ARC CHUTE FOR AN AIR CIRCUIT BREAKER

• US 3,555,224 A
• Filed: 12/23/1968
• Issued: 01/12/1971
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/1968
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Frind Gerhard, Richard M. Korte, Rudolf Hunziker
• Original Assignee: Frind Gerhard, Richard M. Korte, Rudolf Hunziker
• Inventors: FRIND GERHARD, Hunziker, Rudolf, Korte, Richard M.
• Application Number:
  US04/786,126
• Time in Patent Office: 750 Days
• US Class Current: 218/34
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 9/342 Venting arrangements for arc chutes

Abstract

Discloses an exhaust cooler for the arcing products leaving the arc chute of an electric circuit breaker. The cooler has four open sides. Through one of these sides the arcing products enter the cooler, and through the other three sides the arcing products exhaust after passing through the cooler. The cooler comprises a stack of corrugated metal sheets that allow the arcing products to pass between the sheets along the length of the corrugations and out one of said open exhaust sides of the cooler. The corrugated sheets are perforated to permit arcing products also to pass transversely of the length of the corrugations and out the remaining two open exhaust sides of the cooler.

Claims

1. An electric air circuit breaker comprising:

a. means for establishing an arc;

b. an arc chute into which said arc is driven comprising spacedapart insulating sidewalls and arc-extinguishing means disposed in the space between said sidewalls;

c. said arc chute having an exhaust passage at one end between said sidewalls through which hot arcing products leave said arc chute;

d. an exhaust cooler mounted adjacent said exhaust passage through which said arcing products pass upon leaving said arc chute;

e. said exhaust cooler comprising;

1. a plurality of stacked corrugated metal sheets, each sheet extending transversely of said sidewalls and including corrugations having their respective length dimensions extending in generally the same direction as the direction followed by the arcing products as they enter said cooler from said exhaust passage, 2. said exhaust cooler being open at a side opposite said exhaust passage so that arcing products may pass along the length of said corrugations and exhaust through said opposite side, 3. said sheets having many perforations therein that interconnect the spaces bounded by the corrugations in a given sheet to allow arcing products to pass between said spaces via paths extending transversely of the length of the corrugations, f. said exhaust cooler having a pair of transverse outer sides extending generally parallel to the length dimension of said corrugations; and

g. said exhaust cooler being open at said transverse sides to allow arcing products to exhaust therethrough after having traversed the corrugations by paths extending transversely of the length thereof via said perforations.

2. The circuit breaker of claim 1 in which said exhaust coolEr further comprises:

plates of insulating material disposed between adjacent groups of said stacked metal sheets to electrically isolate adjacent groups from each other, thereby inhibiting a flashover along the length of said stack.

3. The circuit breaker of claim 1 or claim 2 in which said exhaust cooler further comprises additional metal sheets of generally planar form disposed between adjacent ones of said corrugated metal sheets, said additional metal sheets having perforations therein that afford communication between the spaces bounded by the corrugations at opposite sides of said additional metal sheets.

4. An electric air circuit breaker comprising:

a. means for establishing an arc;

b. an arc chute into which said arc is driven comprising spaced-apart insulating sidewalls and arc-extinguishing means disposed in the space between said sidewalls;

c. said arc chute having an exhaust passage at one end between said sidewalls through which hot arcing products leave said arc chute;

d. an exhaust cooler mounted adjacent said passage through which said arcing products pass upon leaving said arc chute;

e. said exhaust cooler comprising porous metal structure containing passages therethrough that allow said arcing products to flow freely through the porous structure in a first direction that is generally the same direction as that followed by the arcing products as they enter said cooler from said exhaust passage and additional passages therethrough that allow said arcing products to flow freely through said cooling structure transversely of said first direction;

f. said exhaust cooler having a pair of transverse outer sides extending generally parallel to said first direction; and

g. said exhaust cooler being open at said transverse sides to allow arcing products to exhaust therethrough after flowing through cooling structure transversely of said first direction.

5. The circuit breaker of claim 4 in which said exhaust cooler further comprises a plurality of said porous structures stacked along said exhaust opening and plates of insulating material disposed between adjacent porous structures to electrically isolate adjacent structures from each other, thereby inhibiting a flashover along the length of said stack.