BOLTED ALUMINIUM TERMINAL CONNECTORS FOR SUBSTATIONS

Applicable standard:IS 5561-1970

Connector design concepts:
1.0 The temperature rise of the connector shall not exceed the temperature rise of the
conductor with which it is intended to be used. The temperature rise of an electrical
connector which connects conductors of different sizes shall not exceed the
temperature rise of the conductor having the highest temperature rise. All the
temperatures are based on conductor being rated at 30 degree rise above a 40 degree
ambient,indoors, in still but unconfined air.
2.0 Connector sections should be heavy enough to carry electrical loads and to withstand
forces applied during installation as well as during service life or short circuit,
expansion and contraction due to temperature variations, vibration etc. Actually, the
greatest mechanical stress that a connector is subjected to occurs during the
installation and if the connector is properly designed to withstand this stress, it will
be normally capable of withstanding any other force to which it is subjected to.
3.0 Connector should be easy to install. This would reduce installation time and ensure
that it will be properly installed.
4.0 Connector should be able to withstand the environmental corrosion, particularly in
case of proximity to marine, industrial and chemical environments.
5.0 The current path in the conductor should be as short and direct as possible.
6.0 Conductor design should avoid crevices to prevent retention of water.
7.0 Pressure applied through bolts shall be well distributed over the clamping surface.
8.0 In case of copper-aluminium connectors, the aluminium member should never be
positioned in such a way that would allow water to drain from the copper connector
over (or onto) the aluminium connection point. Copper salts affect aluminium but not
vice versa. In other words, aluminium should always be placed above copper and not
vice versa.
Material of castings:
LM6
LM25
Aluminium alloy 356 (with 7% Si and 0.3% Mg ) is not susceptible to stress corrosion
and season cracking and is heat treated to T6 condition
Filler Rod: Aluminium Alloy of dia
Shielding gas: Argon
Welding apparatus:TIG/MIG A 400A machine with reverse polarity
Production and testing facilities;
Design software: Autocad,CAD/CAM to integrate product design/Finite Element
Analysis/Surface Modeling
Pattern shop
Tool Room with fixtures,jigs,dies and production tools
Aluminium melting furnace with continuous temperature recording facility
Multiple moulding stations for flexibility of operation and optimum cast quality
Metallurgical laboratory for Microtructure

Spectrometer for chemical analysis of aluminium and SQC for regulating metal
chemistry
Tensile and Hardness Tester for physical properties of aluminium alloy
Sand laboratory for properties measurement
Gas Porosity check for molten aluminium
Machine shop with drill presses, lathes, milling machines,CNC turning machines
Vibratory finishing to remove flash and produce a smooth burr-free surface
Bench assembly stations
Heavy duty storage racks for Raw material and finished goods
Temperaure Rise test facility
Tensile /Pull Test facility
Digital micro-ohm meter for Low resistance measurement
Galvanising Test facility with running water basin for Preece Test
Elcometer for measurement of zinc coating
Hammer for adhesion test
Vernier calipers,scales,measuring tape
Welders Qualification: Welder shall be qualified to perform TIG/MIG welding.Men
with experience in metal welding shall be trained for aluminium welding for a miimum
peiod of one week.
The important points to be considered are
a) type of welding equipment, whether watercooled or not.If welding currents of
more than 125A are required,watercooling is to be provided to the electrode
holder and the welding gun.
b) Position of the weld
c) Operators skill level
d) Use of proper shields: The arc in TIG/MIG welding is approximately twice as
strong as standard AC welding arc.Extreme care is to be taken for protection
of eyes.
Preparation of aluminium members for welding:
It is of utmost importance to remove oil, grease, water and oxide from the surfaces to be
welded.All the surfaces to be welded should be wirebrushed with stainless steel wire
brush prior to welding.The stainless steel brushes are specified because stainless steel has
less of a tendency to pick up particles of aluminium oxides.If more than one weld pass is
required, then original weld is to be wirebrushed before applying additional weld.
Preheating of the surfaces to 220 degrees C before welding is optional, but it helps the
operator to weld easily and faster.
Need for only TIG/MIG welding for aluminium connectors:
Pure aluminium melts at 1220 degrees F whereas aluminium alloys melt in the range of
1020 degrees F.When aluminium alloys are heated there is no colour change.Hence, it is
difficult, if not impossible to tell if the temperature is near the welding temperature.
The everpresent surface oxide film on aluminium has a melting point of 3600 degrees
F.The parent aluminium alloy can therefore be melted without fusing the surface
oxides.Unless the film is removed,cleanliness of the molten filler material and parent
metal cannot be complete and both strength and conductivity will be sacrificed.Therfore,
it is of paramount importance to remove aluminium oxides from aluminium ally before

welding is started,In the shielded arc welding method, the shielding gas has a tendency to
clean the material as welding progresses.
TIG welding:The inert gas shielded tungsten arc welding is widely used for welding
aluminium bus fittings.In this process, the arc is established between a non-consumable
tungsten electrode and the section to be welded.Inert gas envelopes the arc to prevent
oxidation. Hence, no flux is required.A bare filler rod supplies filler material to weld
area.To initiate the arc the tungsten electrode is placed in contact ith the component and
withdrawn to establish an arc length of about 5mm.The arc is given a circular motion
until the base metal liquefies and a weld puddle is established.Filler material is added by
hand as required.If more than one pass is required for sufficient weld the weld hould be
wirebrushed between passesto remove any surface dirt or oxides which has accumulated
from the previous pass.Since no flux is used, finished flux does not need any cleaning.In
this process, the heat of tungsten arc is concentrated in a small area.Hence welding is
faster and distortion of the weld is also negligible.If thickness of more than 12mm is to be
welded, preheating of parts before welding increases welding speed.
TIG WELDING PARAMETERS
IPS
Wall
Amp.
Gas
size/Flat
thickness
cup
bar
dia.
thickness

