Water-blocking conductor and submarine cable

Abstract

A water-blocking conductor and a submarine cable. The water-blocking conductor comprises: multiple fan-shaped strand blocks, a first optical unit, multiple water-blocking conductor blocks, and a self-locking monofilament conductor layer. The multiple fan-shaped strand blocks are assembled to form a framework structure, a through hole is formed in the center of the framework structure, the first optical unit is arranged in the through hole, and a first water-blocking layer is provided between every two adjacent fan-shaped strand blocks; each water-blocking conductor block is arranged in a corresponding fan-shaped strand block; and the self-locking monofilament conductor layer is wrapped outside the framework structure. According to the water-blocking conductor, the multiple fan-shaped strand blocks are provided to divide the structure of the water-blocking conductor, improving the conductor skin effect, reducing the resistance of the water-blocking conductor, and reducing the line loss; the multiple water-blocking conductor blocks are provided to fill the vacant area of each fan-shaped strand block; and the self-locking monofilament conductor layer is provided to bind the fan-shaped divided water-blocking conductor blocks to the interior, so as to from a water-blocking conductor having a compact structure.

Description

Water-blocking conductors and submarine cables

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the China Patent Office on September 27, 2023, with application number 202311263605.5 and application name “Water-blocking conductor and submarine cable”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0002] The present invention relates to the technical field of submarine cables, and in particular to a water-blocking conductor and a submarine cable. Background Art

[0003] The continuous development of marine power transmission has placed higher demands on the transmission capacity of submarine cables. Currently, the thermally critical sections of submarine cables, mainly located in laying environments such as the landing section, have become the main area restricting submarine cable transmission capacity. Insistently increasing the cable cross-section will significantly increase the weight and size of the cable, raising the cost and hindering cable transportation and construction. To increase the current carrying capacity of AC submarine cables, the most effective approach is to reduce the conductor's AC resistance and reduce line losses. Based on this, the development of a new type of water-blocking conductor and submarine cable has become an urgent problem to be solved in the industry.

[0004] Summary of the Invention

[0005] The present application provides a water-blocking conductor and a submarine cable, which are used to solve the defect of large conductor resistance in the prior art.

[0006] The present application provides a water-blocking conductor, comprising: a plurality of fan-shaped stock blocks, wherein the plurality of fan-shaped stock blocks are spliced ​​into a skeleton structure, wherein the skeleton structure has a through hole at the center, wherein a first optical unit is disposed in the through hole, and a first water-blocking layer is disposed between two adjacent fan-shaped stock blocks; a plurality of water-blocking conductor blocks, wherein each water-blocking conductor block is disposed in one of the fan-shaped stock blocks; and a self-locking monofilament conductor layer, which is wrapped around the exterior of the skeleton structure.

[0007] According to a water-blocking conductor provided by the present application, each of the water-blocking conductor blocks includes: multiple layers of monofilament conductors, which are arranged in one of the fan-shaped strand blocks; and multiple second water-blocking layers, which are sandwiched between two adjacent layers of the monofilament conductors.

[0008] According to a water-blocking conductor provided in the present application, the self-locking monofilament conductor layer includes: a first self-locking monofilament conductor layer, which is wrapped around the outside of the skeleton structure; a second self-locking monofilament conductor layer, which is wrapped around the outside of the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer, wherein the twisting direction of the second self-locking monofilament conductor layer is opposite to the twisting direction of the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer.

[0009] According to a water-blocking conductor provided by the present application, the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer includes a plurality of first self-locking monofilament conductors, and the plurality of first self-locking monofilament conductors are arranged in a ring along the circumferential direction of the skeleton structure; the second self-locking monofilament conductor layer includes a plurality of second self-locking monofilament conductors, and the plurality of second self-locking monofilament conductors are arranged in a ring along the circumferential direction of the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer; the first self-locking monofilament conductor and the second self-locking monofilament conductor are one of a Z-type monofilament conductor and an S-type monofilament conductor.

[0010] According to a water-blocking conductor provided by the present application, the self-locking monofilament conductor layer further includes a third water-blocking layer, and the third water-blocking layer is sandwiched between the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer and the second self-locking monofilament conductor layer.

[0011] According to a water-blocking conductor provided by the present application, the first optical unit includes a plurality of optical fibers and a water-blocking paste, the water-blocking paste is filled between the plurality of optical fibers, and the optical fibers are used to detect the temperature of the water-blocking conductor in real time.

