Peelable cable jacket having designed microstructures and methods for making peelable cable jackets having designed microstructures

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10726973-B2
Application number	US-201615751281-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 6, 2016
Priority date	Sep 28, 2015
Publication date	Jul 28, 2020
Grant date	Jul 28, 2020

Abstract

Coated conductors include a conductor and a peelable polymeric coating at least partially surrounding the conductor, where the peelable polymeric coating includes from 1 to 8 microcapillaries that define individual, discrete void spaces. Also included herein are methods for making such coated conductors.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A coated conductor, comprising:
(a) a conductor that is a cable or an optical fiber; and
(b) an annular microcapillary product that is a peelable polymeric coating extruded onto and completely surrounding the conductor,
wherein said peelable polymeric coating comprises a polymeric matrix material and in the range of from 1 to 8 microcapillaries which extend substantially in the direction of elongation of said peelable polymeric coating,
wherein said microcapillaries define individual, discrete void spaces, and said microcapillaries are completely surrounded by the polymeric matrix material.

2. The coated conductor of claim 1 , wherein said microcapillaries contain air within one or more of said void spaces.

3. The coated conductor of claim 1 , wherein an aggregate of the space defined by said microcapillaries when viewed as a cross-section of the peelable polymeric coating taken orthogonal to the direction of elongation of said microcapillaries constitutes less than 20 area percent of the total area of said peelable polymeric coating cross-section.

4. The coated conductor of claim 1 , wherein said microcapillaries have an average diameter in the range of from 0.5 μm to 2,000 μm, wherein said microcapillaries have a cross-sectional shape selected from the group consisting of circular, rectangular, oval, star, diamond, triangular, square, pentagonal, hexagonal, octagonal, curvilinear, and combinations thereof, wherein said peelable polymeric coating has a thickness in the range of from 10 to 180 mils.

5. The coated conductor of claim 1 , wherein the ratio of the thickness of said peelable polymeric coating to the average diameter of said microcapillaries is in the range of from 2:1 to 400:1.

6. The coated conductor of claim 1 , wherein said peelable polymeric coating has a reduction in tensile strength of less than 50% relative to an identical coating prepared from the same matrix material except not having microcapillaries, wherein said peelable polymeric coating has a reduction in elongation-at-break of less than 30% relative to an identical coating prepared from the same matrix material except not having microcapillaries.

7. The coated conductor of claim 1 , wherein said polymeric matrix material comprises an ethylene-based polymer.

8. The coated conductor of claim 1 , wherein said peelable polymeric coating comprises external indicia corresponding to the internal location of said microcapillaries.

9. The coated conductor of claim 1 , wherein said microcapillaries are substantially longitudinally continuous along the length of said peelable polymeric coating.

10. The coated conductor of claim 1 , wherein said microcapillaries are longitudinally discontinuous along the length of said peelable polymeric coating.

11. The coated conductor of claim 1 wherein the individual, discrete void spaces consist of air.

12. The coated conductor of claim 1 , wherein the individual discrete void spaces consist of air.

13. The coated conductor of claim 1 wherein
the conductor has a direction of elongation; and
the microcapillaries extend in the same direction of elongation as the conductor.

14. The coated conductor of claim 13 , wherein each discrete void space consists of a gas.

15. The coated conductor of claim 14 , wherein each discrete void space consists of air.

16. The coated conductor of claim 15 , wherein each microcapillary is substantially continuous along the length of the peelable polymeric coating.

17. The coated conductor of claim 15 , wherein each microcapillary is longitudinally discontinuous along the length of the peelable polymeric coating.

Assignees

• Dow Global Technologies Llc
• Dow Global Tech Llp

Inventors

• Esseghir Mohamed
• Huang Wenyi
• Kmiec Chester J

Classifications

• Y02A30/14

  Extreme weather resilient electric power supply systems, e.g. strengthening power lines or underground power cables · CPC title

• H01B7/24

  Devices affording localised protection against mechanical force or pressure · CPC title

• H01B7/28 Primary

  {Protection against damage caused} by moisture, corrosion, chemical attack or weather · CPC title

• H01B7/185

  Sheaths comprising internal cavities or channels · CPC title

• H01B13/14 Primary

  by extrusion {(extrusion in general B29C48/00)} · CPC title