Erlangen 2018 – wissenschaftliches Programm

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SYPT: Symposium Applications and New Trends of Plasmatechnology – An Overview

SYPT 2: Application and New Trends of Plasmatechnology - Part II

SYPT 2.1: Hauptvortrag

Donnerstag, 8. März 2018, 14:00–14:30, M 00.910

Plasmaphysical Basics of Vacuum Switching Devices for High Currents and Voltages — •Norbert Wenzel — Siemens AG, Corporate Technology Research In Energy and Electronics Switching and Power Grid, Günther-Scharowsky-Str. 1 91058 Erlangen

The technology of vacuum arc plasmas is being applied successfully to the development of high-current and high-voltage switching devices. Advances in the design of vacuum interrupters have been accompanied by a deeper understanding of the physical processes in the arc column and in the arc attachment zone on the cathode that comprises the cathode spots feeding the arc with metal vapor. This contribution starts with an introduction to the spatiotemporal characteristics of a vacuum arc during short-circuit current breaking. It describes methods to control the arc by magnetic fields forcing the arc to burn in a diffuse or a rotating constricted mode in order to distribute the energetic stress of the arc homogeneously over the contact surface. It reports on experiments with high-speed video cameras and fast magnetic probes. And it presents a physical model of the plasma together with numerical simulation results. The combination of experimental and theoretical studies delivers quantitative key parameters of the arc under practical operation conditions and thus allows a purposeful improvement of the performance of industrial high-power circuit breakers. The contribution concludes with challenging switching applications in vacuum: a generator circuit breaker (> 70kA) and a large-gap interrupter operated at high voltages (> 72kV).