Overview
ISO 20615:2018 - Fibre ropes - Electrostatic surface potential measuring method - specifies a laboratory test method for determining the electrostatic charging propensity of fibre ropes by measuring surface potential produced by tribocharging. Developed jointly by ISO and IEC technical committees, the standard defines specimen preparation, test atmosphere, apparatus (including a non‑contacting electrostatic voltmeter) and a repeatable measurement procedure. Results apply only to the charging mechanism and parameters described and are not intended to assess rope safety in explosive atmospheres.
Key topics and requirements
- Scope and applicability
- Applies to fibre ropes with diameters 12 mm to 20 mm.
- Measurement result is valid for the specified charging mechanism; end‑use charging may differ.
- Test atmosphere
- Default conditioning and test conditions: 23 ± 2 °C and 25 ± 5 % RH (or lowest expected in service).
- Specimen preparation
- Cut length: 7 300 mm ± 50 mm and join ends by a short splice to form a loop.
- Condition specimens for at least 24 hours under test atmosphere.
- Clean or wash to remove contaminants where required (ISO 6330 referenced).
- Apparatus & measurement
- Typical components: friction cylinders (example material E275A), loading roller (2.4 kg ± 0.3 kg), driving pulley, motor (rope speed 0.6 m/s ± 0.1 m/s), and a non‑contacting electrostatic voltmeter (range 0–20 kV).
- Voltmeters require verification and correction factors per Annex A.
- Distance between sensor and rope: 50 mm ± 2 mm (or per verification).
- Procedure
- Neutralize rope and instrument before starting.
- Run specimen, record surface potential until a plateau or for at least 10 minutes.
- Test 3 specimens and report the average of maximum surface potentials.
- Reporting
- Test report must reference ISO 20615:2018 and include atmosphere, rope specifications, instrumentation, friction material, and any deviations.
Applications and users
- Useful for rope manufacturers, R&D teams, quality control and independent test laboratories assessing electrostatic charging propensity of synthetic fibre ropes.
- Valuable when developing conductive/blended constructions (e.g., steel‑blended or conductive yarns) and for comparison of rope designs under a standardized tribocharging method.
- Not a substitute for application‑specific risk assessment (e.g., explosive atmospheres).
Related standards
- ISO 1968 (fibre ropes vocabulary)
- ISO 630‑1 (reference material E275A)
- ISO 6330 (washing procedures for textile pre‑treatment)
Keywords: ISO 20615:2018, fibre ropes, electrostatic surface potential, tribocharging, electrostatic voltmeter, rope testing standard, rope charging propensity.
