CONDUCTORS:-- The use of conductors and their insulation is regulated by I E regulations and BIS(bureau of

Indian Standards) or ISI(Indian Standards of Institute) code of practice. The I E regulations and I S cover all electrical
conductors listing the minimum safety precautions needed to safeguard people, buildings and materials from the
hazards of using electricity. Wires and cables are the most common forms of conductors. They are made in a wide
variety of forms to suit many different applications.

The cross-sectional area depends upon how much

current the conductor can carry without much voltage drop in the line and heat generation in the conductor. There
is a limit to the temperature each kind of insulation can safely withstand and also the type of insulation which can
withstand the physical chemical and temperature zones of the surroundings. BIS (ISI) code specifies the maximum
current considered safe for conductors of different sizes, having different insulation and installed in different
surroundings.
Size of conductors: -- The size is specified by the diameter in mm or the cross sec onal area. Typical sizes
are 1.5 sq.mm, 2.5 sq.mm, 6 sq.mm etc. Still in India the old method of specifying the diameter.
Classification of conductors:-- Wires and cables can be classified by the type of covering they have.
Bare conductors :They have no covering. The most common use of bare conductors is in overhead electrical
transmission and distribution lines. For earthing also bare conductors are used.
Insulated conductors: They have a coating of insulation. The insulation separates the conductor electrically
from other conductors and from the surroundings. It allows conductors to be grouped without danger. Additional
covering over the insulation adds mechanical strength and protection against weather, moisture.
Solid and stranded conductors: A solid conductor is one in which there will be only one conductor in the core.
A stranded conductor is one in which there will be a number of smaller sized conductors twisted to form the core.
The number of conductors ranges from 3 to 162 and the conductor size varies from 0.193 mm to 3.75 mm diameter
depending upon the current carrying capacity and also upon whether these conductors are used in cables or
overhead lines. Stranded conductors are more flexible and have better mechanical strength. According to recent
stipulation, the cable size should be expressed in sq. millimetres or they can be expressed in terms of the number of
conductors in the cable and the diameter of the conductor in mm.
 Cable: A cable is a length of single, insulated conductor (single or stranded), or two or more such conductors -
each provided with its own insulation, and are laid up together. The insulated conductor or conductors may or may
not be provided with an overall mechanical protective covering. Cable (armoured) An armoured cable is provided
with a wrapping of metal (usually in the form of tape or wire), serving as a mechanical protection.
Cable (flexible) : A flexible cable contains one or more cores, each formed of a group of wires, the diameters
of the cores and of the wires being sufficiently small to afford flexibility. Core All cables have one central core or a
number of cores of stranded conductors farming high conductivity; generally there are one, two, three, three and
half and four cores. Each core is insulated separately and there is overall insulation around the cores. Wire A solid
substance (conductor) or an insulated conductor (solid or stranded) subjected to tensile stress with or without
screen is called a wire.
Copper and aluminium In electrical work, mostly copper and aluminium are used for conductors. Though silver
is a better conductor than copper, it is not used for general work due to higher cost. Copper used in electrical work
is made with a very high degree of purity, say 99.9 percent.
Characteristics of copper:
1) It has the best conductivity next to silver.
2) It has the largest current density per unit area compared to other metals. Hence the volume required to carry a
given current is less for a given length.
3) It can be drawn into thin wires and sheets.
4) 4 It has a high resistance to atmospheric corrosion: hence, it can serve for a long time.
5) It can be joined without any special provision to prevent electrolytic action.
6) It is durable and has a high scrap value.
Next to copper, aluminium is the metal used for electrical conductors.
Characteristics of aluminium :
1) It has good conductivity, next to copper. When compared to copper, it has 60.6 percent conductivity. Hence, for
the same current capacity, the cross-section for the aluminium wire should be larger than that for the copper wire.
2) It is lighter in weight.
3) It can be drawn into thin wires and sheets. But loses its tensile strength on reduction of the cross-sectional area.
4) A lot of precautions needs to be followed while joining aluminium conductors.
5) The melting point of aluminium is low, hence it may get damaged at points of loose connection due to heat
developed.
6) It is cheaper than copper.
The table below shows the difference between copper and aluminium
Properties of insulating materials: Two fundamental properties of insulation materials are insulation
resistance and dielectric strength. They are entirely different from each other and measured in different ways.
Insulation resistance : It is the electrical resistance of the insulation against the flow of current. Mega ohm
meter (Megger) is the instrument used to measure insulation resistance. It measures high resistance values in mega
