Marine Electrical Cable

Marine Electrical Cable is just like any other cable that can be used as brake cable or general circuit wiring but is specifically used in marine applications.

As these cables are supposed to be used underwater and will be frequently exposed to water, they are constructed in a way to resist water and corrosion.

Marine Electrical Cables are usually made up of tinned copper conductor and has the most important part, a PVC jacket.

Figure 1 – Marine Electrical Cable

Marine Electrical Cables are light in weight and have more bending radius. Other than that, these cables have different insulating and sheath material.

They are almost similar to normal cables with few specific differences that are done according to their use, and in few situations, they can also be used on land.

Figure 2 – Normal Cable Wires

Marine Electrical Cables come in different sizes; you just need to check what size is required.

Doesn’t matter if you are an expert or not; you need to regularly check if the gauge is correct and the amp-city of these cables for marine DC loads.

Figure 3 – Size Chart for Marine Electrical Cables

Whatever you are doing with Marine Electrical Cable, whether you are just checking your old cables or getting a new one, one should follow the given procedure to confirm its reliability:

• Always select the 10% or 3% voltage drop chart to check the ampacity of the Marine Electrical Cables.
  These are mostly based on the types of loads that will be running through cables.
• The next step involves finding the current consumption of load and marking it on the horizontal axis of the chart.
• After that, find the length of the circuit and measure it on the vertical axis of the chart. The length is basically the round trip distance from the panel or battery to the load and back.
• The point where the marking intersect at the graph is the gauge of the wire to use.

Marine Electrical Cable is also called Marine Power Cable.

These are manufactured according to the standard that is IEC 60092-353/354.

Marine Power Cable is specifically designed and produced for lightning and power for marine use.

A good quality Marine Power Cable is not only low smoke but halogen-free and flame retardant and fulfills all kinds of high marine standards.

Although there are variations in these cables, i.e. medium voltage cables and low voltage cables, it is highly suggested to always pick one after checking ampacity.

Figure 4 – Marine Power Cable

Marine Grade Wire is almost the same as any other Marine Electric or Power Cable, but the only thing that makes it standout from both of them is a special coating.

This special coating on Marine Grade Wire is usually of tin.

Tin copper is specially known because it does not tarnish or oxidize.

Wires and cables coated with tin are always preferred because exposed copper in wires and cables are more likely to oxidize.

Marine Grade Wires are definitely coated, all of them, to avoid oxidation.

Figure 5 – Marine Grade Wire

A Marine Electrical Cable is apparently very small and thin, but it has many attached parts and are a part of its construction.

The parts of cable include: Conductor, Conductor Screen, Filler and Binding Tapes, Insulation, Insulation Screen, Separation Tape, Bedding (Inner Sheath), Metallic Sheen, Armor, Outer Sheath, Water Blocking Tapes, and Insulation Tapes.

Water Blocking Tapes and Insulation Tapes are usually optional in normal electric cables, but it is most important part of Marine Electric and Power Cables.

It gets hard to buy a good quality Marine Electrical Cable, and especially when you are getting it for the first time, and you have no experience of such situations.

Here are some parameters you should always look for when buying these cables:

• Voltage of Cable:

The voltage should always be expressed in two values of current alternative Uo/U in Volt (V).

• Current carrying Capacity:

Ampacity is the word usually used for it. It means the maximum amount of current which a wire can continuously carry without change in its temperature.

• Short Circuit Values:

Cables should have short circuit values mentioned on them. It is the maximum temperature that a cable can withstand.

• Type of conductor:

There are two main types of conducting material in wires and cables, i.e., Copper and Aluminum.

• Number of Core:

It depends upon the power system. For a single-phase power supply, 2 core cable is used, and it increases with the increase in phase.

• Voltage Drop:

All the cables have resistance in them, and voltage drops every time the current flows through it.

• Type of Insulation:

Materials like PVC, XLPE and rubber are used as an insulating coat to these cables and wires.

• Method of Installation:

Mutual heating effect is one of the most important factors to be considered when selecting a cable.

• Shielded and Unshielded Cables:

This type of selection depends upon the use. If you are using these cables in a production area, you better use the shielded ones.

• Environmental Conditions:

Cables should be installed where there are optimum environmental conditions.

Marine Electrical Cable, which is called Marine Power Cable or Shipboard Cable, is used for electrical, power, control, data transmission, and communication on ships.

