EoW July 2011

technology news

Quality assurance during energy cable production

of the wall thickness of all three layers (concentricity, diameter and ovality). Measuring values for centring and control are therefore available immediately after starting up the line. The system is used in catenary and vertical lines. While the X-Ray 8000 NXT provides information for a fast centring and direct control, the X-Ray 8700 NXT supplies precise quality data about the final product. The X-Ray 8700 NXT measures the diameter, wall thickness and eccentricity, and is suitable for all cable types with solid, stranded or Milliken conductor and with single, double or triple layer insulation. With the use of the X-Ray 8000 NXT at the beginning of the line for collection of the hot measuring values and the X-Ray 8700 NXT at the end of the line for measuring the cold values, three shrinking values are analysed for every insulation layer of the cable, ensuring an optimum process.

impurities of the polymer melt. The flow channel between main extruder and the cross head is equipped with sight glasses and an optical CCD camera system, which transilluminates the insulation material. The system ensures that only pure PE material is used for the cable production and, as a result, a higher electric strength of cable can be achieved. Sikora’s product range for energy cables also includes the Ultratemp 6000, which measures the temperature of the PE melt during extrusion on a non-contact basis between the extruder screw and the cross head. Besides temperature determination, the Ultratemp 6000 detects inhomogeneities in the melt. Early cross-linking after screens which may lead to ambers or scorches in the material do not occur, and the device optimises the output of a planned production time. The X-ray measuring system X-Ray 8000 NXT is installed in the moving part of the telescopic tube directly after the crosshead for precise hot measurement

There were more wind power plants built in European seas in 2010 than ever before. More than 300 plants with a total power of more than 880 megawatts were added. According to the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA), there will be strong investment in the future on the construction of new wind turbines at sea. offshore wind parks to the mainland is currently being funnelled by undersea cables. These cables have to provide different requirements as well as environment conditions. Thus, the cable design complies with national and international standards. In order to fulfil these requirements cable manufacturers use measuring and control technology in their production lines. Sikora offers a range of measuring technology for use in CV-, VCV- or MDCV-lines. In a CV-line, for example, a CSS 2 (cleanliness scanning system) is installed for real time monitoring and detection of Power transmission from

Sikora AG – Germany Fax : +49 421 48900 90 Email : sales@sikora.net Website : www.sikora.net

▲ ▲ CV-line (catenary line) with measuring equipment for quality assurance during production of energy cables

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EuroWire – July 2011