Abstract
Recent developments in high-voltage direct current transmission technology and the plans for multi-terminals motivate research efforts on the fast DC breaker. A novel concept to interrupt current up to several kiloamperes within a few milliseconds is presently under development, using a vacuum interrupter together with power electronics to create an artificial zero-crossing in the current through the switch. To achieve this objective, one critical component in the concept is an ultra-fast linear mechanical actuator. A prototype has been developed based on a Thomson coil. The experimental results are presented and show how a contact gap in a vacuum interrupter was effectively created in a controlled manner. Current of several kiloamperes was successfully interrupted within 3 ms, thanks to the high-speed operation of the linear actuator.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
