Electric Wire Mini Booklet

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Technicalities Of

PVC Insulated Electrical Wires

Flame Retardant / Flame Retardant Low Smoke(FRLS) Electrical Wires

Electricity is the most versatile form of energy. It can easily

be transmitted and converted into other forms of energy. Electrical

wires and cables are the vehicles used for the transmission of

electricity.

In todays modern world, the application of cables has

deeply penetrated the lifestyle of people from all walks of life.

Cables find varied use, right from domestic application, agriculture,

transport and power, to automobiles, encompassing all types ofindustries. These cables are designed to suit specific needs,

based on the application. The design of these cables differ in

terms of the type of raw material used and its constructional

requirement, based on the operating conditions, safety

requirements and economics.

Electrical wires which are normally used in domestic

installations, are copper wires insulated with ordinary PVC and

are popular due to their electrical, mechanical and thermal

properties. However, ordinary PVC insulated wires prove ineffectivein case of fire due to short circuits. Wires insulated with ordinary

PVC emit large amounts of toxic fumes of hydrochloric acid gas

and thick black smoke. This makes evacuation very difficult,

especially in high-rise buildings and places with a high density of

people. The wires insulated with other insulating materials like

polyethelene, rubber, etc. do not fight fire, but support the burning

instead.

Finolex Cables Limited has therefore identified this criticalarea and has addressed the need for safety. Through its

continuous research and development, FINOLEX developed and

introduced, for the first time in India, FLAMEGARD the electrical

wires which not only emit low smoke and toxic fumes, but also

retard the spread of fire.

The concept of FRLS (Flame Retardant Low Smoke)

material was hitherto restricted to sheathing and jacketing in Power

Cables, where the insulating or dielectric properties of the sheath

(or jacket) are relatively unimportant. At FINOLEX, the R & D

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Flammability TestExhibit No. 1

Smoke Density Test(Light Transmission Test)

Exhibit No. 2


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added in the compound. These chemicals prevent the deterioration

of the PVC compound. The lubricant additives give improved

workability, facilitating ease of extrusion.

Smoke supressors are added to the compound in the right

proportion to supress smoke generation during a fire. The FR/

FRLS PVC formulation is balanced with right proportion of the

ingredients mentioned above to get the desired properties. These

are not only flame retardant properties, but also acid gas fumes

and smoke generation suppressing properties in case of a fire

breakout. In Finolex, these ingredients are mixed / kneaded

in the latest state-of-the-art mixers for thorough mixing and

granulation. The compound processing is done in a dust-free

climate for contamination-free compound and is automatically

conveyed for storage. This is done so as to ensure that all therequired properties of the insulating compound are maintained.

I. MANUFACTURING :

The performance of cables depends on the consistency

in the conductor and insulation quality.

The conductor for electrical wires is manufactured from

finely drawn, annealed and bunched copper wires. The number of

wires are chosen according to the desired cross sectional area.

The quality of conductor is consistently maintained on state-of-the-art machines where multiple wires are drawn to the required

size, annealed and bunched in one single operation.

The conductors are insulated with a specially formulated

PVC compound on new modern automatic extruders fitted with

PLC controls for parameters such as on-line tension,

temperature, pressure and diameter. This too ensures that

quality standards are consistently met.

During the extrusion process, the line speed of the extruderis high and the process parameters are carefully controlled and

maintained, to obtain the desired quality of cable.

The special extruders ensure easy flow of compound. They

are fitted with self-centering cross-head and toolings which

give the necessary uniformity of thickness of insulation and

concentricity. Pin-holes in the insulation if any, are detected on-

line with the help of High Voltage spark testers, where continuous

high voltage is applied between the conductor and insulation.

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seconds. The smoke density (highest point on the curve) reading

is then found out. Also, the curve gives the total smoke produced

(area under the curve) by the sample under burning condition and

then the percentage of light transmission values can be found

out from the graph. A typical graph is as per the figure given

below.Fig. 1 : LIGHT ABSORPTION VERSUS TIME GRAPH

In case of fire, where ordinary PVC Insulated wires are

used, thick black smoke is emitted during the burning, affects

visibility completely, thereby causing difficulty in locating the exitway to save lives. FRLS insulated wires help to reduce this risk

to a great extent. The minimum average light transmission value

for the insulation of FRLS wires is 40% while the typical value for

ordinary PVC insulation is 10-15% only.

iii) Critical Oxygen Index & Temperature Index Tests as per

ASTM-D 2863

(Please see exhibit No. 3)

OBJECTIVE : To determine the percentage of oxygen requiredto just support burning of the cable at room temperature and

to determine the critical temperature, at which air oxygen

content of 21% just supports the combustion of the cable.

