Editing AC power plugs and sockets (section)

==== Argentina IRAM 2073 and 2071 ====
[[File:I plug.jpg|thumb|Type&nbsp;I grounded plug and socket, both rated for 10&nbsp;A. Insulating sleeves around the power pins are optional in Argentina and in this case missing. The socket is installed with the earth receptacle down, as usual in Argentina.]]

The plug and socket system used in [[Argentina]] is defined by several standards of the [[Instituto Argentino de Normalización y Certificación|Argentine Normalization and Certification Institute]] (IRAM). IRAM&nbsp;2071 defines two sockets that have the same form factor, but differ in size and rating.<ref>{{cite web |last1=IRAM |author1-link=Instituto Argentino de Normalización y Certificación |title=IRAM 2071:2009 – Tomacorrientes bipolares con toma de tierra para uso en instalaciones fijas domiciliarias, de 10 A y 20 A, 250 V de corriente alterna |url=https://catalogo.iram.org.ar/#/normas/detalles/2640 |website=IRAM: Catálogo de Cursos y Normas |access-date=26 March 2025 |date=12 November 2009}}</ref> The smaller, more common socket is rated for 10&nbsp;[[ampere|A]]. The larger variant, rated for 20&nbsp;A, is mostly used for higher-power appliances such as air conditioners. IRAM&nbsp;2073 defines the corresponding plugs used for [[Appliance classes#Class I|Class&nbsp;I]] appliances (that require earthing).<ref>{{cite web |last1=IRAM |author1-link=Instituto Argentino de Normalización y Certificación |title=IRAM 2073:2009 – Fichas bipolares con toma de tierra para usos domiciliarios y similares, de 10 A y 20 A, 250 V de corriente alterna |url=https://catalogo.iram.org.ar/#/normas/detalles/2642 |website=IRAM: Catálogo de Cursos y Normas |access-date=26 March 2025 |date=12 November 2009}}</ref> The plug and socket system has an earthing pin and two flat current-carrying pins forming an inverted V-shape (120°).

The pins for the 10&nbsp;A version measure {{convert|6.25|by|1.55|mm|in|3|abbr=on}}. The power pins are set at 30° to the vertical with a distance of {{convert|7.92|mm|in|3|abbr=on}} from their centres to the centre of the plug; they are {{convert|18.2|mm|in|3|abbr=on}} long. The earthing pin is {{convert|21.4|mm|in|3|abbr=on}} long and placed below the plug centre at a distance of {{convert|10.31|mm|in|3|abbr=on}}. The pins of the 20&nbsp;A version are larger – {{convert|8.0|by|1.9|mm|in|3|abbr=on}} – and placed further away from the centre of the plug – {{convert|9.53|mm|in|3|abbr=on}} for the power pins, {{convert|11.1|mm|in|3|abbr=on}} for the earthing pin. At {{convert|21.8|mm|in|3|abbr=on}}, the earthing pin is a bit longer, while the power pins are a bit shorter at {{convert|17.8|mm|in|3|abbr=on}}.

There is also an unearthed version of the 10{{nbsp}}A plug, defined by IRAM&nbsp;2063, that lacks an earthing pin and can be used with [[Appliance classes#Class II|Class&nbsp;II]] appliances.<ref>{{cite web |last1=IRAM |author1-link=Instituto Argentino de Normalización y Certificación |title=IRAM 2063:2009 – Fichas bipolares sin toma de tierra para usos domiciliarios y similares, de 10 A, 250 V de corriente alterna |website=IRAM: Catálogo de Cursos y Normas |url=https://catalogo.iram.org.ar/#/normas/detalles/2629 |access-date=27 March 2025 |date=12 November 2009}}</ref> 20{{nbsp}}A plugs, on the other hand, must always provide earthing.

Insulating sleeves around the upper parts of the power pins are allowed, but not required. When used, they significantly reduce the risk of electric shock from accidentally touching the pins of a partially inserted plug. Because the pins of the 20&nbsp;A plug are placed farther apart than those of the 10&nbsp;A plug, the two Argentine plug types are mutually incompatible. It is not possible to insert a 20&nbsp;A plug into a 10&nbsp;A socket or vice versa.{{CN|date=May 2025}} <!-- Actually any Argentine will know this is completely untrue -->

The most important difference from the Australasian and Chinese plugs is that the Argentine plug is wired with the live and neutral contacts reversed.<ref>{{cite web |title=Argentina, Australia, and China Standard 10A/250V Plugs & Sockets Have Similar Features, But What are Some Critical Differences? |url=https://blog.interpower.com/infopower/argentina-australia-and-china-standard-10a/250v-plugs-sockets-have-similar-features-what-are-some-critical-differences |website=InfoPower |date=27 October 2020 |access-date=9 March 2025 |language=en}}</ref> In Argentina, when the earth contact is positioned downward, the live (line) contact is on the right side of the socket,<ref>{{cite web |title=Plugs and sockets in Argentina and Uruguay |url=https://www.plugsocketmuseum.nl/Argentina1.html |website=Museum of Plugs and Sockets |access-date=23 March 2025}}</ref> while in Australasia and China it is on the left (assuming the same orientation).

In Brazil, Type&nbsp;I–style plugs and sockets are still commonly used in old installations for high-power appliances like air conditioners, dishwashers, and household ovens. These are often called "Argentine plugs" and are indeed physically identical to the IRAM plugs rated for 20&nbsp;A, though they might have been developed independently on the basis of the American [[NEMA connector#NEMA L10|NEMA&nbsp;10-20]] standard (which uses the same form factor). While these plugs are sometimes used for normal single-phase power and wired in the same way as in Argentina, some are wired for [[Split-phase electric power|split-phase power]] with two "hot" (or phase) wires and a neutral wire, but no earth connection. Care must therefore be taken that the same wiring scheme is used in the socket and in the plug, since otherwise the equipment would surely be damaged. In newer installations, the 20&nbsp;A version of the Type&nbsp;N plug, adopted by Brazil as national standard NBR&nbsp;14136, is generally preferred.<ref>{{cite web |title=Brazilian plugs and sockets |url=https://www.plugsocketmuseum.nl/Brazil1.html |website=Museum of Plugs and Sockets |access-date=27 March 2025}}</ref>