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Loose tube fiber optic cables are designed to withstand extreme outdoor conditions, including temperature fluctuations, thermal shock, wind and ice loading, moisture, and lightning. Protecting the optical properties of loose tube fiber is crucial for maintaining signal integrity, ensuring reliable performance even in the harshest environments.
The most proven fiber optic cable technology for long-term reliability outdoors is the loose tube, gel-filled design. This type of cable protects the fiber from stresses caused by the environment, namely moisture and temperature. Loose-tube cables, whether flooded under the jacket or water-blocked with dry, swellable materials, protect the fibers from moisture and the long-term degradation moisture can cause.
The gel within the loose-tube construction stops the penetration of water and keeps it away from the fiber. In cold temperatures, the protection keeps water from freezing near the fiber–eliminating possible stress fractures. Since the fibers are able to move within the tube, the expansion or contraction that temperature fluctuations can produce in other materials does not transmit stress to the fibers.
Overall, loose tube fiber optic cables offer the best protection in an outdoor environment, especially in the less-sheltered applications involving aerial or direct-buried installations. The loose-tube design isolates the fibers from outside environmental and mechanical stresses. The optical performance is virtually unchanged as the cable is exposed to the elements. Telcordia Technologies, BICSI, RUS (Rural Utility Service), and the telco and cable TV markets support this design.
Loose tube cores are best-suited for armored applications, double-jacketing for more severe environments, and in figure-eight and all-dielectric self-supporting designs. Tight buffered designs often do not have anti-buckling elements and do not decouple the fiber from extreme stresses, such as the material contractions that are experienced at extremely cold temperatures. This is why loose tube cables are so widely accepted for use in outdoor environments. (Cabling Installation & Maintenance, Vol. 7, Issue 11)
OM1, OM2, OM3, OM4, OS2
OUTDOOR AND INDOOR/OUTDOOR USE
OFNR RATED CABLES
SINGLE OR DOUBLE JACKETS
ARMORED CABLES
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