Pressure and Arc Voltage Measurement in a 252 kV SF₆ Puffer Circuit Breaker

The pressure distribution in an arcing chamber is critically important for the SF6 puffer circuit breaker design. In this paper, the pressure variation of four locations in the nozzle was measured by piezoresistive and fiber optical pressure sensors at two current levels of 10 kA and 50 kA. An arc voltage measurement was also taken. The results demonstrate that using either type of sensor with a connecting tube is able to detect the fast pressure variation in circuit breakers, however the possible distortion and delay to the pressure transient caused by the tube need further study.