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Ampacity is a portmanteau for ampere capacity, defined by United States National Electrical Codes. Ampacity is defined as the maximum current, in amperes, that a ...
However, AWG is dissimilar to IEC 60228, the metric wire-size standard used in most parts of the world, based directly on the wire cross-section area (in square millimetres, mm 2). The AWG tables are for a single, solid and round conductor. The AWG of a stranded wire is determined by the cross-sectional area of the equivalent solid conductor.
Comparison of SWG (red), AWG (blue) and IEC 60228 (black) wire gauge sizes from 0.03 to 200 mm² to scale on a 1 mm grid – in the SVG file, hover over a size to highlight it. In engineering applications, it is often most convenient to describe a wire in terms of its cross-section area, rather than its diameter, because the cross section is directly proportional to its strength and weight ...
A full-load wire does heat up slightly due to the metallic resistance of the wire, but this wire heating is factored into the cable's temperature rating. (NEC 310.10) [12] The NEC specifies acceptable numbers of conductors in crowded areas such as inside conduit, referred to as the fill rating.
The neutral wire is identified by gray or white insulated wire, perhaps using stripes or markings. With lamp cord wire the ribbed wire is the neutral, and the smooth wire is the hot. NEC 2008 400.22(f) allows surface marking with ridged, grooves or white stripes on the surface of lamp cord.
A wire or cable has a voltage (to neutral) rating and a maximum conductor surface temperature rating. The amount of current a cable or wire can safely carry depends on the installation conditions. The international standard wire sizes are given in the IEC 60228 standard of the International Electrotechnical Commission.
The standard includes preferred current ratings and wire gauges for both International (deemed Series I) and North American (deemed Series II) applications. Series I preferred current ratings (in amps) are: 16, 32, 63, 125, 250, 400, 630 and 800, with wire gauges specified as mm 2 .
Also, the size of the aluminum wire needs to be larger compared to copper wire used for the same circuit due to the increased resistance of the aluminum alloys. For example, a 15 A branch circuit supplying standard lighting fixtures can be installed with either #14 AWG copper building wire or #12 AWG aluminum building wire according to the NEC ...