 (0)208 684 4094 Email: info@cropico.com 4

Potrebbero piacerti anche