Quantitative Analysis of Gas Circuit Breaker Physics Through Direct Comparison of 3-D Simulations to Experiment

Understanding the dynamic processes governing gas circuit breaker physics is crucial in order to continue to improve short-circuit current interruption performance. In this paper, we study a single arc discharge both using measurements and 3-D computational fluid dynamics simulations. The primary quantity analyzed is the pressure in the heating volume created by radiative ablation of the Polytetrafluoroethylene nozzles surrounding the arc. We use cross-correlation functions to investigate the behavior of pressure waves in the SF₆ gas, especially those induced at flow reversal where the gas flow between the arc zone and heating volume changes direction.