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Due to the mixed situation in the wire and cable market, copper-clad aluminum wire and cable is a new cable material. Illegal copper-clad aluminum cable manufacturers produce copper-clad aluminum, copper-clad aluminum-magnesium, and copper-clad steel wires instead of oxygen-free copper wires for sale. The price of copper wire is 66,000 yuan per ton, while the price of copper clad aluminum is only 35,000 yuan per ton. (Note: The specific gravity of oxygen-free copper is 8.9, while that of aluminum is 2.7). The following editor of Shenghua Electric will introduce how to identify copper-clad aluminum wires and cables.
1. Copper clad aluminum cable
Copper-clad aluminum is to wrap a layer of copper or plate a layer of copper on the outside of aluminum wire or aluminum-magnesium wire. Advantages: Good electrical conductivity, light weight, small specific gravity, cheap price, convenient raw material processing and production, and based on copper wire production, it is an excellent material to replace copper conductors.
2. Introduce three methods of identification of copper-clad aluminum cables:
Copper-clad aluminum, copper-clad aluminum-magnesium, and copper-clad steel seem to be copper wires in appearance, and it is easy to confuse the two under unprofessional conditions.
1. Look at the cross-section: because the thicker wires use copper-clad aluminum, it is easy to see. Therefore, copper-clad aluminum is generally a soft wire, which consists of many small filaments and multiple strands, but as long as you cut the cross-section and see the whitish (aluminum color), you can identify what material it is.
2. Fire method: just use a lighter to burn, see the burning phenomenon and the result after burning, copper-clad aluminum and copper-clad aluminum-magnesium wire, when the flame touches the wire, the conductor will droop in a straight line, it is not easy to burn, and it will burn Afterwards, the body color is gray or darker; because the melting point of aluminum is lower than that of copper. Difference: After the copper-clad aluminum burns, the conductor will break when twisted with a finger. It is relatively brittle and will break into multiple knots. If the oxygen-free bare copper wire is burnt to form balls, it is the copper wire. The thickness of the copper wire is different and the result is different after burning. The thin wire melts and the thick wire remains the same.
3. Scratching with tools: the tinned copper wire appears yellow after being scratched, which is copper. The original color of the oxygen-free bare copper wire is still copper after scratching. The copper-clad aluminum wire and copper-clad aluminum-magnesium-aluminum appear white with snowflakes. Or rubbing the silk on the cement floor can also get the same effect. Copper-clad steel wire can also be identified by this method or by a magnet.
3. How to avoid buying inferior copper-clad aluminum cables
Unless the poor copper-clad aluminum can be distinguished with the naked eye, it depends on the qualification and quality inspection certification report of the copper-clad aluminum cable manufacturer; most copper-clad aluminum wires are soft copper wires, and the identification method is very simple. The flame burns one end of the copper wire, because the aluminum wire has a lower melting point than the copper wire, so if it is copper-clad aluminum, the burning part of the flame will quickly turn into ashes, leaving nothing behind. In the case of pure copper, the copper wire will shrink back quickly after burning, leaving a small ball on the wire end during the shrinking process.