[0012] According to a water-blocking conductor provided by the present application, the first self-locking monofilament conductor and the second self-locking monofilament conductor are enameled wires or metal wires provided with an oxide layer.

[0013] The present application also provides a submarine cable, comprising: the water-blocking conductor as described above; a conductor shielding layer, an insulating layer, and a cross-linked layer structure formed by the insulating shielding layer, wherein the cross-linked layer structure is wrapped around the outside of the water-blocking conductor; and a first semi-conductive water-blocking layer is wrapped around the outside of the insulating shielding layer.

[0014] A submarine cable provided according to the present application further includes: a metal shielding layer, which is wrapped around the outside of the first semiconducting resistive water layer; and a second semiconducting resistive water layer, which is wrapped around the outside of the metal shielding layer.

[0015] According to a submarine cable provided by the present application, the shielding layer includes: a first metal shielding layer, which is wrapped around the outside of the first semi-conductive resistive water layer, and the first metal shielding layer is a sparsely wound structure of red copper wire; a second metal shielding layer, which is wrapped around the outside of the first metal shielding layer, and the second metal shielding layer is a gap-wound structure of red copper tape.

[0016] The water-blocking conductor provided in the present application divides the resistance of the water-blocking conductor by setting a plurality of fan-shaped strands, thereby reducing the resistance of the water-blocking conductor and reducing line loss; by setting a plurality of water-blocking conductor blocks, the vacant area of ​​each fan-shaped strand block can be filled; by setting a self-locking monofilament conductor layer, the water-blocking conductor block can be tied into the fan-shaped strand block to form a tightly structured water-blocking conductor. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the present application or the prior art, a brief introduction will be given below to the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without any creative work.

[0018] FIG1 is a schematic structural diagram of a water-blocking conductor provided by the present application;

[0019] FIG2 is a schematic structural diagram of the submarine cable provided by this application.

[0020] Reference numerals:

[0021] 10: Water-blocking conductor; 11: Fan-shaped strand block; 12: First optical unit; 13: Monofilament conductor; 14: First self-locking monofilament conductor; 15: Second self-locking monofilament conductor; 21: Conductor shielding layer; 22: Insulation layer; 23: Insulation shielding layer; 30: First semiconducting water-blocking layer; 41: First metal shielding layer; 42: Second metal shielding layer; 50: Second semiconducting water-blocking layer; 60: Composite tape layer; 70: Sheath; 80: Filling layer; 90: Second optical unit; 101: Through hole; 110: Tape layer; 120: Lining layer; 130: Armor layer; 140: Outer layer. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application more clear, the technical solutions of this application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the embodiments described are only part of the embodiments of this application, not all of them. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making any creative efforts are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0023] The features of the terms "first" and "second" in the specification and claims of this application may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of this application, unless otherwise specified, the meaning of "plurality" is two or more.

[0024] The water-blocking conductor and submarine cable of the present application will be described below with reference to FIG1 and FIG2 .

[0025] As shown in Figure 1, in an embodiment of the present application, a water-blocking conductor 10 comprises: multiple sector-shaped segments 11, multiple water-blocking conductor blocks, a first optical unit 12, and a self-locking monofilament conductor layer. The multiple sector-shaped segments 11 are assembled into a skeleton structure. The skeleton structure has a through-hole 101 at its center, within which the first optical unit 12 is located. A first water-blocking layer is provided between adjacent sector-shaped segments 11. Each sector-shaped segment 11 contains a water-blocking conductor block, and the self-locking monofilament conductor layer is attached to the exterior of the skeleton structure.

[0026] Specifically, a frame-type stranding machine twists the sector-shaped strands 11, and multiple sector-shaped strands 11 are spliced ​​together to form a circular skeleton structure. A through-hole 101 is provided at the center of the skeleton structure. Through-hole 101 accommodates a first optical unit 12, which can be used to monitor the temperature of the water-blocking conductor 10 in real time. Each sector-shaped strand 11 is filled with a water-blocking conductor block to completely fill the skeleton structure. Once the skeleton structure is fully filled, a self-locking monofilament conductor layer is wrapped around the exterior of the skeleton structure to secure the water-blocking conductor block within the sector-shaped strand 11, forming a tightly structured water-blocking conductor 10.

[0027] Furthermore, in this embodiment, by providing the sector blocks 11, the circular water-blocking conductor 10 can be divided, thereby improving the conductor skin effect, thereby reducing the resistance of the entire water-blocking conductor 10 and reducing line loss. Optionally, in the embodiment of the present application, the number of sector blocks 11 is 4-6, and the maximum cross-section of the water-blocking conductor 10 is 5000mm 2 .

