Device for interrupting non-short circuit currents only, in particular disconnector or earthing switch

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10553376-B2
Application number	US-201715783183-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 13, 2017
Priority date	Apr 13, 2015
Publication date	Feb 4, 2020
Grant date	Feb 4, 2020

Abstract

The present invention relates to a device for interrupting non-short circuit currents only, and in particular relates to a disconnector, more particularly high voltage disconnector, or to an earthing switch, more particularly make-proof earthing switch, and further relates to a low voltage circuit breaker. The device comprises at least two contacts movable in relation to each other between a closed state and an open state and defining an arcing region, in which an arc is generated during a current interrupting operation and in which an arc-quenching medium comprising an organofluorine compound is present. According to the application, a counter-arcing component is allocated to the arcing region, the counter-arcing component being designed for counteracting the generation of an arc and/or being designed for supporting the extinction of an arc.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A device for interrupting non-short-circuit currents only, the device comprising:
at least two contacts movable in relation to each other between a closed state and an open state and defining an arcing region, in which an arc is generated during a current interrupting operation and in which an arc-quenching medium comprising an organofluorine compound is present,
wherein a counter-arcing component is allocated to the arcing region and is designed for counteracting the generation of the arc and/or is designed for supporting extinction of the arc;
wherein at least one of the contacts forms a piston, which is slideably contained in a guiding tube forming a cylinder for the piston, the piston together with the cylinder defining a compression chamber as the flow-generating chamber, said compression chamber being compressed during a relative movement of the contacts from a closed state to an open state.

2. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the device is a disconnector.

3. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the counter-arcing component comprises an arc-cooling element for cooling the arc.

4. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the counter-arcing component is configured to be activated during a relative movement of the contacts from a closed state to an open state.

5. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the counter-arcing component comprising a flow-generating chamber, which is fluidically connected to the arcing region by a flow channel and which is operational such that during a relative movement of the contacts from a closed state to an open state a differential pressure is generated in the flow-generating chamber in relation to the arcing region, said differential pressure causing a flow of the arc-quenching medium between the arcing region and the flow-generating chamber.

6. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the connection between the arcing region and the compression chamber being such that during compression, arc-quenching medium contained in the compression chamber is ejected into the arcing region.

7. The device according to claim 1 , wherein a flow channel is formed axially within the piston.

8. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the contact forming a piston is a tulip contact designed to engage around a plug contact.

9. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the contact forming the piston comprises a proximal contacting region and a distal compressing region arranged axially opposite to the contacting region, the cross-sectional area of the compressing region being larger than the cross-sectional area of the contacting region.

10. The device according to claim 1 , wherein said counter-arcing component comprises a magnet generating a permanent magnetic field in the arcing region.

11. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the arc-quenching medium further comprises air or at least one air component.

12. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the organofluorine compound is selected from the group consisting of: fluoroethers, fluoroolefins, and fluoronitriles, and mixtures thereof.

13. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the arc-quenching medium comprises a fluoroketone containing from four to twelve carbon atoms.

14. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the arc-quenching medium comprises a hydrofluoromonoether containing at least three carbon atoms.

15. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the device is a high voltage disconnector designed for bus charging, in particular rated for a current in the range from 0.1 A to 0.8 A and a voltage in the range from 72.5 kV to 800 kV.

16. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the device is an earthing switch of a high voltage disconnector designed for induced current switching.

17. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the device is a high voltage disconnector designed for bus transfer switching.

18. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the device is different from a circuit breaker, which circuit breaker is capable of interrupting short-circuit currents; and/or the device is unable to interrupt short-circuit currents.

19. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the device comprising means for interrupting the non-short-circuit currents; and/or the device does not have means for interrupting short-circuit currents.

20. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the non-short-circuit currents are currents that flow from an electrical network to ground via unintended or intended paths and last longer than 3 seconds.

21. A medium voltage or high voltage gas-insulated switchgear comprising a device according to claim 1 .

22. The device according to claim 5 , which further comprises a valve allocated to the flow channel, which opens when a threshold differential pressure is exceeded.

23. The device according to claim 8 , wherein a flow channel is in the form of a flow gap arranged between the inner wall of the tulip contact and the outer wall of a cylindrical flow guide which is radially enclosed by the tulip contact in a spaced-apart manner.

24. The device according to claim 8 , wherein the tulip contact is radially enclosed by a nozzle in a spaced-apart manner, thus forming a nozzle gap which opens out into the arcing region.

25. The device according to claim 11 , wherein the arc-quenching medium comprises a mixture of carbon dioxide and oxygen.

26. The device according to claim 25 , wherein the ratio of the amount of carbon dioxide to the amount of oxygen ranges from 50:50 to 100:1.

27. A low voltage circuit breaker, comprising:
at least two contacts movable in relation to each other between a closed state and an open state and defining an arcing region, In which an arc is generated during a current interrupting operation and in which an arc-quenching medium comprising an organofluorine compound is present,
wherein to the arching region a counter-arcing component is allocated, designed for counteracting the generation of an are and/or for supporting the extinction of an arc;
wherein at least one of the contacts forms a piston, which is slideably contained in a guiding tube forming a cylinder for the piston, the piston together with the cylinder defining a compression chamber as the flow-generating chamber, said compression chamber being compressed during a relative movement of the contacts from a closed state to an open state.

Assignees

• Abb Schweiz Ag

Inventors

• Tehlar Denis
• Seeger Martin
• Ranjan Nitesh
• Stoller Patrick
• Buehler Raffael
• Carstensen Jan

Classifications

• H01H33/91

  the arc-extinguishing fluid being air or gas · CPC title

• H01H33/90 Primary

  this movement being effected by or in conjunction with the contact-operating mechanism · CPC title

• H01H33/22 Primary

  Selection of fluids for arc-extinguishing · CPC title

• C07C49/167

  containing only fluorine as halogen · CPC title

• H01H33/7084

  characterised by movable parts influencing the gas flow (H01H33/7023 - H01H33/7076 take precedence) · CPC title