Study on the effect of arc chamber structures on the post-arc characteristics of generator circuit breaker

A generator circuit breaker (GCB) is installed at the outlet of generator. However, large-capacity GCBs are highly prone to post-arc thermal breakdown during the breaking process, and the gas flow field largely determines the probability of thermal breakdown occurrence. In this paper, the structure of the arc chamber in the GCB is optimized. From the perspective of accelerating the gas flow field, a “trumpet” shaped arc chamber structure is proposed. Using real SF6 gas physical parameters, a simulation model of the gas flow field is established. By comparing different arc chamber structures, the distributions of temperature and flow velocity varying with time are obtained, the movement of the arc is analyzed. Finally, the arc radius, convection flux density and conduction flux density are quantitatively calculated. Results of the research show that the convection flux density is much greater than the conduction flux density. Compared with the initial and “trumpet” structures, the “trumpet” structure arc radius is reduced by about 19 % and the convection flux density peak is increased by about 118 %. This enhanced the dissipation of post-arc energy, reducing the probability of post-arc thermal breakdown, and provided a reference for the subsequent design of the arc chamber in GCBs.