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Voltage Drop Calculator — IEC 60364

Voltage Drop Calculator — IEC 60364

Calculate voltage drop in a cable (DC, single-phase AC, three-phase AC) per IEC 60364-5-52. Cu / Al conductor, returns ΔU in V and %, and compliance verdict.

Voltage drop (V) —
Voltage drop % (%) —
IEC 60364 verdict —
Formula 
DC / AC single-phase :   ΔU = 2 · ρ · (L / S) · I · cos φ
AC three-phase        :   ΔU = √3 · ρ · (L / S) · I · cos φ
ΔU%                   :   (ΔU / U) × 100
Cu resistivity         :   ρ = 0.0175 Ω·mm²/m  (at 20 °C)
Al resistivity         :   ρ = 0.029 Ω·mm²/m  (at 20 °C)

Reference: IEC 60364-5-52

Voltage drop along a cable is one of the most common electrical sizing checks. It must stay within the limits defined by IEC 60364-5-52 (typically 3% for lighting circuits, 5% for other circuits) to ensure proper operation of the connected equipment.

This calculator handles DC, single-phase AC and three-phase AC systems, with both copper and aluminium conductors. The result includes the absolute drop in volts, the relative drop in percent of the nominal voltage, and a compliance verdict based on the 3% / 5% thresholds.

For inductive loads (motors, transformers), use the cos φ field to account for the power factor.

Standards

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