Cable termination, joint and repair system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9475237-B2
Application number	US-201213706326-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 5, 2012
Priority date	Dec 6, 2011
Publication date	Oct 25, 2016
Grant date	Oct 25, 2016

Abstract

A system for encapsulating a cable 12 for the purpose of splice closures, breakout closures, jacket repair closures or end capping, in which a casing is fitted around a part of the cable to be sealed, defining within it a cavity surrounding the cable, and a sealant material in the form of a two part acrylic structural adhesive material is injected to fill the cavity and cured in situ. The two part adhesive has a base resin including a methacrylate monomer and a minor part including an oligomeric synthetic rubber and a curative for the monomer, preferably an organoborane accelerator such as an organoborane amine complex, which may be carried by a polyfunctional aziridine. The two parts are preferably mixed at a volume ratio of 2:1 to 15:1.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of repairing or encapsulating a cable, comprising the steps of forming or positioning an enclosure around a part of a cable to be sealed, the enclosure defining within it a cavity, filling the cavity with a two-part structural adhesive composition and allowing said adhesive composition to cure in situ to bond to a surface of said cable, wherein a base resin of the adhesive composition comprises a methacrylate monomer and a minor part comprises an oligomeric synthetic rubber and cure accelerator for the composition.

2. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the two parts of the composition are mixed at a volume ratio of 2:1 to 15:1.

3. A method according to claim 1 , wherein said methacrylate monomer comprises a methacrylic acid ester of a heterocyclic alcohol.

4. A method according to claim 3 , wherein said methacrylate monomer is tetrahydrofurfuryl methacrylate.

5. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the base resin component of the composition comprises 40 to 70 weight % of said methacrylate monomer.

6. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the base resin component of the composition further comprises a minor amount of an acrylate polymer.

7. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the base resin component of the composition further comprises a minor amount of an styrene-butadiene polymer.

8. A method according to claim 6 , wherein said base resin component comprises 10 to 30 wt % of said acrylate polymer and 10 to 30 wt % of an acrylonitrile-butadiene styrene resin.

9. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the base resin component of the composition has a viscosity of 10 to 25 Pas.

10. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the minor component of the composition comprises an organoborane cure accelerator.

11. A method according to claim 10 , wherein the cure accelerator comprises an organoborane amine complex.

12. A method according to claim 11 , wherein the organoborane-amine complex is carried by one or more polyfunctional aziridines.

13. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the oligomeric rubber is a vinyl aromatic compound.

14. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the oligomeric rubber is an α-methyl styrene polyurea.

15. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the minor part of the composition comprises 40 to 70 wt % of said oligomeric rubber and 10 to 30 wt % of an organoborane curative.

16. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the minor part of the adhesive composition has a viscosity of 20 to 35 Pas.

17. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the enclosure is formed by a heat shrunk tube.

18. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the enclosure defining the cavity for the adhesive is removed after curing of the adhesive.

19. A method according to claim 18 , wherein the enclosure is formed by wrapping around the surface of a damaged cable a tape of a material that does not substantially adhere to said adhesive composition, said cavity being formed by a damaged part of a sheath of said cable, and injecting the adhesive composition under the enclosure into said cavity, whereby the adhesive when cured forms a repair flush with the surface of the cable sheath.

20. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the adhesive composition is cured at ambient temperature.

21. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the oligomeric synthetic rubber is a vinyl aromatic compound.

22. A method of repairing or encapsulating a cable, comprising the steps of forming an enclosure around a part of a cable to be sealed with a heat shrunk tube, the enclosure defining within it a cavity, filling the cavity with a two-part structural adhesive composition and allowing said adhesive composition to cure in situ to bond to a surface of said cable, wherein a base resin of the adhesive composition comprises a methacrylate monomer and a minor part comprises an oligomeric synthetic rubber and cure accelerator for the composition.

Assignees

• Tyco Electronics Ltd Uk
• Tyco Electronics Ltd Uk

Inventors

• Ridout Keith
• Hammond Philip

Classifications

• H02G1/16 Primary

  for repairing insulation or armouring of cables · CPC title

• B29C73/10 Primary

  using patches sealing on the surface of the article (B29C73/14 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H02G15/113

  Boxes split longitudinally in main cable direction · CPC title

• H02G15/003

  Filling materials, e.g. solid or fluid insulation · CPC title

• H02G15/18

  protected by sleeves, e.g. for communication cable (two-part covers H02G15/10 {; preforms having internal stresses B29C61/00}) · CPC title