UNDER GROUND CABLE MAINTENANCE

PROCEDURAL FLOWCHART:

CABLE FAULT LOCATION PROCEDURE:

Cable fault location as such has to be considered as a procedure covering the following
steps and not being only one single step.
Fault Indication
Disconnecting and Earthing
Fault Analyses and Insulation Test
Cable Fault Prelocation
Cable Route Tracing
Precise Cable Fault Location (Pinpointing)
Cable Identification
Fault marking and Repair
Cable Testing and Diagnosis
Switch on Power
INSTRUMENT USED FOR TESTING UGM:
There are many instruments used for testing and detecting underground cables but most
commonly used in KESC are following:
1. Surge Generators.
2. Seismic Phone
3. Time Domain Reflectometer (TDR) or Impulse Reflect Generator (IRG)
4. Wheat Stone Bridge
Clearence to Operation Control (After Fault is Completely Removed From the Cable)
Jointing Department (For Jointing Faulty Portion Or Cable)
Testing Department (For Testing Cable Fault using Testing Instruments)
Operation Control (UGM)
Operation Centers (For Diagnosis Fault)
Operation Control
Complain Center
5. Cable Identifier Set
6. Route Checker.
SURGE GENERATOR:
The surge generator ignites an arc at the fault which creates a travelling wave
between the fault and the surge generator.
SEISMIC PHONE:
The Seismic phone is a directional acoustic listening device for the pinpointing of
flash-over faults on power cables. State-of-the-art technology and ease of handling
enables even users without training to locate accurately cable faults in conjunction
with a surge generator.
The Seismic phone measures the signals received by specially developed magnetic
and acoustic sensors, which are integrated in one housing.
The location of the buried cable can be determined by
the direction and intensity of the magnetic field,
produced by the impulse current of a surge generator.
With the bar graph-indicator of the Seismic phone,
the intensity of the strength of the magnetic
field can be measured. This has a maximum directly
above the cable.
A coincidence measurement is possible by receiving
and indicating the signals of both sensors simultaneously.
Seismic phone also allows measurement of the distance
between the sensor and the fault resulting from the difference in time taken by the
acoustic and magnetic signal.

TIME DOMAIN REFLECTOMETER:
The Teleflex TDR is a microprocessor controlled Reflectometer for cable fault pre-
location on electricity networks. Comfortable and easy operation is achieved by the
clear display structure and the automatic test sequence.




WHEAT STONE BRIDGE EQUIPMENT:
Bridge methods are basically used for prelocation of low resistive faults. By using a
high voltage source that is integrated in the latest generation of measuring bridge
instruments even high resistive faults can be prelocated.
The measuring bridge circuit according to Murray (Scientist) is applied on
arrangements, where beside the faulty core, one healthy core with same diameter and
conductor material is present.
In case of discontinuity of the cable diameter, the galvanometer will show the
average value of the total line resistance of the external loop. Therefore, as the result
is calculated via the galvanometer % indication, the indicated distance is incorrect, as
the line resistance section are in different relations to each other. For these
arrangements, the shirla (SHeath,Insulation test, fault Resistance and Location
Analyzer enables to define the different sections along the circuit and to be
considered by their individual material, cross section and length.
Basically the distance to the fault is calculated by
the following formula:
d=

JOINTING KIT PARTS DETAIL
1. STRESS CONTROL TUBING:
Provide effective stress control for termination kits and straight joints for XLPE
cable.
2. INSULATING TUBE:
Avoid short circuit fault caused by small animals such as mice, snakes and so on.
3. OUTER JACKET:
Use for covering and protecting cable.
4. SILICON GREASE:
It is used for lubricating and preserving rubber part of the cable.
5. SEALING MASTIC:
It can provide an effective moisture and environmental seal.
6. Al FERRULE:
Aluminum-copper cable ferrules are used for connection of aluminum and copper
conductor. The aluminum and copper connection is obtained using of friction method,
and it causes the elimination of disadvantageous effects on the aluminum with copper
contact.
7. COPPER MESH:
Flexible Copper Mesh Tape is normally used as an integral part of cable jointing kits
for power cables up to and including 36kv voltage rating.
8. ARMOUR CASE:
It is used protecting cable cores.
9. ABRASSIVE STRAP:
Used for cleansing copper things.
10. JUBILEE CLAMP:
It is designed to hold a soft, pliable hose onto a rigid circular pipe (or sometimes a
solid spigot) of smaller diameter.

TYPES OF CABLES:
(A) The cables for applications for low and medium voltage (upto and including
1.1KV) supply shall be one of the following: -
(i) PVC insulated and PVC sheathed
(ii) Cross linked polyethylene insulated, PVC sheathed (XLPE)

(B) The cables for applications for high voltage (above 1.1KV but upto and including
11KV supply) supply shall be one of the following: -
(i) PVC insulated and PVC sheathed
(ii) Paper insulated, lead sheathed (PILCA)
(iii) Cross linked polyethylene (XLPE) insulated, PVC sheathed

(C) The cables for applications above 11KV but upto and including 33KV supply
shall be one of the following: -
(i) Paper insulated lead sheathed (PILCA).
(ii) Cross linked, polyethylene insulated (XLPE)