[0028] The water-blocking conductor provided in the embodiment of the present application divides the circular water-blocking conductor 10 by providing a plurality of fan-shaped strands 11, thereby improving the conductor skin effect, reducing the resistance of the water-blocking conductor 10, and reducing line loss; by providing a plurality of water-blocking conductor blocks, the vacant area of ​​each fan-shaped strand 11 can be filled; by providing a self-locking monofilament conductor layer, the fan-shaped divided water-blocking conductor blocks can be tied into the fan-shaped strand 11 to form a water-blocking conductor 10 with a compact structure.

[0029] As shown in Figure 1, in the embodiment of the present application, each water-blocking conductor block includes: a multi-layer monofilament conductor 13 and a plurality of second water-blocking layers. The multi-layer monofilament conductor 13 is arranged in a sector-shaped strand block 11, and a second water-blocking layer is sandwiched between two adjacent layers of monofilament conductor 13.

[0030] Specifically, each sector block 11 is provided with a plurality of monofilament conductors 13, which are arranged in layers to completely fill the empty space within each sector block 11. A second water-blocking layer is provided between each adjacent layer of monofilament conductors 13 to enhance the water-blocking performance of the water-blocking conductor 10.

[0031] Optionally, in this embodiment, the monofilament conductors 13 have five layers, with a total of 91 monofilament conductors twisted together. The thickness of the second water-blocking layer is 0.3 mm.

[0032] Furthermore, according to the skin effect, when there is alternating current or an alternating electromagnetic field in a conductor, the current inside the conductor is no longer evenly distributed, and the current is concentrated in the "skin" part of the conductor, that is, the current is concentrated in a thin layer on the surface of the conductor. The closer to the surface of the conductor, the greater the current density, and the smaller the current inside the conductor, which increases the resistance of the conductor and thus increases the power loss of the conductor. This phenomenon is called the skin effect.

[0033] Based on the principle that current flows concentratedly on the surface of the conductor, if the surface resistance of the monofilament conductor 13 is reduced, the resistivity of the conductor can be reduced, thereby reducing the loss of the water-blocking conductor 10. Among metals, the volume resistivity of copper is 1.75×10 -8 Ωm, the resistivity of silver is: 1.65×10 -8 Ωm, the volume resistivity of silver is smaller than that of copper. When a silver coating is electroplated on the surface of the single-filament conductor 13, the current can be concentrated in the silver coating area, thereby further reducing the resistance and further reducing the diameter and weight of the submarine cable.

[0034] As shown in Figure 1, in an embodiment of the present application, the self-locking monofilament conductor layer includes: a first self-locking monofilament conductor layer and a second self-locking monofilament conductor layer. The first self-locking monofilament conductor layer is attached to the outside of the skeleton structure, and the second self-locking monofilament conductor layer is attached to the outside of the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer. The second self-locking monofilament conductor layer is twisted in the opposite direction to the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer.

[0035] Specifically, the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer and the second self-locking monofilament conductor layer form a two-layer annular structure, thereby improving the binding ability and allowing the monofilament conductors 13 to be tightly filled in the fan-shaped strand block 11 .

[0036] Furthermore, the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer includes a plurality of first self-locking monofilament conductors 14, which are arranged in a ring-shaped manner along the circumference of the skeleton structure. The second self-locking monofilament conductor layer includes a plurality of second self-locking monofilament conductors 15, which are arranged in a ring-shaped manner along the circumference of the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer. The first self-locking monofilament conductors 14 and the second self-locking monofilament conductors 15 are either Z-shaped or S-shaped monofilament conductors.

[0037] Specifically, in this embodiment, the first self-locking monofilament conductor 14 and the second self-locking monofilament conductor 15 can be both Z-shaped monofilament conductors, or both S-shaped monofilament conductors, or one can be a Z-shaped monofilament conductor and the other an S-shaped monofilament conductor. In the embodiment shown in Figure 1, the first self-locking monofilament conductor 14 is an S-shaped monofilament conductor, and the second self-locking monofilament conductor 15 is a Z-shaped monofilament conductor. The twisting directions of the first self-locking monofilament conductor 14 and the second self-locking monofilament conductor 15 are opposite. The S-shaped monofilament conductor and the Z-shaped monofilament conductor can make the water-blocking conductor twisted more tightly, less prone to deformation problems, reduce the creep coefficient, and increase the current carrying capacity. At the same time, after the submarine cable is cabled, the conductor has flexibility, which facilitates the bending of the submarine cable.

