Chemical analysis of carbonaceous particles inside Cu wire molten by electrical arcing

Abstract

We characterized carbonaceous nanostructures, which were produced from the electrical arcing of the current-carrying Cu wires. The nanostructures are prepared in two different ways. The electrical arc is provoked by partially removing the polyvinyl chloride (PVC) insulation. In this case, PVC is exposed to electrical arcing, and it becomes the carbon structure after the arcing. In the other case, the insulation is intentionally burned, and the current-carrying Cu wire is left until they were electrically short. Thus, the carbonized PVC is exposed to electrical arcing. Our analysis of these two different carbon materials reveals that the chemical binding of carbon, the elements, the diffusion of carbon into Cu wire, and the relative distribution of the carbon are quite dissimilar. The distinctions between the carbon soot resulting from different arcing conditions can be used to decipher the cause of the fire, which has remained unsolved to date.