^4fIce in Stranded Loose Tube and Single-Tube Fiber Optic Cables

摘要

^7fNew grease-free cables are being introduced, and with the replacement of grease by dry water-blocking technologies comes questions concerning the technologies employed. One of the inevitable areas of concern is the potential harmful effects from the freezing of water inside the cable. To address this particular concern, unique testing on these cables was required. Water was inserted into the buffer tubes of cables which were then subjected to below-freezing temperatures. The ice that formed inside the tubes did not induce severe attenuation increases, indicating that such a condition in the field is not expected to cause significant degradation in system performance.