[0038] Furthermore, in an embodiment of the present application, the first self-locking monofilament conductor 14 is an S-shaped monofilament conductor, which has better bendability than a Z-shaped monofilament conductor, thereby enabling the water-blocking conductor to have good flexibility, facilitating the laying of submarine cables.

[0039] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present application, the first self-locking single-filament conductor 14 , the second self-locking single-filament conductor 15 and the single-filament conductor 13 are enameled wires or metal wires with an oxide layer on the surface.

[0040] The water-blocking conductor 10 provided in the embodiment of the present application, by providing an S-shaped monofilament conductor and a Z-shaped monofilament conductor, can twist the water-blocking conductor 10 more tightly and is less likely to deform. At the same time, the creep coefficient of the water-blocking conductor 10 is reduced and the current carrying capacity of the water-blocking conductor 10 is increased. After cabling, the submarine cable has good flexibility, which facilitates the transportation and laying of the submarine cable.

[0041] Furthermore, in an embodiment of the present application, the self-locking monofilament conductor layer further includes a third water-blocking layer, which is sandwiched between the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer and the second self-locking monofilament conductor layer to improve the water-blocking performance of the water-blocking conductor.

[0042] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present application, the first water-blocking layer, the second water-blocking layer and the third water-blocking layer may be insulating water-blocking tapes, insulating water-blocking ropes or water-blocking compound materials, etc.

[0043] The water-blocking conductor provided in the embodiment of the present application improves the water-blocking performance of the water-blocking conductor by arranging a water-blocking layer between the fan-shaped strands, between the monofilament conductors, and between the first self-locking monofilament conductor and the second self-locking monofilament conductor, thereby enabling the split conductor to be used in the field of submarine cables.

[0044] As shown in FIG1 , in an embodiment of the present application, the first optical unit 12 includes multiple optical fibers and water-blocking paste. The water-blocking paste is disposed between the multiple optical fibers. The optical fibers are used to detect the temperature of the water-blocking conductor in real time.

[0045] As shown in FIG2 , an embodiment of the present application further provides a submarine cable comprising a water-blocking conductor 10, a cross-linked layer structure, and a first semiconducting water-resistant layer 30. The cross-linked layer structure is attached to the exterior of the water-blocking conductor 10, and the first semiconducting water-resistant layer 30 is attached to the exterior of the cross-linked layer structure.

[0046] Specifically, the cross-linked layer structure includes: a conductor shielding layer 21, an insulating layer 22, and an insulating shielding layer 23, arranged in sequence. The conductor shielding layer 21 is attached to the exterior of the water-blocking conductor 10, the insulating layer 22 is attached to the exterior of the conductor shielding layer 21, and the insulating shielding layer 23 is attached to the exterior of the insulating layer 22. The conductor shielding layer 21, the insulating layer 22, and the insulating shielding layer 23 are co-extruded, with the insulating layer 22 being a cross-linked polyethylene insulation layer. The first semiconducting water-blocking layer 30 is made of a semiconducting water-blocking tape material containing highly water-swellable particles.

[0047] The submarine cable provided in the embodiment of the present application reduces the resistance of the water-blocking conductor 10 and reduces line loss by providing the water-blocking conductor 10 .

[0048] As shown in Figure 2, in an embodiment of the present application, the submarine cable further comprises: a metal shielding layer and a second semiconducting water layer 50. The metal shielding layer is attached to the outside of the first semiconducting water layer 30, and the second semiconducting water layer 50 is attached to the outside of the metal shielding layer.

[0049] Specifically, the metal shielding layer includes a first metal shielding layer 41 and a second metal shielding layer 42. The first metal shielding layer 41 is attached to the outside of the first semiconducting resistive water layer 30 and has a sparsely wound copper wire structure. The second metal shielding layer 42 is attached to the outside of the first metal shielding layer 41 and has a gap-wound copper tape structure. The second semiconducting resistive water layer 50 is made of a semiconducting resistive water tape material containing highly water-swellable particles.

[0050] As shown in FIG2 , in an embodiment of the present application, the submarine cable further includes a composite tape layer 60 and a sheath 70. The composite tape layer 60 is attached to the exterior of the second semiconducting resistive water layer 50, and the sheath 70 is attached to the exterior of the composite tape layer 60. The composite tape layer 60 is an aluminum-plastic composite tape or a copper-plastic composite tape. The sheath 70 is a polyethylene sheath.

