Chapter 5: circuit breakers

5.1 Introduction
Whenever any fault occurs in the power system then that part of the system must be isolated from
the remaining healthy part of the system. This function is accomplished by circuit breakers. Thus a circuit
breaker will make or break a circuit either manually or automatically under different conditions such as
no load, full load or short circuit. Thus it proves to be an effective device for switching and protection of
different parts of a power system.
In earlier days fuse was included in the protective system. But due to some limitations they are not
used in practice now a day. The main difference between a fuse and circuit breaker is that under fault
condition the fuse melts and it is to be replaced whereas the circuit breaker can close or break the circuit
without replacement.
Requirements of Circuit Breaker
The necessary requirements of circuit breakers are as follows,
1. The normal working current and the short circuit current must be safely interrupted by the
circuit breaker.
2. The faulty section of the system must be isolated by circuit breaker as quickly as possible
keeping minimum delay.
3. It should not operate with flow of overcurrent during healthy conditions.
4. The faulty circuit only must be isolated without affecting the healthy one.
Classification of Circuit Breakers
Circuit breaker can be classified by various ways as:
1. Based on voltage
i. Low voltage circuit breaker (less than 1 kV)
ii. Medium voltage circuit breaker (1kV to 50kV)
iii. High voltage circuit breaker (66 kV to 220 kV)
iv. Extra high voltage (EHV) circuit breaker (300 kV to 765 kV)
v. Ultra high voltage (UHV) circuit breaker (above 765 kV)
2. Based on service
i. Indoor type: - low and medium voltage switchgears and gas insulated switchgears (GIS).
ii. Outdoor type: - air as an external insulating medium i.e air insulated switchgear (AIS).
3. Based on arc quenching medium
i. Air circuit breaker (ACB):- air break and air blast circuit breaker
ii. Oil circuit breaker (OCB)
iii. Vaccum circuit breaker (VCB)
iv. Sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) circuit breaker

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 1

5.2 Air Blast Circuit Breakers
➢ employed for voltages ranging from 11 to 1100 kV.
➢ compressed air is used for the arc extinction. Hence it is called compressed air circuit
breaker.

➢ During the opening operation, the air is allowed to enter in the extinction chamber which pushes
away moving contacts.

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 2

 ➢ The contacts are separated and the blast of air will take ionized gases with it and helps in
extinguishing the arc. This will require only one or two cycles.
➢ There are two major types - cross blast and axial blast.
➢ In cross blast type, the blast of air cuts across the arc. It is less frequently used in the practice.
➢ In axial blast type, the blast of air is along the arc. This type of design is common in use.

Cross blast type:

Commonly used in indoor circuit breakers of medium high voltage class.

➢ The flow of air is across the arc.

➢ The moving contact is near to the arc splitter assembly.

➢ The air blast forces the arc on to the arc splitter plates.

➢ These plates will lengthen the arc.

➢ Depending upon the breaking capacity of the breaker, the size and number of plates are decided.

Axial Blast Type

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 3

 ➢ air flows from high pressure reservoir to the atmosphere through a nozzle, whose design
makes air to expand in the low pressure zone. It will attain high velocity.
➢ The high speed air flowing axially along the arc will cause removal of heat from the
periphery of the arc.
➢ The diameter of arc reduces to a low value at current zero.
➢ At this instant of the arc interruption the contact space is filled with the fresh air.
➢ This will make possible to remove the hot gases and fast building up of the dielectric
strength of the medium.
Applications
➢ preferred for arc furnace duty and traction system because they are suitable for repeated
duty.
➢ operating in range of 132 kV to 400 kV with breaking capacities up to 7000 MVA.

Air Break Circuit Breaker

➢ atmospheric pressure air is used as an arc extinguishing medium.
➢ The principle of high resistance interruption is employed for such type of breakers.
➢ The length of the arc is increased using arc runners which will increase its resistance in such a
way that the voltage drop across the arc becomes more than the supply voltage and the arc will be
extinguished.
➢ employed in both a.c. and d.c. type of circuits upto 12 kV.
➢ These are normally indoor type and installed on vertical panels.

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 4

 ➢ While separating, the main contacts are separated first.
➢ The current is then shifted to arcing contacts.
➢ Later, the arcing contacts also start separating and arc between them is forced upwards by the
electromagnetic forces and thermal action.
➢ The arc travels through the arc runners.
➢ Further it moves upwards and split by arc splitter plates.
➢ Due to all this finally the arc gets extinguished as the resistance of the arc is increased.

Applications
This type of circuit breakers is commonly employed for industrial switchgear, auxiliary switchgear in
generating stations.

Sulphur Hexafluoride (SF6) Circuit Breaker

➢ Pure sulphur hexafluoride gas is inert and thermally stable.
➢ It is having good dielectric and arc extinguishing properties.

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 5

Working
➢ Normal conditions, contacts are in closed position, surrounded by SF6 gas at a pressure of
2.8kg/Cm2.
➢ During fault occurrence, contacts are separated then arc is struck between them.
➢ Movement of moving contacts and opening of valve are synchronized, which permits high
pressure SF6 gas from reservoir to arc interruption chamber.
➢ High pressure gas absorbs free electrons in the arc path to form immobile negative ions.
➢ Gas also removes heat from the arc.
➢ So arc diameter reduces and become smaller during current zero.
➢ The arc is extinguished.
➢ After breaker operation the valve is closed by sets of springs.

