Implementing a Dielectric Recovery Strength Measuring System for Molded Case Circuit Breakers

In a low-voltage distribution system, the molded case circuit breaker (MCCB) is a widely used device to protect loads by interrupting over-current; however the hot gas generated from the arc discharge in the interrupting process depletes the dielectric recovery strength between electrodes and leads to re-ignition after current-zero. Even though the circuit breaker is ordinarily tripped and successfully interrupts the over-current, the re-ignition causes the over-current to flow to the load again, which carries over the failure interruption. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the dielectric recovery process and the dielectric recovery voltage of the MCCB. To determine these characteristics, a measuring system comprised of the experimental circuit and source is implemented to apply controllable recovery voltage and over-current. By changing the controllable recovery voltage, in this work, re-ignition is driven repeatedly to obtain the dielectric recovery voltage V-t curve, which is used to analyze the dielectric recovery strength of the MCCB. A measuring system and an evaluation technique for the dielectric recovery strength of the MCCB are described. By using this system and method, the measurement to find out the dielectric recovery characteristics after current-zero for ready-made products is done and it is confirmed that which internal structure of the MCCB affects the dielectric recovery characteristics.