Any wire that carries current to control a valve or a relay or to cause any event without actually carrying the energy controlled in the event.

A gas or mixture of gases having specific or general properties, known either to cause or prevent certain gas-to-metal reactions occurring during heat treatment. Most controlled or prepared atmospheres are produced during heat treatment from a consistent source of hydrocarbon gas, i.e., natural gas (methane), vaporized propane or butane, by a process of total or partial combustion in air in the case of the exothermic type atmospheres or by passing a mixture of the reaction fuel and air over a heated catalyst in the case of the endothermic type atmospheres. An annealing atmosphere can also be prepared for a typical bell annealer by mixing two or more delivered gases, such as using bulk nitrogen with a small “spike” gas like propylene. In metal forming operations such as continuous casting, inert gas atmospheres are maintained to prevent metal oxides from forming.

A process of cooling from an elevated temperature in a predetermined manner, to avoid hardening, cracking or internal damage, or to produce a desired microstructure. This usually follows a final hot-forming operation.

Package of two or more insulated conductors where impedance measurements between respective conductors are kept essentially constant throughout the entire length.

The transfer of heat by the circulation or movement of the heated parts of a liquid or gas. A conveying or transference of heat by moving particles or air.

A stranding configuration in which individual wires are stranded concentrically with no reduction in overall diameter. Typically used for bare conductors.

A vessel once used in the process for transforming pig iron to steel. Originally it was used for the Bessemer Process, now obsolete.

Scratches and pits caused on one side of the sheet by contact with cables or other means of conveyance through furnace during conveyor annealing.

Coolant is a generic name for a group of lubricants known as metal-working fluids. The purpose of a coolant is to cool and to lubricate. Coolant types includes: fluids used for metal-forming operations, including wire, rod and bar drawing; fluids used for a metal-removal operations (i.e., machining, cutting and grinding); fluids used for metal protecting (i.e., rust preventives); and fluids used for metal treating, (i.e., quenching oils.) Note: the term coolant and lubricant are used interchangeably in the wire and cable industry. See Lubricant.

Stresses developed by uneven contraction or external constraint of metal during cooling; also those stresses resulting from localized plastic deformation during cooling.

Quenching chamber where coated or jacketed wire is cooled after the extrusion process. The trough usually holds water. The wire passes through the trough, which has the length and line speed designed to satisfy the amount of time needed for cooling of the insulation.

The selection of system components to prevent the failure of the whole system due to cascading; limiting system failure by activation of the fewest overcurrent devices, hopefully to one.

Copolene is a dielectric material used in manufacturing coaxial cable. Developed as a substitute for polystyrene, it is composed of polystyrene and polyisobutlyene. Since it has undesirable characteristics it has been replaced by polyethylene.

A compound resulting from the polymerization of two different monomers. Chains of unlike molecules that are chemically bonded together.

Element, chemical symbol Cu. This highly malleable and ductile reddish metal has high electrical and heat conductivity characteristics, and forms the basis of brasses and bronzes. Copper is widely used in the pure form wherever high electrical conductivity is required. See Conductivity of Copper. It is frequently made in alloys because pure copper may not have the mechanical strength necessary for some purposes.

Wires made from copper alloys can provide very good mechanical properties and are easily cold worked. Depending on the degree of cold working, they offer high tensile strength (especially for heat-treated beryllium copper), as well as: high resistance to cor­rosive environments, high thermal and electrical conductivities, good machineability and non-magnetic properties and ease of polishing and plating. They have lower elastic moduli than ferrous materials, which is particularly advan­tageous in spring applications where a large deflection under a small load is desirable. Reductions, heat treatment and drawing speeds vary widely due to the differing properties of the many alloys used. High copper alloys are wrought products with designated copper contents less than 99.3% but more than 96%, which do not fall into any other copper alloy group.

Any metal, such as steel or aluminum, with a jacket of copper applied to it before drawing as opposed to copper-plated.

Copper and constantan are two alloys used in making thermocouple wires. The copper is the positive wire and the constantan is the negative wire. See entries for Constantan and Thermocouple.

The commodity market where copper is purchased on a bid basis.

The chemical or electrochemical deposition of copper onto a base metal.