IP Library Granted Patent US 10,553,376
Granted Patent B2
US 10,553,376 · App. 15/783,183 · Granted Feb 4, 2020

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

Inventors: Denis Tehlar (Zürich, CH); Martin Seeger (Oberentfelden, CH); Nitesh Ranjan (Wettingen, CH); Patrick Stoller (Illnau, CH); Raffael Buehler (Dübendorf, CH); Jan Carstensen (Waldshut-Tiengen, DE)
Assignee: ABB Schweiz AG
H01H33/22C07C49/167H01H33/182H01H33/7084H01H33/86
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,553,376
App. No.
15/783,183
Granted
Feb 4, 2020
Kind
B2
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.

Claims (33)

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.

Assignments (4)
MERGER Recorded Nov 13, 2023
From: HITACHI ENERGY SWITZERLAND AG
To: HITACHI ENERGY LTD
Reel/Frame 065549/0576 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Dec 31, 2021
From: ABB POWER GRIDS SWITZERLAND AG
To: HITACHI ENERGY SWITZERLAND AG
Reel/Frame 058666/0540 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 6, 2020
From: ABB SCHWEIZ AG
To: ABB POWER GRIDS SWITZERLAND AG
Reel/Frame 052916/0001 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Aug 7, 2018
From: TEHLAR, DENIS; SEEGER, MARTIN; RANJAN, NITESH; STOLLER, PATRICK; BUEHLER, RAFFAEL; CARSTENSEN, JAN
To: ABB SCHWEIZ AG
Reel/Frame 046570/0660 →