How Much Electricity Can Industrial Circuit Breakers Manage?

circuit breakers have come a long way from when Thomas Edison applied for his circuit breaker patent in 1879. Today, Circuit Breakers are used to protect an electrical system, regardless if it is for a residential or commercial location. Industrial circuit breakers are electrical devices used to break an electrical circuit during a power overload. Industrial circuit breakers are switches that are automatically tripped to protect a power system from damage or catastrophic loss.

Power system protection is a part of electrical power engineering with a focus on protecting power systems from faults. A protection plan works to keep an electrical system functioning properly. While engineers put forth a maximum effort to keep electrical systems running smoothly, protection plans to avoid damage to an electrical will always be developed. A major part of that protection plan is the use of industrial circuit breakers.

What are Industrial Circuit Breakers?

Industrial circuit breakers are classified by a variety of factors, including voltage class, interrupting type and construction. There are three main types of industrial circuit breakers: low voltage, medium voltage and high voltage. Under low voltage, there are two sub-types, miniature and molded case. There are three types of medium voltage industrial circuit breakers. These include vacuum circuit breakers, air circuit breakers and SF6 circuit breakers. High-voltage breakers are generally classified by the element used to extinguish the power arc. They include bulk oil, minimum oil, air blast, vacuum and SF6.

Low voltage industrial circuit breakers can accommodate power requirements up to 1000VAC. Medium voltage industrial circuit breakers are rated between 1 and 72 kV. High voltage industrial circuit breakers are used in power transmission above 72.5 kV and can go as high as 765 kV and on occasion, even higher. Some of the manufacturers of high voltage industrial circuit breakers include ABB, GE, AREVA, Mitsubishi Electric, Pennsylvania Breaker, Siemens and Toshiba.

Industrial circuit breakers are a critical part of any electrical power system, regardless of size and total voltage. By using the right type and voltage requirement industrial circuit breaker, an electrical system is protected against catastrophic failure and damage.