Fire is supported by oxygen. For any material to keep on

burning, certain amount of oxygen is required at a given

temperature. Since the atmosphere contains about 21 % oxygen,

if the oxygen index for a material is below this level, it will catch

fire and keep burning easily at room temperature. Similarly, the

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FLAMEGARD

For the first time in India, Finolex brings Flamegard - Flame

Retardant Low Smoke (FRLS) electrical wires that has special

flame retardant, low smoke emitting and toxic fumes

suppressing properties, in addition to the properties required by

IS 694 : 1990

8

One implication of these tests is that in case of fire, FR/FRLS PVC Insulated wires will self-extinguish in normal atmosphericconditions, as the minimum critical Oxygen Index is 29%.

Another implication is that during a fire, when thetemperature surrounding the cable reaches this critical Temperature

Index Value, the cable supports burning in normal atmosphere.For FINOLEX FR/FRLS wires, the value of the Temperature Indexis more than 2500C.

Also, in case of fire not caused by a short circuit, thesePVC insulated cables withstand flames more effectively becauseof better Temperature Index values.

iv) Acid Gas Generation Test As Per Specification IEC 754-I :

(Please see exhibit No. 4)

OBJECTIVE : To ascertain the amount of Hydrochloric AcidGas evolved from insulation of cable under fire.

This test is conducted as per IEC 754 I. The purpose ofthis test is to determine the amount of Hydrochloric Acid gas(which is injurious to human health) generated by the cable underfire. A small quantity of the insulation is carefully weighed andplaced in a special muffle furnace, where it is subjected to a veryhigh temperature. All the hydrochloric acid gas thus evolved iscollected and chemically analysed to determine its weight.

In case of FINOLEX FLAMEGARD wires, the maximumvalue of Hydrochloric Acid gas generated is 20% by weight. Inordinary PVC compound, this value may be as high as 50% byweight.


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Critical Oxygen Index &Temperature Index Test

Exhibit No. 3.

Acid Gas Generation TestExhibit No. 4.

THE SAFEST NAME IN ELECTRICAL WIRESNotes : All information given herein is in good faith. Finolex shall not be liable for any damagesarising out of incorrect use or interpretation.

The Company reserves the right to change any of the above specifications without any prior notice.

Safe families,

safe homes.

Safe families,

safe homes.


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For technical literature please contact our Branch Offices : For technical literature please contact our Branch Offices : l Ahmedabad : Tel: 079-26575639,26584637. Fax : 26575743 l Bangalore : Tel : 080-25320176 Telefax : 25588544 l Bhubaneshwar : Tel : 0674-3255921 l Chandigarh : Tel : 0172-2652490,5014396 l Chennai : Tel : 044-28269322, 28230341, 28269526 Fax : 28265768 l Coimbatore : Tel : 0422-2233939/40 Fax : 2233940 l Goa : Tel :0832-2782003, 2782065 Fax : 2783909 l Guwahati : Tel : 0361-2417628 / 2410955 l Indore : Tel : 0731-2802646, 4065593 Fax: 4021263 l Jaipur : Tel:0141-2211526, 2211529 Fax : 2214324 l Kochi : Tel : 0484-2536930, 2408390, 2408492 Fax : 2539107 l Kolkata : Tel : 033-22871048, 22871049 Fax :22871051 lLucknow : Tel : 0522-2464368 lMumbai : Tel : 022-22820062, 22833636, 22850414 Fax : 22852168 lNew Delhi : Tel : 011-22319744, 23324748Fax : 23715642 l Raipur : Tel : 0771- 2885595 Fax : 2525800 l Secunderabad : Tel : 040-27721224, 27817463 Fax : 27811161

REGD. OFFICE & WORKS :

26-27 Mumbai-Pune Road, Pimpri, Pune 411 018, India.Tel. : 020-7475963. Fax : 020-7472239, 7470344E-mail : [email protected] Website : www.finolex.com

GOA WORKS :

L117-118, Verna Industrial Estate, Verna, Salcette, Goa 403 722, India.Tel. : 0832-782001 to 004 Fax : 0832-783909

TOTTOTTOTTOTTOTAL CABLES SOLUTIONSAL CABLES SOLUTIONSAL CABLES SOLUTIONSAL CABLES SOLUTIONSAL CABLES SOLUTIONS

THE FINOLEX CABLES PRODUCT RANGE

l Electrical Wires Housegard & Hotgard

l Flame Retardant Low Smoke Electrical Wires

l Single & Multi Core Flexible Cables

l Single Core Flexible Cables for UPS Cabling

l PVC Winding Wires & 3-Core Flat Cables

l Trunk & Distribution CATV Cables

l Branch & Drop Co-axial Cables

l 1050C Temperature Resistant Auto Cables

l Cat 5, Cat 5 E, Cat 5 E+ & Cat 6 LAN Cables & Components

l Telephone & Switchboard Cables

l Power & Control Cables

l Jelly Filled Telephone Cables

l Optic Fibre Cables

l PVC Sheets

Technicalities Of

PVC Insulated Electrical Wires.

Technicalities Of

PVC Insulated Electrical Wires.

Electric Wire Mini Booklet

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