Cable crossings-derating considerations. I. Derivation of derating equations

Dangerously high interference temperatures can occur at points where cables cross external heat sources even when the crossing occurs at 90°. For perpendicular and oblique crossings, these interference temperatures are usually ignored for distribution circuits, whereas for transmission cables, corrective actions in physical installation condition are sometimes taken. Analytical solutions are almost never used to determine the effect of external heat source on the ampacity of the rated cable. The main reason no computations are performed is an absence of either derating formulas or derating tables (curves) and not the lack of a need. To fill this gap, an analytical solution for the computation of the derating factors has been developed and is presented in this paper. The solution is simple and accurate enough to be suitable for standardization purposes. A numerical example involving the intersection of a pipe-type cable by a distribution circuit is presented to show the effect of perpendicular and oblique crossings on the ampacity of both circuits. In this practical example, the ampacity of the pipe-type cable is significantly affected for a range of crossing angles. A conservative practice, used by many utilities in cases like this, would be to assume that the cables are parallel. However, in our example for a 90° crossing, such an approach would unnecessarily decreases the ampacity of the pipe-type cable by almost 20%