Arc Fault Characterization System for the Low Voltage DC Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter

Abstract

Arc faults are a fire-safety risk in both AC (alternating current) and DC wiring, but reliable detection of arc faults and determining the appropriate response is particularly difficult in DC plug-load circuits. This paper presents the development of AFCI lab setup to characterize DC arc current in DC circuits operating at 24-80 volts. The process to characterize the arc current utilizes the frequency spectrum of the arc current along with signal processing and a unique algorithm that allow us to develop an effective method to determine DC arcing occurrence. Once identified, an arc fault current interrupter circuit may then be designed to adequately eliminate the arc. Laboratory test setup and equipment for identifying DC arc will be described in this paper. Different scenarios for DC arcing occurrences in the development of the lab test setup will be explained. Several test results using the developed test setup to show the characteristic of arc current will also be presented.