Studies on effects of metal vapour in an experimental self-blast interrupter

Low rate of energy transfer in self-blast interrupters results in slow build-up of pressure in the expansion-volume. The arcing continues (for 20 to 30 ms) till the pressure in the arcing chamber is sufficient to flush the arc and the arc-product from the inter-electrode space. To promote the energy transfer and the efficiency of a self-blast interrupter, use of metal-vapour as an energy transport acceleration device has been investigated for the first time on an experimental self-blast interrupter. The results indicate an appreciable rise in rate of energy transfer to the expansion-volume gas in the interrupter. Different energy transfer rates observed during experimentation with the metal-vapours of aluminium, silver and copper confirm the feasibility of using and controlling of such a mechanism in a self-blast interrupter.