Journal of the Korean Society of Safety (한국안전학회지)

The Korean Society of Safety (한국안전학회)
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A Study on the Fire Risk of High-voltage Cables for Electrical Vehicles

전기차용 고전압 케이블의 화재 위험성에 관한 연구

  • Sin Dong Kang (Department of Fire & Disaster Prevention Engineering, Daejeon University) ;
  • Ye Jin Park (Department of Fire & Disaster Prevention Engineering, Daejeon University) ;
  • Si Hyun Kim (Department of Fire & Disaster Prevention Engineering, Daejeon University) ;
  • Jae-Ho Kim (Department of Fire & Disaster Prevention Engineering, Daejeon University)
  • 강신동 (대전대학교 소방방재학과) ;
  • 박예진 (대전대학교 소방방재학과) ;
  • 김시현 (대전대학교 소방방재학과) ;
  • 김재호 (대전대학교 소방방재학과)
  • Received : 2023.04.24
  • Accepted : 2023.06.01
  • Published : 2023.08.31
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Abstract

This study presents the characteristics of short circuits (SCs) caused by excessive currents in high-voltage cables used in electric vehicles and emphasizes the need to calculate the cross-sectional areas of these cables according to the SC current. Three direct current power supplies were connected in parallel to test the SC characteristics caused by excessive currents, and a timer and a magnetic contactor were used to deliver the conduction time and SC current. A circular infrared-radiation heater was used to test the temperature-dependent SC characteristics, a thermocouple was used to measure the temperature, and a shunt resistor was used to measure the current. As the SC current increased, the fusing time of the cable decreased. Additionally, a high-voltage cable (with an area of 16 mm2 ) used in electric vehicles fused when a current (approximately equal to 55 times the allowable current) flowed for 0.2 s (operating time of the protective device). When the SC current is 10 kA, the cable may fuse during the operating time of the protective device, thus creating a fire hazard. In electric vehicles, the size of the SC current increases in proportion to the capacity of the battery. Thus, the cross-sectional areas of the cables used should be calculated accordingly, and cable operations should be properly coordinated with the surrounding protective devices.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

This research was supported by Hyundai Motor Group Fund, 2022.

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