2010 - 19th Annual NC State Undergraduate Research Spring Symposium

Session Time : 4/22/10 10:30 AM - 4/22/10 11:45 AM

Content Area : Materials Science & Engineering

Student Presenters :
Ashley Elizabeth Marlowe Materials Science and Engineering

Bradley Mooring Materials Science and Engineering;
Zachary Howard Materials Science and Engineering

Mentors and/or Co-Authors :
Charles Balik Material Science Engineering

Abstract Title : Poisoning of Silica Gel in Electrical Cable Splices

Abstract :
Tyco Electronics uses gel under compression technology to create an electrical cable splice cover out of Sarlink 5775B4, an EPDM/PP blend, covered with silicone gel. Under certain conditions the gel poisons, meaning the gel does not adhere to the Sarlink 5775B4 substrate. The time between the extrusion of the substrate and the application of the gel is critical, as the gel does not poison when applied six weeks after extrusion. The gel will, however, poison if applied within a week of the original extrusion date. To determine the cause of the poisoning, TGA, DSC, FTIR, TLC and XPS characterization techniques were used. Soxhlet extraction was also used to extract polar and non- polar molecules from the Sarlink 5775B4, and these extracts were reincorporated into the gel to determine the effect on poisoning. The FTIR and TLC data suggested that these non-polar and polar extracts were different. Incorporating both the polar and non-polar extracts into the gel showed an increase in gel poisoning, with the polar extract having the greatest effect. More severe poisoning occurred with extract taken from freshly extruded samples, illustrating that time between extrusion and the application of the gel is an important factor in gel poisoning.