{"title":"Study on the influence of slot structure on the arcing characteristics of vacuum arc between transverse magnetic contacts","authors":"Leming Wei, Shixin Xiu, Jiaxin Wang, Yantao Shen, Dejun Zhu","doi":"10.1016/j.vacuum.2025.114506","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>As a key switching device in power systems, vacuum circuit breakers face reduced interrupting capability due to arc erosion on contact surfaces. The dynamic behaviour of vacuum arc during arcing processes and the impact of contact surface erosion are examined by comparing two transverse magnetic field (TMF) contact structures: spiral-type TMF contact and cup-shaped TMF contact. Through numerical simulation, the regulation mechanism of slot structures on arc motion and erosion distribution is revealed. Experimental results demonstrate that spiral-type TMF contacts reduce arc constriction through arc slot crossing, yet suffer aggravated local erosion at slot edges due to arc stagnation. Cup-shaped TMF contacts exhibit higher arc constriction with more centralized erosion distribution. Thermal process simulations further indicate that slot structures disperse arc energy across slot regions, delaying the formation of high-temperature zones on opposite contact surfaces and causing arc stagnation. The introduction of preheating conditions enables earlier formation of continuous high-temperature zones on anode surfaces. The stagnation time decreased to 1.0 ms with a simultaneous rise in motion speed to 173.4 m/s, ultimately alleviating slot edge erosion. The correlation mechanism between contact structures and arc characteristics is elucidated, thereby establishing a theoretical foundation for optimizing vacuum circuit breaker contact designs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":23559,"journal":{"name":"Vacuum","volume":"240 ","pages":"Article 114506"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8000,"publicationDate":"2025-06-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Vacuum","FirstCategoryId":"88","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0042207X25004968","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"MATERIALS SCIENCE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
As a key switching device in power systems, vacuum circuit breakers face reduced interrupting capability due to arc erosion on contact surfaces. The dynamic behaviour of vacuum arc during arcing processes and the impact of contact surface erosion are examined by comparing two transverse magnetic field (TMF) contact structures: spiral-type TMF contact and cup-shaped TMF contact. Through numerical simulation, the regulation mechanism of slot structures on arc motion and erosion distribution is revealed. Experimental results demonstrate that spiral-type TMF contacts reduce arc constriction through arc slot crossing, yet suffer aggravated local erosion at slot edges due to arc stagnation. Cup-shaped TMF contacts exhibit higher arc constriction with more centralized erosion distribution. Thermal process simulations further indicate that slot structures disperse arc energy across slot regions, delaying the formation of high-temperature zones on opposite contact surfaces and causing arc stagnation. The introduction of preheating conditions enables earlier formation of continuous high-temperature zones on anode surfaces. The stagnation time decreased to 1.0 ms with a simultaneous rise in motion speed to 173.4 m/s, ultimately alleviating slot edge erosion. The correlation mechanism between contact structures and arc characteristics is elucidated, thereby establishing a theoretical foundation for optimizing vacuum circuit breaker contact designs.
期刊介绍:
Vacuum is an international rapid publications journal with a focus on short communication. All papers are peer-reviewed, with the review process for short communication geared towards very fast turnaround times. The journal also published full research papers, thematic issues and selected papers from leading conferences.
A report in Vacuum should represent a major advance in an area that involves a controlled environment at pressures of one atmosphere or below.
The scope of the journal includes:
1. Vacuum; original developments in vacuum pumping and instrumentation, vacuum measurement, vacuum gas dynamics, gas-surface interactions, surface treatment for UHV applications and low outgassing, vacuum melting, sintering, and vacuum metrology. Technology and solutions for large-scale facilities (e.g., particle accelerators and fusion devices). New instrumentation ( e.g., detectors and electron microscopes).
2. Plasma science; advances in PVD, CVD, plasma-assisted CVD, ion sources, deposition processes and analysis.
3. Surface science; surface engineering, surface chemistry, surface analysis, crystal growth, ion-surface interactions and etching, nanometer-scale processing, surface modification.
4. Materials science; novel functional or structural materials. Metals, ceramics, and polymers. Experiments, simulations, and modelling for understanding structure-property relationships. Thin films and coatings. Nanostructures and ion implantation.