Why URD Cable Uses Aluminum Conductors: The Smart Choice for Underground Power
URD cable operates at 600V, which is low-voltage secondary distribution. In such systems, high current flow necessitates conductors with a large cross-sectional area.
While aluminum has a higher electrical resistivity than copper, this is easily compensated for in URD applications by slightly increasing the conductor’s size.
Since URD cables are inherently large-diameter cables, aluminum conductors readily meet all voltage drop and ampacity requirements.
The Bottom Line: Copper performs better conductively, but in the realm of large, low-voltage cables, aluminum delivers more than adequate performance at a drastically better value, making its “size-for-conductivity” trade-off a clear winner.
