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Modelling of energy transport in arcing electrical contacts to determine mass transfer

Modelling of energy transport in arcing electrical contacts to determine mass transfer
Modelling of energy transport in arcing electrical contacts to determine mass transfer
This paper presents a model which calculates the amount of erosion of an electrical contact undergoing arcing for a range of contact opening conditions. The model assumes all vaporized material is lost from the contact and that the material lost is related to the energy received by the contact. It is proposed that two processes occur which transport energy to the contact surface from the arc discharge. These have been called the radial transport process and the channeled transport process. Calculations at different ratios of the transport processes are compared to experimental data at 9 A, 64 V DC, The modeling procedure consists of several stages: 1) the arc discharge is divided into three regions which generates energy for dissipation; 2) the energy from each region is dissipated through the arc and delivered to the contact surface by radial/channeling transport processes; 3) heat flow through the contact from the surface is calculated using an explicit numerical finite difference scheme dependant upon energy input, contact dimensions, and material properties. This is then used to determine the temperature gradient of the surface and any phase changes; 4) knowing the condition of the contact surface, and contact separation, the mass loss is calculated assuming all evaporated material is removed from the surface.
1070-9886
54-60
Swingler, J.
c6e2a49e-fadd-4f38-99f7-0ee1e2c92fac
McBride, J.W.
d9429c29-9361-4747-9ba3-376297cb8770
Swingler, J.
c6e2a49e-fadd-4f38-99f7-0ee1e2c92fac
McBride, J.W.
d9429c29-9361-4747-9ba3-376297cb8770

Swingler, J. and McBride, J.W. (1998) Modelling of energy transport in arcing electrical contacts to determine mass transfer. IEEE Transactions on Components, Packaging, and Manufacturing Technology, Part A, 21 (1), 54-60. (doi:10.1109/95.679033).

Record type: Article

Abstract

This paper presents a model which calculates the amount of erosion of an electrical contact undergoing arcing for a range of contact opening conditions. The model assumes all vaporized material is lost from the contact and that the material lost is related to the energy received by the contact. It is proposed that two processes occur which transport energy to the contact surface from the arc discharge. These have been called the radial transport process and the channeled transport process. Calculations at different ratios of the transport processes are compared to experimental data at 9 A, 64 V DC, The modeling procedure consists of several stages: 1) the arc discharge is divided into three regions which generates energy for dissipation; 2) the energy from each region is dissipated through the arc and delivered to the contact surface by radial/channeling transport processes; 3) heat flow through the contact from the surface is calculated using an explicit numerical finite difference scheme dependant upon energy input, contact dimensions, and material properties. This is then used to determine the temperature gradient of the surface and any phase changes; 4) knowing the condition of the contact surface, and contact separation, the mass loss is calculated assuming all evaporated material is removed from the surface.

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Published date: March 1998

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 21178
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/21178
ISSN: 1070-9886
PURE UUID: 1cad0915-a770-4ef3-8c49-b36ad9dc474e
ORCID for J.W. McBride: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-3024-0326

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Date deposited: 08 Nov 2006
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 02:37

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Contributors

Author: J. Swingler
Author: J.W. McBride ORCID iD

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