Tungsten
dia

Argon
flow
rate

Preheat No.of Filler

passes rod
size

MIG welding: MIG welding combines the advantages of TIG welding with increased
speed of welding.Welding can be done in any position, in either manual/automatic
mode.In bare filler rod is supplied as a coil of bare wire.In some commercial models, the
wire is added to the weld at a predetermined rate by a motor-driven feed based on the
magnitude of welding current.Either helium, or Argon or a mixture of these gases is used
for shielding.Pure Argon is used for sections less than 18mm thick.On sections over
18mm thick,the gases are mixed to combine the hotter arc characteristics of helium with
the stabilizing effect of Argon.If exceptionally hot arc characteristics are needed,pure
helium can be substituted for the gas mixture.However, precaution is to be exercised as it
is very easy to burn through the items that are to be welded in a helium atmosphere.
TIG WELDING PARAMETERS
IPS
Wall
Amp. Filler
size
thickness
Rod
wire

Argon
flow
rate

Preheat Wire
speed

No. of
passes

Choice of Hardware The hardware material that is generally supplied with bolted
connectors is in keeping with the concept of avoidance of dissimilar metals to reduce
electrolytic and other corrosion.The standard hardware on aluminium alloy connectors is
anodized aluminium hardware.However, stainless steel/Galvanised steel hardware is used
for aluminium alloy connectors.In case stainless steel hardware is used, anti-seize
lubricant is to be applied.
Hardware for joining like or unlike metals

A BAR

Copper

Aluminium

Aluminium

Galv.Steel

Galv.steel

B BAR
Recommended
Series
of
hardware

Copper
Silicon
Bronze
SS

Copper
SS

Aluminium
Al

Aluminium
Al

GS

SS

Copper
Silicon
Bronze
SS

GS

GS

GS

GS

SS

Steps for assembly of bolted aluminium connectors:

a) All contact surfaces of the connector shall be vigorously cleaned with a stiff
stainless steel brush to remove oxides.A typically bright aluminium surface is to
be obtained.Bimetallic plates are not to be wirebrushed,However, scotchbrite may
be used to clean them.
b) Immediately, a liberal amount of sealant is to applied to the contact areas.
c) Connecor is to be assembled with bolts finger tight.If a generous bead of sealant
does not appear, open the assembly and add more sealant.
d) The bolts are to be tightened alternately(criss-cross)and evenly with a torque
wrench to the recommended torque as given in the table below.
e) Excess sealant squeezed out of joint can be left as is or can be lightly smoothed
along the contact line.
f) All excess sealant must be removed from EHV connectors due to corona
problem.
Bolt tightening Torques:
Sl.no
1
2
3

Bolt diameter
M 10
M12
M16

Torque
27.17N-m
54.44N-m
74.75N-m

Galvaniccorrosiondueto joiningof dissimilarmetals

When a condition causing electrolysis exists, one of the two dissimilar metals
becomes the anode and the other becomes the cathode. To determine which
metal will become the anode and which will become the cathode refer to the
Galvanic Series table in this section. The metal listed with the most relatively
positive voltage is the cathode and the metal with the relatively more negative
voltage is the anode. When electrolysis is taking place the anode gives off some
of its molecules to the cathode. After the period of time that this action has taken
place the anode eventually has no more molecules to give off. This is sometimes
called galvanic corrosion. When this occurs with an electrical connector, failure
eventually results.
By understanding how various factors can influence electrolysis on electrical
connections made with dissimilar metals, its corrosive effects can be minimized.
Electrolysis Factors

1. Voltage
The higher the relative voltage difference of the two different metals the faster the
anode will deteriorate or corrode. By keeping the relative voltage between the
two metals on the Galvanic Series table to a minimum, corrosion of the anode
slows down.
Using the Galvanic Series table for example we find that copper has a relative
voltage of -0.20 volts. On the same table aluminum has a relative voltage of
-0.80. Therefore the relative voltage between the two metals is the difference
between copper and aluminum, or about -0.60 volts (difference between -0.20
and -0.80). Notice that tinplate has a relative voltage of -0.50 volts. By plating
one of the metals the relative voltage can be reduced to -0.30 volts.
2. Anode size
Relative physical size of the anode to that of the cathode in an electrical
connection can contribute to the life expectancy of the connection. Since the
anode will be giving off molecules to the cathode it stands to reason that when
the mass of the anode is significantly greater than that of the cathode its life
expectancy of the connection is improved.
3. Environment
The Galvanic Series table uses salt water. A change in the environment that the
two metals used in making the electrical connection can also change the effects
of galvanic corrosion.
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