Durable, fully automatic termination of Al stranded conductors using the F-Crimp

Whitepaper by

TE Connectivity
Authors Dr.-Ing. Helge Schmidt, Fellow Engineer, Manager Advanced Terminal & Connector Development Automotive Engineering (Bensheim, Germany) Volker Seipel, Manager PE Terminal / Contact Technology (Bensheim, Germany) Waldemar Stabroth, Director Engineering Global Terminal & Connector Platform (Bensheim, Germany)

Contact for customer inquiries: Joeri Fryns, Manager Product Marketing Terminals & Connectors Joeri.fryns@te.com Tyco Electronics AMP GmbH, a TE Connectivity Ltd. company, AMPrestr. 1214, 64625 Bensheim / Germany www.te.com

Abstract The use of aluminum (Al) in the vehicle helps to improve fuel economy and to bring down CO2 emissions by reducing weight. This benefit makes the material an attractive option for the harness as well, where it can replace heavier copper conductors. However, to achieve a permanently reliable electrical contact, the termination technology needs to be specifically optimized for stranded Al conductors. This paper describes the new TE Connectivity F-Crimp which was developed and validated for exactly this type of vehicle application. The crimp barrel that was designed for fully automated processing avoids known problems of terminating Al wire creep in particular. Applied to a typical family size car the shift to Al conductors and the F-Crimp can save up to 2 or 3 kilograms of weight, depending on the boundary conditions. This is achieved at lower material cost.

Introduction Given its good electrical conductivity, aluminum (Al) appears the ideal material for use in electricity cables. The substitution of copper conductors for aluminum ones supports two focal requirements arising in the field of automotive engineering: - Firstly, as a lightweight material weighing in some two-thirds lighter than copper (Cu), aluminum can be used to cut down the overall weight of cable harnesses. Even taking into consideration the relation of conductivity and density, an Al conductor with the same resistance is still around 50% lighter than its Cu equivalent. This weight reduction has the primary effect of reducing fuel consumption and consequently also cutting CO2 emissions. Lightweight construction is equally important in vehicles with alternative drive systems (hybrid or electric vehicles), as it can substantially increase vehicle range in the electric driving mode, and so help to limit the size and weight of the required traction battery. - Secondly, Al is a construction material which is available in plentiful supply, and unlike the limited available resources of copper is not a speculation metal. This means that the price of aluminum remains comparatively stable at a significantly lower level than that of copper. As a rough benchmark, prices in the range of around 2 /kg for aluminum compare to around 6 /kg for Cu (end of 2011), Figure 1.

Fig. 1

For applications in the field of power engineering, the COPALUM crimp connector, Figure 2, long since developed by TE Connectivity for contacting Al conductors has proven highly successful. Within the AMPLIVAR crimp and its product family, TE Fig. 2 Connectivity has also developed solutions for Al stranded conductors, but not to date for use in automotive applications. Over the course of the last two and half years (since 2009), the fundamental experience gained with these products has been used to benefit development of an Power Application COPALUM-Crimp F-Crimp for use in a processreliable, durable termination of Al stranded conductors with the cross-sections used in automotive applications. This automotive solution and the functional principle behind it are described here.

Challenges resulting from terminating Al conductors Alongside its strengths, aluminum also comes with a number of properties which can impede its use as a conductor material: - The light alloy demonstrates an increased creep tendency under mechanical loads from around 80C, while in copper this phenomenon only occurs to a comparable extent at temperatures above 230C. Consequently, connections from Al to Cu must be specifically designed at the contact points of a cable harness in such a way as to ensure no loss of electrical characteristics over the service life of the product. - In the presence of moisture at the immediate point of contact, the potential difference existing between Cu (0.3 V) and Al (-1.69 V) results in the dissolution of aluminum, the baser of the two metals. Measures have to be taken to prevent his unwanted effect. - Al is a ductile metal with a pronounced degree of flexural sensitivity. Aluminum possesses only one third of the mechanical strength of copper. These properties have to considered, when the material is dimensioned for conductor applications in order to achieve the required degree of mechanical strength both in the wire itself and also in terms of the pull-out strength of connections. Depending on the vehicle manufacturer, typical specified pull-out strengths are between 60 and 90 N. - Another challenge in terms of contacting is that Al forms a dense and extremely hard oxide layer. While this oxide layer protects the material from progressive corrosion, it also has the characteristics of one of the best known insulators. Consequently, a good electrical connection requires the oxide layer to be reliably destroyed during termination.

Functional characteristics of Al termination The newly developed solution for contacting Al conductors is a specially developed F Crimp barrel. The design and surface properties of the F-Crimp barrel, and particularly the crimp termination zone, are precisely tailored to the material requirements of the Al conductor:

- The inside of the F-Crimp barrel features sharp-edged serrations which lend the surface the appearance of a washboard, Figure 3. The term shark fin serration adequately describes the contour of the ridged edge. During the crimping operation, the serrations break up the oxide layer, exposing the pure aluminum below and so permitting the electrical contact to be established by local cold welding.

Fig. 3

- During crimping, targeted use is made of aluminums inherent ductility. The low yield point causes the conductor material to undergo far greater mechanical deformation during crimping of the strands than the copper sleeve. The volumetric flow caused by this deformation is displaced axially in both directions along the sharp ridges of the microserrations and into them, Figure 4.

