COPPER CLAD ALUMINUM WIRE/ CONDUCTORS BASIC INFORMATION
What are copper clad aluminum conductors? Copper-clad aluminum is the newest conductor material on the market. A copper-clad aluminum conductor is drawn from copper-clad aluminum rod, the copper being bonded metallurgically to an aluminum core. The copper forms a minimum of 10 percent of the cross-sectional area of the solid conductor or of that of each strand of a stranded conductor. Although copper-clad aluminum contains only 10 percent of copper by volume (26.8 percent by weight), its electrical performance is equivalent to that of pure copper. It is lighter and easier to handle, and the price advantage, which reflects the value of the copper content, can be as much as 25 percent when copper peaks to one of its periodic highs. Detailed studies by Battelle Laboratories have shown that copper-clad aluminum and copper have the same connection reliability. Because the electrical industry consumes 60 percent of all copper used in the United States, it is critically affected by copp...
