Eur. Phys. J. B (2015) 88: 308
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjb/e2015-60561-y

Regular Article

Thermomechanical and electrical characterisation of EVA polymer compounds for cable accessories^*

¹ School of Architecture and Design, Università degli Studi di Camerino, 63100 Ascoli Piceno, Italy
² Free Consultant, Offida, Italy
³ Department of Astronautic, Electric and Energetic Engineering, Sapienza Università di Roma, 00184 Roma, Italy
⁴ Nexans, 63035 Offida, Italy

^a e-mail: carlo.santulli@unicam.it

Received: 11 July 2015
Received in final form: 23 September 2015
Published online: 23 November 2015

Abstract

In this work, materials used in the field of accessories for electrical cables have been characterised from a thermomechanical and electrical point of view, so to offer a realistic picture of material behaviour under a service involving the combined application of electrical charges and thermo-mechanical stresses. In particular, both materials are based on ethylene-vinylacetate (EVA) blend with the introduction in one case of aluminium trihydrate, whereas in the other case, carbon black was added, the two materials being referred as insulating and semi-conductive, respectively. The two materials had different rheological and thermal characteristics, which had an effect on electrical behaviour: however, the application of levels of radiation up to 60 kGy did not prove to widely change the profile of either polymer blends.