APELC is pleased to announce our new line of quick-disconnect connectors for high-voltage coaxial cable. The APELC High-Visibility Fail-Safe Indication System provides a fool-proof method of connection whereby a bright-red ring is exposed when the connector is not fully engaged. The ring is only covered when the connector is fully engaged. The connection set is designed such that no in-between state of connection is possible.
The connector was designed with input from multiple DOE laboratory partners and integrates a number of design features not readily available in a single connector presently on the market. These include:
- Beryllium-free contacts
- No threaded connection to engage the male and female components. i.e. less chance of cross-threading and/or metal shavings falling into the receptacle and causing flashover.
- Nickel and Alodine® coatings available for corrosion resistance
- Secondary release mechanism (set-screw) to provide an additional layer of safety
- Integrated strain relief
- High conductivity Bal-Seal™ electrical contacts for ground and center conductor
- Graded termination of the ground conductor for reduction of field-enhancements
The male side of the connector resides at atmosphere, whereas the female-side provides an o-ring seal for use in either pressurized environments up to 200 psi or transformer oil. Both the center and outer conductors of the connector make electrical contact through a Bal Seal® spring contact. The female connector provides an 8-32 brass stud for termination onto a ring lug. The conducting body of both male and female connectors is made from brass and can also be nickel plated at customer request. The female side connector provides a 1” thread for bulk-head mounting and an external o-ring for sealing against the bulk-head. Other mounting methods (e.g. 4-hole pattern) are available at customer request.
The APELC High-Visibility Fail-Safe Indication Quick-Disconnect connector is available in a range of form factors for attaching to most high-voltage cable available on the market. Some examples include:
- DS 2124
- DS 2121
- DS 2077
- DS 2158
- RG 220
- RG 213/214
- RG 217
- LMR 600
Custom configurations are also available to accommodate voltages up to 500kV and currents up into the kiloamps for pulsed applications. These connectors are ideal for systems requiring ease of maintenance and/or the ability to rapidly reconfigure cable connections. Some examples of potential applications include:
- linear accelerators
- Marx generators
- inductive voltage adders (IVA’s)
- flash x-ray systems
- high-voltage power supply connections
- high-power RF and high-power microwave antenna/load connections
Click here for more information and to watch our video on high voltage coaxial connectors.
