Abstract
This paper deals with circuit breakers (CBs) used in direct current microgrids (DCMGs) for protection against electrical faults, focusing on their evolution and future challenges in low voltage (<1.5 kV) and medium voltage (between 1.5 kV and 20 kV). In recent years, proposals for new circuit-breaker features have grown. Therefore, a review on the evolution of circuit breakers for DCMGs is of utmost importance. In general terms, this paper presents a review concerning the evolution of circuit breakers used in DCMGs, focusing on fuses, mechanical circuit breakers (MCBs), solid-state circuit breakers (SSCBs), and hybrid circuit breakers (HCBs). Their evolution is presented highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of each device. It was found that although modern circuit breakers have begun to be commercially available, many of them are still under development; consequently, some traditional fuses and MCBs are still common in DCMGs, but under certain restrictions or limitations. Future challenges that would allow a successful and adequate implementation of circuit breakers in DCMGs are also presented.
Highlights
Topics related to direct current microgrids (DCMGs) have achieved popularity in recent years, due to the advantages that these present compared to their counterparts, the so-called alternating current microgrids (ACMGs)
It was found that there are challenges to be faced for their suitable implementation in DCMGs: (1) The first and the most important challenge is the reduction of the manufacturing costs [23,94]; if manufacturing costs are reduced, we strongly believe that hybrid circuit breakers (HCBs) will be widely used in the near future in DCMGs, and in DC buses of ACMGs. (2) The second challenge corresponds to the reduction of the commutation time from mechanical circuit breakers (MCBs) to SSCBs that are included in HCBs by improving the technologies of fast-acting mechanisms, such as Thomson coil and piezoelectric actuators [97,98]
A bibliographic review was conducted on DCMG circuit breakers, their operating characteristics, and evolution, with an emphasis on fuses, mechanical switches, solid-state switches, and hybrid switches
Summary
Topics related to DCMGs have achieved popularity in recent years, due to the advantages that these present compared to their counterparts, the so-called alternating current microgrids (ACMGs). The main characteristic of these switches is their speed, with operating times lower than 100 μs; SSCBs present high-power losses, and are expensive and too large for some applications, since they require heat sinks [21]. [34] presented a comprehensive classification of the characteristics of solid-state circuit breakers in which future challenges are addressed; CS-MCT SSCB features are not considered, which is a strong candidate for DCMG protection [35].
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