Experimental validation of a thermal model for the ampacity derating of electric cables in wrapped trays

As a safety measure for certain applications in nuclear power stations, cable trays must be wrapped with a fireproof material. In this paper a new implementation of a thermal model is presented, suitable for the determination of the ampacity derating of electric cables in covered trays. Model simulation predictions have been compared with field tests to validate the model. Better agreement between simulations and experimental results is obtained when the standard procedure to determine the power loss in the cable mass is modified to account for the actual measured height of the cable mass in the tray.