ohms without causing damage to the insulation. The measurement serves as a guide to evaluate the condition of
the insulation. Dielectric strength It is the measure of how much potential difference the insulation layer can
withstand without breaking down. The potential difference that causes a breakdown is called the breakdown
voltage of the insulation. Every electrical device is protected by some kind of insulation. The desirable
characteris cs of insula on ma terials are: • high dielectric strength • resistance to temperature • flexibility •
mechanical strength. No single material has all the characteristics required for every application. Therefore, many
kinds of insulating materials have been developed. Insulating tapes Various tapes are used for insulating electrical
equipments, conductors and components. Some of these are adhesive. The tapes commonly used include friction,
rubber, plastic and varnished cambric tapes. Rubber tape Rubber tapes are used for insulating joints. The tape is
applied under slight tension. Pressure causes the layers to bend together. Application of this restores insulation but
will not be mechanically strong. Friction tape This is used over rubber tape insulation. This is made up of cotton
cloth impregnated with an adhesive. It does not stretch like the rubber tape. The friction tape does not have
insulating qualities of the rubber tape, hence should not be used by itself for insulation. Plastic tape (PVC tape) This
is used more than the other tapes. PVC tapes have the following advantages. • High dielectric strength • Very thin •
Stretches to conform to contours of joints.
Measurement of wire sizes - standard wire gauge - outside micrometer Necessity of measuring the wire sizes To
execute a wiring job proper planning is necessary. After considering the requirements of the house owner, the
electrician prepares a layout plan of the wiring and an estimate of the cost of the wiring materials and labour. A
proper estimate involves determination of current in different loads, correct selection of the type of cable, size of
the cable and the required quantity. Any error will result in defective wiring, fire accidents and bring unhappiness to
both the house owner and the electrician While selecting the cable sizes, the electrician has to take into
consideration the proposed connected load, future changes in load, the length of the cable run and the permissible
voltage drop in the cable. A sound knowledge about the area of the cross-section of the core, the diameter of the
single strand of the conductor and the number of conductors in each core of the stranded conductor is essential for
a wireman to be successful in his carreer
Standard Wire Gauge (SWG)
The size of the conductor is given by the standard wire gauge number. According to the standards each number has an
assigned diameter in inch or mm. This is given in Table 1. The standard wire gauge, shown in Figure 1 could measure the wire
size in SWG numbers from 0 to 36. It should be noted that the higher the number of wire gauge the smaller is the diameter of
the wire For example, SWG No. 0 (zero) is equal to 0.324 inch or 8.23 mm in diameter whereas SWG No.36 is equal to 0.0076
inch or 0.19 mm in diameter. While measuring the wire, the wire should be cleaned and then inserted into the slot of the wire
gauge to determine the SWG number (Fig 2). The slot in which the wire just slides in is the correct slot and the SWG number
could be read in the gauge directly. In most of the wire gauges to save the trouble of referring to the table, the wire diameter
is inscribed on the reverse of the gauge.
Measurement of wire size by Outside micrometers
A micrometer is a precision instrument used to measure a job, generally within an accuracy of 0.01 mm. Micrometers used to
take the outside measurements are known as outside micrometers. (Fig 1) The parts of a micrometer Frame The frame is
made of drop-forged steel or malleable cast iron. All other parts of the micrometer are attached to this. Barrel/sleeve The
barrel or sleeve is fixed to the frame. The datum line and graduations are marked on this. Thimble The thimble is attached to
the spindle and on the bevelled surface of the thimble, the graduation is marked. Spindle One end of the spindle is the
measuring face. The other end is threaded and passes through a nut. The threaded mechanism allows for the forward and
backward movement of the spindle. Anvil The anvil is one of the measuring faces which is fitted on the micrometer frame. It is
made of alloy steel and finished to a perfectly flat surface. Spindle lock-nut The spindle lock-nut is used to lock the spindle at a
desired position. Ratchet stop The ratchet stop ensures a uniform pressure between the measuring surfaces. Principle of the
micrometer The micrometer works on the principle of screw and nut. The longitudinal movement of the spindle during one
rotation is equal to the pitch of the screw. The movement of the spindle to the distance of the pitch or its fractions can be
accurately measured on the barrel and thimble.
Reading micrometer measurements How to read a measurement with an outside micrometer? a) Read on the barrel scale, the
number of whole milli metre that are completely visible from the bevel edge of the thimble. It reads 4 mm. Add the thimble
reading to the two earlier readings (Fig 3) b) Add to this any half milli metre that is completely visible from the bevel edge of
the thimble and away from the whole milli metre reading.