The effect of laser treatment on the mechanical and electrical properties of busbar joints
by T.T. Wong, J.M.K. MacAlpine, G. An, G.Y. Liang
International Journal of Materials and Product Technology (IJMPT), Vol. 21, No. 6, 2004

Abstract: A high proportion of the faults in electrical substations are due to the overheating of busbar joints. Surface contamination due to atmospheric corrosion is a main cause. Laser surface treatments have previously been applied by the authors to improve the surface hardness and corrosion resistance of aluminium alloys. Similarly, a chromium protective coating can be produced on copper by laser-alloying. This should allow more reliable bolt-together busbar joints to be made up on site with less attention to surface cleanliness. In this study, experimental investigations were made into the mechanical and electrical properties of laser-treated copper busbar joints under various conditions of applied torque and current flow. It was found that the maximum hardness of the laser-alloyed layer could reach HV95, which is almost 50% higher than that of the original sample. There were insignificant differences between the temperature distribution associated with the laser-alloyed and the untreated samples. The corrosion resistance of the laser-alloyed sample is slightly better than that of the original sample in the salt spray corrosion test. The electric conductivity of the uncorroded laser-alloyed joints was only slightly lower than that of the uncorroded untreated joints.

Online publication date: Sun, 31-Oct-2004

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