Effects of high altitude on multi-chamber arrester performance

Arc quenching process in multi-chamber arrester installed at high altitude is investigated both experimentally and theoretically. Recently developed non-equilibrium arc model was applied for analysis of fault current interruption in rarefied air conditions. Results of switching arc simulation showed that for lower pressure conductance decays slower and thus the interruption is less effective. Experiments conducted in vacuum chamber within pressure range from 1 atm down to 0.3 atm confirmed this result, the obtained efficiency drop is about 20 %.