Numerical simulation of high-current vacuum arc with consideration of anode vapor

In this paper, a high-current vacuum arc (HCVA) with the consideration of anode vapor is modeled and simulated. First, from the HCVA column model, the heat flux density to the anode is obtained, which is put into an anode activity model, and the parameter distributions (such as the vapor temperature and velocity) of the anode vapor are obtained from the simulation results of the anode activity model. Then, by iterating and calculating the HCVA column model and anode activity model, the interaction between the HCVA column and the anode vapor is simulated and analyzed. In the simulation, the distribution of the axial magnetic field (AMF) generated by the electrode system is calculated by the software ANSYS. The simulation results show that the influence of anode vapor on the parameter distributions in the arc column is significant. The simulation results are also compared with the vacuum arc photograph.