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old overhead wires I have known

old overhead wires I have known

old overhead wires I have known

(OP)
When did other utilities stop installing copper wire as an overhead conductor?  I'm guessing it was some time after WWII, but that's just a guess.

I have a similar question about the use of copperweld.  I think we stopped installing that after 1945.

RE: old overhead wires I have known

I think it was a lot later than 1945.  In fact, I suspect Copperweld is probably still being installed.  There are thousands of miles of it still in service around Oregon and Washington.  And still a lot of copper in the air.   

David Castor
www.cvoes.com

RE: old overhead wires I have known

Were the old copper conductors similar in structure to ACSR conductors?  Or very different?

RE: old overhead wires I have known

Could be stranded, could be quite amazing hollow cylindrical assemblies.

RE: old overhead wires I have known

I'd guess copper was phased out by the early 1960's in most parts of the U.S.

Following up David's comment, I visited Hoover Dam a few years ago and obtained few inches of an original transmission line material from the gift shop that looks like what you describe. It has interlocked segments forming a hollow cylinder. Looks very expensive to manufacture.

Alan
"The engineer's first problem in any design situation is to discover what the problem really is." Unk.

RE: old overhead wires I have known

Yeah, that's it. I was going to try and post a pic.

Alan
"The engineer's first problem in any design situation is to discover what the problem really is." Unk.

RE: old overhead wires I have known

We still deal with something similar on a line we lease.  Still in the air, will be for years to come most likely.  Other lines going back 100+ years with stranded copper conductors.  Probably haven't put new copper in the air for 50 years, but repairs of copper still happen.

RE: old overhead wires I have known

We still have some #4 HD solid conductor Copper in the air, and some 3 strand solid #8 CU in places, which is just three #8 solid copper wires stranded together for those not familiar with it...I think 3 strand 8 is same size as #2. Ran into some #6 steel this winter the hard way. Load growth, customer complained of bad voltage, we went and looked and sure as shootin the mapping was wrong and it was steel.  HIGH impedance holy cow.  Had to dig out an old Standard Handbook for Electrical Engineers circa 1945-ish to find the impedance and ampacity information.

RE: old overhead wires I have known

(OP)
I wasn't trying to see if other companies still has old conductors in service.  I was just trying to get an approximate date of when they put it in service.  For example, copper, copperweld, steel, etc.

RE: old overhead wires I have known

alehman,

I have a photo somewhere of copper-clad switchgear at 'Boulder Dam'. I can only imagine this was because of high eddy current losses in steel. Do you know if that is still there - I've never seen anything like it. I'll scan the image and post it when I'm back in the office.
  

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If we learn from our mistakes I'm getting a great education!
 

RE: old overhead wires I have known

I don't recall seeing anything like that, but I would be interested to see your photo.

Alan
"The engineer's first problem in any design situation is to discover what the problem really is." Unk.

RE: old overhead wires I have known

My mistake, it wasn't a switchboard, it was busbar enclosures. It's a while since I'd looked at the book. Still interesting - today it would be aluminium I suspect.
  

----------------------------------
  
If we learn from our mistakes I'm getting a great education!
 

RE: old overhead wires I have known

No, I didn't see anything like that. My tour was the typical tourist walk-through. I wonder why they would use copper enclosure for the bus. Also I wonder about those horizontal pipes with flanges on the ends?
 

Alan
"The engineer's first problem in any design situation is to discover what the problem really is." Unk.

RE: old overhead wires I have known

I have no idea, but would be interested to find out.

There are some really interesting picutres in that book, although I should probably post them in the Engineering History forum rather than drag this thread any further off course.
  

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If we learn from our mistakes I'm getting a great education!
 

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