Applications

➢ Capable of interrupting currents up to 60 kA and voltages in the range 50-80 kV.

➢ A number of units are connected in series according to system voltage. SF6 breakers are
developed for voltage ranges from 115 to 500 kV and power of 10 MV A to 20 MVA ratings and
with interrupting time of 3 cycles and less.

Vacuum Circuit Breakers

➢ Vacuum is used as the arc quenching medium.
➢ It is superior medium than any other arc quenching medium as vacuum offers highest insulting
strength.
How vacuum quenches the arc?
➢ Pressure below about 10 5 mm of mercury is considered to be high vacuum.
➢ The charged particles from one electrode moving towards other at such a pressure will not cause
collision with the molecules of residual gas.
➢ Hence ionization by collision of particles is less in vacuum as compared to in the gas and arc is
quenching.

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 6

Working
➢ When the contacts are separated.
➢ An arc is struck between the contacts.
➢ The arc is produced due to ionization of metal ions.
➢ Positive ion liberated from contact material which causes release of vapour.
➢ vapour density depend upon the current in the arc.
➢ When current decreases, rate of vapour release decreases.
➢ The medium regains its dielectric strength if vapour density is reduced.
➢ When current to be interrupted is very small in vacuum, the arc has several parallel paths.
➢ The total current is divided into many parallel arcs which repel each other and spreads over
contact surface.
➢ This is called diffused arc which can be interrupted easily.
➢ At high values of currents, the arc gets concentrated on a small region. It causes rapid
vapourisation of the contact surface.
➢ The interruption of arc is possible if arc remains in diffused state.
➢ If it is quickly removed from the contact surface, the arc will be restriked.
➢ After final arc interruption there is rapid building up of dielectric strength which is peculiarity of
vacuum breaker.

Applications

➢ Employed for outdoor installations ranging from 22 kV to 66 kV. With limited rating ranging
from 60 to 100 MVA they are suitable in many applications.
➢ Recently installed capacities of such breakers are 11 kV, 25 kV and 33 kV.

Oil Circuit Breakers

➢ One of the oldest types of circuit breakers which employ oil as arc quenching medium.
➢ The contacts of the circuit breakers are separated in the oil.
➢ The bubbles of gas are formed which prevent restriking of the arc after the current reaches zero
point of the cycle.
Types of Oil Circuit Breakers:
(1) Bulk oil circuit breakers: Circuit breakers using large quantity of oil
(a)Plain break oil circuit breakers
(b) Arc control oil circuit breakers: Two types
(i) Self-blast oil circuit breakers—in which arc control is provided by internal means [Link] arc itself is
employed for its own extinction efficiently.
Common types
(a) Plain explosion pot.
(b) Cross jet explosion pot.
(c) Self-compensated explosion pot.
(ii) Forced-blast oil circuit breakers—in which arc control is provided by mechanical means external to
the circuit breaker.
(2) Low or Minimum Oil Circuit Breakers : Circuit breakers using minimum quantity of oil

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 7

Plain Break Oil Circuit Breaker
➢ Both the fixed and moving contacts are immersed in oil.
➢ When the contacts are separated, an arc is struck between the contacts with production of large
amount of heat.
➢ This will increase the temperature to near about 5000K which will vapourize the oil into gases
such as hydrogen with small percentage of methane, ethylene and acetylene.
➢ With moving of moving contact, arc length increases and gas formation rate decreases as
temperature lowers.
➢ When distance between fixed contact and moving contact reaches at critical value, the arc gets
extinguished at some current zero.
There are two types of plain-break oil circuit breakers,
1. Single break oil circuit breaker
2. Double break oil circuit breaker.

Single Break Oil Circuit Breaker

➢ The in and out of the current is through the terminal bushings.

➢ There is only one arc which is struck between the fixed and moving contact.
➢ The current breaks at one bushing and the moving contact is supported by the other bushing
through sliding contact.

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 8

Double Break Oil Circuit Breaker

➢ There are two fixed contacts associated with terminal bushing which makes contacts with the
moving contacts during normal operating condition.
➢ When the contacts are separated, two arcs are drawn.
➢ Thus there are two breaks in series.
➢ This can achieve rapid arc lengthening without need for an especially fast contact.
➢ A large amount of heat is liberated which vaporizes the surrounding oil into gases.
➢ These gases surround the arc and oil pushed away from arc.
➢ Formation of gaseous medium has a high heat conductivity and high dielectric strength.
➢ The arc is extinguished when the distance between the fixed and moving contact reaches a
certain critical value.
➢ But this arrangement has the disadvantage of unequal voltage distribution across the breaks.

By considering the equivalent electrical circuit, where C, represents capacitance between fixed and
moving contacts whereas C2 represents capacitance between moving contact and earth.

