SPECIFICATION 55PC, ISSUE 8

Page 13 of 18

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4.6.8

Fluoride Extraction

For finished wire or filler, prior to cabling, or for finished cable, approximately 0.5 gram of

insulation, filler, or jacket material, as applicable, shall be removed, cut into 3-inch (76-mm)

lengths and weighed to the nearest milligram. A polystyrene test tube (without its cap) shall

also be weighed to the nearest 0.1 gram. After filling with approximately 14 ml of distilled

water, the polystyrene test tube shall be reweighed. The insulation, filler, or jacket specimen

shall then be placed into the test tube, making sure that the specimen is fully submerged, and

the test tube cap is tightly attached. The test tube shall then be partially immersed in a

70 ± 2°C water bath so that the water levels of the bath and the test tube are equal. The test

tube shall be so conditioned for 168 hours with the set-up being periodically checked to make

sure that the specimen is still submerged. After conditioning, the test tube shall be removed

from the bath and allowed to cool. The cap shall then be removed from the test tube, and the

tube, water and specimen shall be weighed to determine the water weight loss. If the water

loss is more than 0.5 gram, the test shall be rerun. Otherwise, 5 ml of the test tube water shall

be analyzed for fluoride ion content using an Ion Chromatograph. The fluoride ion content

shall be reported in ppm of water and shall not exceed the amount specified in the applicable

SCD. A blank test in accordance with 4.6.8.1 should also be conducted in case the result is

needed for calculation purposes.

4.6.8.1

Blank Test

A blank test follows the same procedure as 0 except that a specimen is not included. What is

tested is the distilled water and the specimen tube. Ideally, there are no fluoride ions in either

the test tube or the distilled water such that the result for the blank test would be zero.

However, there may be a low non-zero result (i.e. 0.005 ppm). If this occurs, the ppm of

fluoride for the blank test must be subtracted from the ppm of fluoride obtained from the

specimen. A blank test also performs the same function as a calibration as it can indicate a

problem with the test procedure. For example, should the blank test produce a result of 15

ppm of fluoride, this would be an indication that the ion chromatograph is not functioning

correctly, tap water was used in place of distilled water, etc.

4.6.8.2

Calculation

If necessary, the blank test result shall be subtracted from the specimen result to obtain the net

fluoride ion content (ppm). The fluoride ion content of the insulation, filler, or jacket weight

shall then be calculated as follows:

F ion =

Net F ion (ppm) x Original water weight

Specimen weight

4.6.9

Insulation or Jacket Elongation and Tensile Strength

For wires, specimens of the entire insulation shall be carefully removed from the conductor

and tested for tensile strength and elongation in accordance with FED-STD-228, Methods

3021 and 3031, respectively, using 1-inch (25-mm) bench marks, a 1-inch (25-mm) initial jaw

separation, and a jaw separation speed of 2 inches (51 mm) per minute. For cables, the method

shall be the same, but only the cable jacket shall be tested.