[0051] Furthermore, the water-blocking conductor 10, the cross-linked layer structure, the first semiconducting water-blocking layer 30, the shielding layer, the second semiconducting water-blocking layer 50, the composite tape layer 60, and the protective layer 70 form a single electrical unit. The second optical unit 90 is positioned between the two electrical units, and the remaining space is filled with the filling layer 80. The tape layer 110 wraps the multiple electrical units, multiple second optical units 90, and multiple filling layers 80 into a cable, forming a cable structure.

[0052] Furthermore, the tape layer 110 is sequentially wrapped with an inner lining layer 120, an armor layer 130, and an outer layer 140. The inner lining layer 120 and the outer layer 140 are both polypropylene ropes, the armor layer 130 is steel wire or copper wire, and the tape layer 110 is two layers of non-hygroscopic binding tape.

[0053] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, rather than to limit them. Although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions described in the aforementioned embodiments, or make equivalent replacements for some of the technical features therein. However, these modifications or replacements do not deviate the essence of the corresponding technical solutions from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A water-blocking conductor, characterized in that: include: A plurality of fan-shaped stock blocks, wherein the plurality of fan-shaped stock blocks are spliced ​​into a skeleton structure, wherein the center of the skeleton structure has a through hole, a first optical unit is arranged in the through hole, and a first water-blocking layer is arranged between two adjacent fan-shaped stock blocks; A plurality of water-blocking conductor blocks, each of which is arranged in one of the fan-shaped strand blocks; The self-locking monofilament conductor layer is wrapped around the outside of the skeleton structure.

2. The water-blocking conductor according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the water-blocking conductor blocks comprises: A multi-layer monofilament conductor, wherein the multi-layer monofilament conductor is arranged in one of the fan-shaped strand blocks; A plurality of second water-blocking layers are provided, wherein the second water-blocking layer is sandwiched between two adjacent layers of the monofilament conductors.

3. The water-blocking conductor according to claim 1, characterized in that: The self-locking monofilament conductor layer comprises: A first self-locking monofilament conductor layer, wrapped around the outside of the skeleton structure; The second self-locking monofilament conductor layer is wrapped around the outside of the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer, wherein the twisting direction of the second self-locking monofilament conductor layer is opposite to that of the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer.

4. The water-blocking conductor according to claim 3, characterized in that: The first self-locking monofilament conductor layer includes a plurality of first self-locking monofilament conductors, and the plurality of first self-locking monofilament conductors are arranged in a ring shape along the circumferential direction of the skeleton structure; The second self-locking monofilament conductor layer comprises a plurality of second self-locking monofilament conductors, and the plurality of second self-locking monofilament conductors are arranged in an annular manner along the circumferential direction of the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer; The first self-locking monofilament conductor and the second self-locking monofilament conductor are one of a Z-type monofilament conductor and an S-type monofilament conductor.

5. The water-blocking conductor according to claim 3, characterized in that: The self-locking monofilament conductor layer further includes a third water-blocking layer, and the third water-blocking layer is sandwiched between the first self-locking monofilament conductor layer and the second self-locking monofilament conductor layer.

6. The water-blocking conductor according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first optical unit includes a plurality of optical fibers and a water-blocking paste, wherein the water-blocking paste is filled between the plurality of optical fibers, and the optical fibers are used to detect the temperature of the water-blocking conductor in real time.

7. The water-blocking conductor according to claim 4, characterized in that: The first self-locking single-filament conductor and the second self-locking single-filament conductor are enameled wires or metal wires provided with an oxide layer.

8. A submarine cable, characterized in that: include: The water-blocking conductor according to any one of claims 1 to 7; A cross-linked layer structure formed by a conductor shielding layer, an insulating layer, and an insulating shielding layer, wherein the cross-linked layer structure is attached to the outside of the water-blocking conductor; The first semiconducting resistive water layer is wrapped around the outside of the insulating shielding layer.

9. The submarine cable according to claim 8, characterized in that Also includes: A metal shielding layer, wrapped around the outside of the first semi-conductive resistive water layer; The second semiconducting resistive water layer is wrapped around the outside of the metal shielding layer.

10. The submarine cable according to claim 9, characterized in that The metal shielding layer comprises: A first metal shielding layer is wrapped around the outside of the first semiconducting resistive water layer, and the first metal shielding layer is a sparsely wound copper wire structure; The second metal shielding layer is wrapped around the outside of the first metal shielding layer, and the second metal shielding layer is a copper tape gap wrapped structure.

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