Simon Sutton
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To mark the 75th anniversary of the discovery of polyethylene (PE) in the UK, a special event was held at the Science Museum in London, near a special exhibition on plastic materials. The March event featured talks on the discovery, early production and uses, and current advances in the science of PE and modern practical applications. Dr. Simon Sutton, European End Use Marketing Manager for Dow Wire & Cable spoke about the development of PE materials for modern power cables.
Dow produces approximately six million tons (13 billion pounds) of PE annually for a wide variety of applications, including wire and cable. Sutton's presentation focused on the advances and setbacks in the use of PE from the first use of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) to insulate low voltage (LV) cable in 1942 to modern 500 kV crosslinked polyethylene (XLPE) cables. During this time, fundamental cable design has not changed significantly, but progressive improvements have been made to the materials, allowing cables to operate at higher voltages and temperatures. These changes include crosslinking the insulation (1963), using extruded screens to replace carbonized paper (1972) and introducing water tree retardant (WTR) compounds (1982). Along with these changes, continuing improvements to the cleanliness of the insulation and smoothness of the screens has helped improve the reliability of cables.
All of these improvements have led to PE becoming the globally preferred base material for underground power cables for insulation, jacketing, and screens for both distribution and transmission system applications.
The Dow Wire & Cable team, along with other global industry experts, has helped publish a handbook about issues and developments related to long-life XLPE power cables, which is offered free of charge. Information was compiled from a number of sources, including technical publications, cable manufacturers, compound suppliers, cable users and consulting engineers.
 Click here to request a copy of "Long-life XLPE-insulated Power Cables."
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