Japan’s Shin-Etsu Chemical has developed a coating that is both more flexible and stronger for the cables of electric vehicles that require high voltage and current. The company’s newly developed silicone rubber for molding provides high insulation for cables used in automobiles. In order to provide sufficient insulation for cables used in electric vehicles, the coating material is usually thickened, which causes the cable to lose its flexibility.
When the cable loses its flexibility, problems are encountered during its placement in the vehicle. For this reason, automakers are looking for flexible high-voltage cables that make cable laying easier. Shin-Etsu Chemical’s new silicone rubber coating (KE-5641-U) has been developed to overcome these problems. Thanks to the new product’s high-voltage withstand characteristic, a high level of insulation is achieved. In addition, the thinner insulation layers allow the cable diameter to be smaller, resulting in cables that are both more flexible and lighter. While the dielectric breakdown strength of the company’s current product is 26kV/mm, the same value of the new product is 40kV/mm. Apart from electric vehicles, the product can also be used as an insulation coating in other areas where high voltage is used.