Marine cable is designed to withstand harsh marine environments and meet strict standards of safety and efficiency.

Keep in mind that emergency assistance in an emergency is not readily available and quickly onboard ships in the middle of the ocean.

That’s why marine cables need to be uniformed and should contribute to the safety.

Shipboard Power Cable can perform at very high or low temperatures.

For this reason, Shipboard cable protects from flames and does not participate in the spread of fire.

In addition, Marine Cable is also resistant to different difficult conditions such as oil, vibration, heat, cold, humidity and salty water.

Figure 6 – Marine Wire

Cable joints (tiny cylinders) are necessary to install if your cable is very long or there is any damage to it at any point.

They are subjected to high pressure, and to assure their reliability, different dielectric, ultrasonic and radiographic tests are performed on them.

It is made sure that these tiny cylinders are insulated properly, and all of these precautionary measures are made sure to be done before exposing it to water or installing them into the seabed.

Figure 7 – Tiny Cylinders in Marine Electrical Cables

Installation or laying of Shipboard Cables is a challenging and complex procedure.

Paths should be examined, and the technology used in this procedure should be advanced and reliable.

It is crucial that cables are being installed carefully without any kind of damage, breaking or even losing them.

To install Marine Electrical Cables, you need to follow these given steps:

• Use an updated nautical map
• Choose the pathway
• Assess the geological conditions
• Look forward to seabed identification
• Consider all the important concerns such as bathymetry, slope, the existence of topographic incidents, litho-logy, environment conditions and dynamic movements (waves, sea currents).

The process starts with choosing the route, and once it is done, the next step is to find the stretches where cables are buried.

A hydro jet burial machine is used to in the burying of these Marine Electrical Cables.

The place where cables are installed under water is specifically chosen to avoid damages and cable loss.

As Marine Power Cables are made up of different parts, you can find best available material for each of these parts.

It is made sure that each part has that best quality material, to make the cables reliable.

Conductor is the main part of Marine Cables. These conductors are usually made up of two kinds of material, it is either copper or Aluminum.

These cables are being used in deep water, so if the conductor is of one of these special materials, it would prevent water penetration in cables.

Another important factor on which no compromise can be done is the insulation of the wire. An insulation of XLPE, EPR, or MIND is definitely worth having on your cables.

If the screening of your cables is done with lead sheath than there is nothing more you can ask for.

Outer protection is often done with PVC or PE, but polypropylene yarns or jute layers can also work best.

Figure 8 – Parts of Marine Electrical Cable with Material Details

Certificates are given to Marine Electrical Cables depending upon how safe they are for you. And to get these certificates, marine cables undergo different types of tests.

The more certificates these cables have got the more safe and reliable to use they are.

Types of such approved marine certificates are: ABS, CCS, BV, DNV-GL, LR, NK, RINA, KR, IRS, CRS etc.

Marine Electrical Cables use Fiber Optic Technology.

It starts with lasers on one end fire at extremely rapid rates down thin glass fibers to receptors that are at the other end of the cable.

For protection, these cables are covered in the special outer covering of plastics.

There are eight different types of Marine Electrical cables depending upon their construction, use and type of material used in them.

They are briefly described as follows:

• Medium Voltage Cable:

It has stranded circular compacted tinned copper conductor with semiconducting screening material.

It has insulation of HF EPR or XLPE and an insulating screen of copper tape.

• MPRX:

It is an unarmored flame retardant cable for fixed installation.

It is used for power, lightning and control system on shipboard.

It has a tinned copper wire conductor with XLPE insulation.

It is a thermoplastic polyolefin (PO SHF1) sheathed flame retardant cable.

• MPRXCX:

It is a tinned copper wire braided armor cable for fixed installation on ships.

It has a tinned copper conductor and XLPE insulation SHF1 inner and outer sheath.

It is a flame retardant cable with low smoke and no halogen features.

• LKSM-HF:

It is an armored marine cable with the same tinned copper conductor and XLPE insulation (cross-linked polyethylene).

It has PO SHF1 sheath. Its operating temperature is up to 90˚C.

• TPYC Cable:

I is galvanized steel wire braided armored cable for fixed installations.

It has EPR insulation, PVC inner sheath, braiding armor 3 cores marine cable. It is used for power and lighting on ships.

