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Short-Circuit Switching (Making - Breaking) Capacity

The document discusses short-circuit switching capacity for electrical equipment like circuit breakers and fuses. It defines short-circuit switching capacity as the maximum current in amps a device can safely interrupt under specified conditions. Both the making and breaking capacities of circuit breakers must be greater than or equal to the prospective short-circuit current where installed. Fuses must also have a breaking capacity greater than or equal to the prospective short-circuit current. The document outlines rated ultimate and service short-circuit breaking capacities for circuit breakers, with ultimate capacity being the maximum but possibly reducing future serviceability and service capacity allowing continued use after tripping.

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127 views

Short-Circuit Switching (Making - Breaking) Capacity

The document discusses short-circuit switching capacity for electrical equipment like circuit breakers and fuses. It defines short-circuit switching capacity as the maximum current in amps a device can safely interrupt under specified conditions. Both the making and breaking capacities of circuit breakers must be greater than or equal to the prospective short-circuit current where installed. Fuses must also have a breaking capacity greater than or equal to the prospective short-circuit current. The document outlines rated ultimate and service short-circuit breaking capacities for circuit breakers, with ultimate capacity being the maximum but possibly reducing future serviceability and service capacity allowing continued use after tripping.

Uploaded by

Sandro Cueto
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Electrical Lectures / Energy and Power

Short-circuit switching (making / breaking) capacity

De nition of switching capacity


The switching capacity is the r.m.s value of a current at a given power factor cos φ as well as a given rated voltage
at which a switchgear or a fuse can still shut-off under specified conditions in an operationally safe way.

Short-circuit switching (making/breaking) capacity

Both the short-circuit making capacity as well as the short-circuit breaking capacity of circuit breakers must be
larger than or equal to the prospective short-circuit current at the place of installation.

If this is not the case, then a suitable backup protection (for example a fuse) should be provided to ensure the
required switching capacity of the device combination. Data regarding devices for backup protection are given in the
technical documentation.

Rated short-circuit making capacity Icm

The rated short-circuit making capacity Icm is a quantity that according to regulations must be in a certain ratio to the
rated ultimate short-circuit breaking capacity Icu and that has to be guaranteed by the device manufacturer.

This is not a variable that must be considered by the user, however it ensures that a circuit breaker is in the position
to connect onto a short-circuit – and to disconnect it subsequently.

Rated short-circuit breaking capacity ICU and ICS

IEC 60947-2 makes distinction between the rated ultimate short-circuit breaking capacity ICU and the rated service
short-circuit breaking capacity ICS:
  Rated ultimate short-circuit breaking capacity ICU

ICU is the maximum breaking capacity of a circuit breaker at an associated rated operational voltage and under
specified conditions.

ICU is expressed in kA and must be at least as large as the prospective short-circuit current at the site of
installation.

Circuit breakers that have switched-off at the level of the ultimate short-circuit breaking capacity, are reduced
serviceable afterwards and should at least be checked regarding functionality. There may be changes in the overload
trip characteristic and increased temperature rise due to the erosion of contact material.

Rated service short-circuit interrupting capacity ICS

ICS values are usually lower than the values for ICU. Circuit breakers that have been switching-off at the level of the
service short-circuit breaking capacity continue to be serviceable afterward.

In plants in which interruptions to operations must be kept as short as possible, product selection should
be carried out based on ICS.

Breaking capacity of fuses

The same applies to fuses as to circuit breakers with respect to the ICU: at the given rated operational voltage,
the rated breaking capacity must be at least as large as the prospective short-circuit current at the site of installation.

Reference: Low-Voltage Switchgear and Controlgear – Allen Bradley

About Author

Edvard Csanyi

Edvard - Electrical engineer, programmer and founder of EEP. Highly specialized for design of LV/MV switchgears
and LV high power busbar trunking (<6300A) in power substations, commercial buildings and industry fascilities.
Professional in AutoCAD programming. Present on Google+

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