Abstract
With the development of the power industry and the increase in the capacity of power systems, vacuum switches have been developed rapidly. The distribution characteristics of the vacuum arc can reflect the working conditions of the vacuum switch. So, it is vital to understand the distribution characteristics in the vacuum arc burning process for understanding the interruption performance of vacuum switches. Based on the 3D magnetohydrodynamic model, we investigated the high-current vacuum arc burning process by modeling and numerical simulation. The research findings show a certain correspondence between the change in plasma parameters values and the change in arc current. The distribution of plasma parameters is uniform when the current is small. The distribution of plasma parameters in the first 1/4 cycle is more uniform than in the second 1/4 cycle. The evolution characteristics of the arc plasma parameters for interruption before the arc current maximum differ significantly from those for interruption after the arc current maximum and current maximum. The results of this study can provide a reference for the design and improvement of vacuum switches.
Highlights
The application of vacuum arcs is becoming more and more extensive, such as in material handling,1,2 medium and high voltage power systems in circuit breakers, rocket boosters,3,4 vacuum interrupters in medium voltage distribution systems, and vacuum circuit breakers.5 Sorensen and Mendenhall successfully conducted a high-current breaking test in 1926.6 Since more and more researchers have been working on vacuum switches, which are one of the most widely studied areas of vacuum arcs
When the arc current is small, the inter-electrode plasma is almost entirely composed of electrons, ions, and metal vapor generated by the cathode spots
This paper presents a simulation study of the arc burning process of highcurrent vacuum currents to obtain the distribution characteristics of the arc parameters in the interruption process of the vacuum switch
Summary
The application of vacuum arcs is becoming more and more extensive, such as in material handling, medium and high voltage power systems in circuit breakers, rocket boosters, vacuum interrupters in medium voltage distribution systems, and vacuum circuit breakers. Sorensen and Mendenhall successfully conducted a high-current breaking test in 1926.6 Since more and more researchers have been working on vacuum switches, which are one of the most widely studied areas of vacuum arcs. When the arc current is very high, heat flux density to the anode increases, the temperature on the anode increases, and the anode evaporates a large amount of metal vapor This amount of metal vapor flows in the inter-electrode plasma region after colliding with the electrons and, together with the particles generated in the cathode region, forms the inter-electrode plasma. This paper presents a simulation study of the arc burning process of highcurrent vacuum currents to obtain the distribution characteristics of the arc parameters in the interruption process of the vacuum switch. It deepens the understanding of the internal physical processes in the arc burning of vacuum switches and provides an essential basis for improving the opening capacity of vacuum switches. In the simulation study of each discrete time in this paper, the steady-state model can be used to equate each discrete time to obtain the arcing characteristics of the interruption process
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