• BS6883 Cable:

T one is not only used for lightning, power and controlling but also used in telecommunication.

It produces low smoke and is halogen-free material. It is specifically designed for fixed installations on ships.

• BS7917 Cable:

I is a British standard marine offshore cable for fixed installations.

I is used in lightning, power, control and instrumentation with voltage 600V/1000V.

• MGCG Cable.

Figure 9 – Types of Marine Electrical Cables

Marine Cable Core Color identification is done by standard colors fixed by the experts. It is universal and does not change with any kind of marine cables.

• Single-Core – Natural
• Two Cores – Red, Black
• Three Cores – Red, Yellow, Blue
• Four Cores – Red, Yellow, Blue and Black
• Five Cores – Red, Yellow, Blue, Black and Green

The life expectancy of these cables is based on 24 years average.

But it should be replaced every 8 years and regular visual inspections should be held regularly.

Their condition should be fully assessed.

Wires that are used near water bodies or on ships are most likely to get corrosion.

But Marine Grade Wires are covered with insulation sheath to avoid corrosion.

This feature extends its working life and you won’t need to change them soon.

Copper in Marine Grade Cable is tinned by a process called electroplating.

Other than that, it has more current carrying capacity.

Marine Grade Cable has more copper in them which is the reason for its more current carrying capacity.

Flexibility is a part of package with Marine Grade Wire.

It comes with particular polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, a jacket with insulation designed for unusual slopes.

Due to this feature, Marine Grade Wire is flexible enough to be used on boats.

Marine Electrical Cable is quite wide, just like a garden hose.

But the filaments that carry signals are as thin as human hair.

The diameter of the Marine Electrical Cable also increases due to the fact that it is insulated with sheath.

It is because they are used in and near water, so they need extra layering of armors.

It enhances the protection of Marine Electrical Cables.

Yes, the Marine Electrical Cables go down and lie on deep ocean floor.

Near the sea, cables are buried under the seabed for protection.

And that is why you don’t see the cables when you go to the sea, but in deep sea, they are placed directly at the bottom of the sea.

Of course, great care is taken to ensure that the Marine Electric Cables are following the safest way to avoid faulty areas, fishing grounds, gripping areas and other hazards.

Figure 10 – Route of Marine Cables

The standard specifications of Marine Electrical Cables are as follows:

• Ambient temperature of the Cables
• Burial depth
• Protection requirement of the cable
• The axial spacing of the cables
• Thermal resistivity of seabed and land
• Length of submarine cable
• Water depth

The best materials for the outer core of the Marine power cable are thermosetting compounds.

Includes:

Cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) provides heavy, chemical, climatic, and moisture-resistant materials.

Poly-chloroprene (PCP) provides flame-resistant heat and oil and weather-resistant materials. It is also a drug that is resistant to abrasions.

Chloro-sulfur Polyethylene (CSP) is highly resistant to heat, chemicals, and oxidation. It also contains dielectric properties. However, this substance contains halogens.

Ethylene Propylene Rubber (EPR) is an ideal material for flexible marine outerwear.

Marine Power Cable Type Test and Certification of these tests allows you to give a proof that your cable is of good quality and provide reliable services ensuring the safety.

These type tests are done by authorities and then they give you a certificate according to quality of your cables.

Marine Cables and Wires can work in temperature up to 105˚C in wet and dry conditions.

More specifically, the conductors in these cables and wires can work at 105˚C in dry conditions and at 75˚C in wet conditions.

There are two main ways to measure Marine Grade Wire capacity.

Potential capacity: The measuring of the total amount of capacity would be possible if the cable holder installed all available equipment at the end of the cable.

This is the most frequently marked metric in the newspapers.

Lit volume is the amount of volume that actually works over a cable. This figure simply provides another strength matrix.

Cable owners do not usually buy and install transmission equipment to fully see the power of the cable from day one.

These devices are expensive, that is why owners prefer to upgrade their cable gradually, as the customer demands.

It is rare to hear of these cable faults because most cable companies follow a “numerical” approach to use, distributing the power of their networks with multiple cables so that in the event of a breach, their network continues to run smoothly over other cables while the service is restored.

Risks such as fishing boats and anchors refer to two-thirds of all line faults.

Natural factors such as earthquakes also contribute to damage. Often, underwater things can fail. Deliberate vandalism and shark bites are not uncommon.