Fig. 4

Partial cold welding areas with optimal crimp process after 500 temperatur cycles 40 C/130 C. - When the crimping tool is fully closed, due to the elongation of the conductor in the longitudinal direction under the impact of the load, partial cold welded areas are formed between the crimp sleeve and the conductor, Figure 5. The fact that copper and aluminum are able to alloy well together is utilized here, as the contact Fig. 5 surface of the crystal lattice show a mutual penetration of the conductor materials involved. With a verified cold welding surface accounting for a proportion of >5%, similar electrical contact Element distribution on the AI-Surface. resistance levels exist as with full-surface welding. Due to this metallurgically bonded connection, the electrical durability is very high. Mechanically speaking, the crimp connection between Al and Cu is actually stronger than between Al and

Al. From a wire cross-section of 1.5 mm, the new crimp connections already demonstrate pull-out strengths of 80 N. - With remaining residual surface pressure in the crimp of around 180 N/mm at only a small number of points, Figure 6, hardly any conditions exist which could cause outward creep of the aluminum from the crimp barrel.

Fig. 6

Consequently, it is not the degree of residual stress in the crimp which is responsible for creating a good electrical contact, but only the partial cold welding. A mechanical simulation between two cross-sections demonstrates that there is practically no difference between an Al and a Cu conductor after crimping. Fig. 7 In order to create the largest possible contacting surface to the copper for the greatest possible number of strands, the new crimp barrel for Al stranded conductors is rolled in as far as possible. While the assessment criteria for the Cu crimp do not apply to aluminum crimping, at the same time the sleeve does not come to rest against the floor, Figure 7. - The geometry of the crimp barrel features a gradient at the rear end to preclude any relevant notching effect on the Al conductor. The deformation and elongation of the conductor diminish continuously towards the rear end of the barrel, preventing edge formation and predetermined breaking points.

- To prevent electro-chemical corrosion, the insulation at the rear end of the crimp barrel is included in the crimping process, Figure 8. At the front end of the crimp barrel, corrosion protection is achieved by rolling in additional material (sealing ties) as well as spot deposits of sealing agent. The finished crimp is corrosion-protected. All the elements necessary for this are integrated in the crimp barrel.

Fig. 8

Given the high piece number requirements involved in the automotive industry, the Al conductor termination system is designed as a fully automatic process including applicator. Series tools are currently under development (in May 2012) as a parallel process to application of the crimp at a vehicle manufacturer.

Exemplary weight savings As cable harnesses are already among the most complex and heaviest components used in vehicles, any scope for weight saving is an attractive proposition. A model calculation of realistic weight-saving potential was analyzed in an average mid-size car with a cable harness weighing just under 30 kilograms. For the substitution of copper conductors by aluminum wire, exclusively larger cross-sections (>0.75 mm) were analyzed, excluding the fine signal conductors. The affected Cu conductors were replaced by Al conductors with the next highest cross section. Under these conditions, initially a purely computational weight saving of around 7 kg was achieved. However, for around the last decade in Germany the solid battery terminals have already been made of aluminum, realistically speaking the potential for savings in this case study are between 2 and 3 kg per cable harness.

On conductor dimensioning Because aluminum, although a good conductor of electricity, only has around 65% of the conductivity of copper, the substitution of Cu conductors generally entails using a larger cross-section. A useful rule of thumb here is to adopt the next interim size of conductor cross-section when exchanging copper for aluminum. However, when dimensioning cables for use in vehicles today, it is well known that wide safety tolerances are adopted. This offers up a potential for saving which has hardly yet been exploited. When designing cables and connections to account for real load situations (known as mission profiles), instead of considering exclusively worst case scenarios, the cross-section gain incurred when substituting the conductor material could potentially be largely compensated, or in some cases even avoided altogether.

Summary The new F-Crimp for the fully automatic termination of Al stranded conductors is ready for use. Currently application of the crimp for an auto maker is going on. The permanently good electrical connection inside the crimp is due to a high degree of compression during the crimping process and the resulting partial cold welding. Conversely, the remaining residual stress inside the crimp is kept low enough to prevent creep in the conductor. An effective corrosion protection is integrated in the crimp barrel, making the connection suitable also for unsealed connectors inside the vehicle passenger compartment. Al crimp connections have proven stable after temperature shock testing with 500 temperature cycles (-40 C/130 C) in humid heat, Figure 9.

Fig. 9

However, as the cold welding tendency depends on the quality of the aluminum wire used, major importance will be attached to the surface specification of the Al wire. This method does not entail any fundamental change for cable harness manufacturers. They will require suitable crimp applicators and will have to define new assessment criteria. Realistic weight savings achieved, using the example of a mid-sized family car, were between 2 and 3 kg. Added to this are lower material costs. OEMs will be supplied on application.

2012 Tyco Electronics AMP GmbH TE Connectivity, TE connectivity (logo), COPALUM and AMPLIVAR are trademarks. While TE has made every reasonable effort to ensure the accuracy of the information in this catalog, TE does not guarantee that it is error-free, nor does TE make any other representation, warranty or guarantee that the information is accurate, correct, reliable or current. TE reserves the right to make any adjustments to the information contained herein at any time without notice. TE expressly disclaims all implied warranties regarding the information contained herein, including, but not limited to, any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. The dimensions in this catalog are for reference purposes only and are subject to change without notice. Specifications are subject to change without notice. Consult TE for the latest dimensions and design specifications.