In the transmission and distribution equipment, the bending stress caused by its own weight is much smaller than that of copper, but the surface of aluminum is very easy to oxidize, and it is prone to failure at the connection. For a long time, the amount of it is small. The aluminum surface is oxidized to form an insulating layer, the contact resistance increases and heat is generated, and the heat intensifies the oxidation speed, leading to a vicious circle, causing the contact surface to be powered off or even burned. The aluminum row must be replaced after about 10 years of use.
Use of copper busbar
Due to the contradiction between the shortage of copper resources and the rapid growth of consumption, the price of copper has seen an unprecedented surge in the world in recent years. Millions of tons of copper busbars are needed annually. The copper surface has strong oxidation resistance and still has conductivity after oxidation, which has little effect on the safety of power supply. The copper busbar has been used for more than 30 years.
Chalco Aluminum developed product of copper aluminum busbar in low voltage switchgear, the outer layer is made of copper, and the inner core is made of aluminum. The copper aluminum busbar is made under the condition of oxygen isolation, which not only maintains the characteristics of strong oxidation resistance on the surface of the copper busbar, It also takes full advantage of aluminum's light weight and low price. Due to the skin effect, its electrical conductivity is much higher than aluminum and slightly lower than copper. It is the best material to replace copper busbars. It has high electrical conductivity, light weight, low price, and its tensile strength, elongation, and bending properties can meet the requirements of electrical equipment. However, the copper and aluminum composite interface of this composite material must achieve metallurgical bonding, and the interface has sufficient strength.
Copper aluminum busbar in low voltage switchgear is a new conductive material. Its service life should be the same as that of copper bars. It has been tested and proven to be durable and reliable, and it is widely used in the power industry.