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 9

Let I be the fault current

In order to equalize the voltage across the gaps, high resistances or capacitors are connected across them.
Applications
Such types of circuit breakers are suitable up to 150 MVA capacity and hence installed in low capacity
applications having voltages not more than 11 kV.

Arc Control Oil Circuit Breakers

• (i) Self-blast oil circuit breakers—in which arc control is provided by internal means i.e. the
• Arc itself is employed for its own extinction efficiently.
• (ii) Forced-blast oil circuit breakers—in which arc control is provided by mechanical means
• External to the circuit breaker.

Self Generated Pressure Oil Circuit Breaker

➢ This type of circuit breakers is also called self blast oil circuit breakers where arc control is
provided by internal means.
➢ Arc energy is utilized to generate a high pressure in a chamber known as explosion pot or
pressure chamber.
➢ The contacts are enclosed within the pot.
➢ The pressure is developed by the arc itself; depend upon the magnitude of the current.
➢ Pressure will be low at low current and high at high value of current.
➢ This create a problem in designing the explosion pot i.e at low current, pressure generate should
be sufficient to extinguish the arc.
➢ At heavy currents, pressure should not be too high so as to burst the pot.
➢ Various type of explosion pots have been developed to suit various requirements.

Plain Explosion Pot

➢ The moving contact is a cylindrical rod which can pass through a small opening called throat.

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 10

 ➢ The motion of moving contact is vertical.
➢ Whenever fault occurs in the system the contacts will start separating with the formation of arc in
between them.
➢ The heat contained in the arc causes the decomposition of the oil into a gas at very high pressure
in the pot.
➢ This high pressure forces the oil and gas around the arc to extinguish it.
➢ As the arc extinction takes place axially of the arc, it is also called axial explosion type.
➢ The major drawback with this type is that it cannot be used for very high or very low fault
currents.

➢ It is suitable for moderate short circuit currents only.

Cross Jet Explosion Pot

It is the modification of plain explosion pot.

➢ There are channels on one side which act as arc splitters.

➢ The use of arc splitters is to increase the arc length which will assist arc extinction by lengthening
the arc.
➢ When an fault occurs, the moving contacts begin to separate.
➢ An arc is struck initially at the top of pot.
➢ The gas formed exerts pressure on the oil when the moving contact moves away from the arc
splitter ducts, fresh oil is forced across the path of arc.
➢ The arc is then passed through the arc splitters due to which its length increases which causes the
arc extinction.

Self Compensated Explosion Pot

➢ This type is essentially a combination of plain explosion and cross jet explosion type.
➢ Hence it can interrupt low as well as heavy short circuit currents effectively.

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 11

It consists of two chambers; the upper chamber is the cross jet explosion pot with arc splitter ducts, while
the lower chamber is the plain explosion pot.
➢ When fault current is heavy, the rate of generation of gas is very high and it will act similar to
cross jet explosion pot.
➢ When the moving contact moves away from the arc splitter duct, the arc extinction takes place.
➢ When fault current is low the rate of gas generation is low and the tip of moving contact takes
some time to reach lower chamber.
➢ By this time the gas builds up sufficient pressure as there is no much leakage.
➢ When the moving contact comes out of throat the arc is extinguished by plain pot action.

Forced Blast Oil Circuit Breakers

➢ The major disadvantage with self compensated type is long arcing times and inconsistency at
lower currents as pressure developed is insufficient to force the oil in arc path.
➢ This difficulty is overcome in force blast oil circuit breakers which the pressure is supplied on
the arc from some external source.

➢ This can be achieved by piston cylinder arrangement.

➢ The movement of piston is coupled mechanically to moving contacts or spring released by
tripping mechanism.
➢ This arrangement enables high speed interruption.
➢ When a fault occurs, the contacts get separated and an arc is struck.
➢ The piston forces a jet of oil towards the contact gap which will extinguish the arc .

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 12

Low Oil or Minimum Oil Circuit Breaker
Low oil circuit breaker has advantage that it requires less space than the bulk oil type.

➢ It consists of two separate compartments which are separated from each other.
➢ Both these compartments are filled with the oil.
➢ The upper chamber is called the circuit breaking chamber while the lower chamber is called the
supporting chamber.
➢ The two chambers are separated by a partition and oil from both the chambers are prevented from
mixing with each other.
➢ Firstly the circuit breaking chamber requires a small volume of oil which is just sufficient for arc
extinction.
➢ Secondly small amount of oil is to be replaced as the oil in the supporting chamber does not get
contaminated by the arc.

Operation
➢ During abnormal conditions the moving contact is pulled down by the tripping springs.
➢ With the separation of contacts, an arc is struck between them.
➢ The energy in the arc causes vapourisation of oil.
➢ This will produce gases at high pressure.
➢ This action prevents the oil to pass through central hole in the moving contact and results in
forcing series of oil through the passages of the turbulator.
➢ The process of turbulation is one in which sections of the arc successively quenched, by the effect
of separate streams of oil moving across each section.

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 13

Applications
Minimum oil circuit breakers are now available for all voltages and for the highest breaking capacity
hence preferred in most of the protection schemes.

Er. Bikash Shrestha Page 14