Title: Coupled simulation of switching arcs considering transient-capacitive effects

Authors: Jens Trommler; Stephan Koch; Thomas Weiland

Addresses: Technische Universitaet Darmstadt, Institut fuer Theorie Elektromagnetischer Felder (TEMF), Schlossgartenstrasse 8, 64289 Darmstadt, Germany ' Technische Universitaet Darmstadt, Institut fuer Theorie Elektromagnetischer Felder (TEMF), Schlossgartenstrasse 8, 64289 Darmstadt, Germany ' Technische Universitaet Darmstadt, Institut fuer Theorie Elektromagnetischer Felder (TEMF), Schlossgartenstrasse 8, 64289 Darmstadt, Germany

Abstract: The development of an electric arc in a low-voltage switching device is simulated using fundamental equations of fluid dynamics, thermodynamics and electromagnetism. Coupling between the three is provided by Lorentz forces and by ohmic heating, where the temperature-dependence of electrical conductivity is included. In contrast to existing approaches to this problem, transient-capacitive effects are considered using the electro-quasistatic approximation of Maxwell's equations. The influence of the displacement currents on the transient behaviour of an electric arc is shown for simplified 2D and 3D models of an electric circuit breaker.

Keywords: coupled simulation; electric arcs; electro-quasistatics; EQSs; low voltage switching; electric circuit breakers; FEM; finite element method; finite volume method; transient-capacitive effects; fluid dynamics; thermodynamics; electromagnetism; Lorentz forces; ohmic heating; modelling; Maxwell equations.

DOI: 10.1504/IJCSE.2014.064538

International Journal of Computational Science and Engineering, 2014 Vol.9 No.5/6, pp.538 - 548

Received: 19 Dec 2011
Accepted: 21 Sep 2012
Published online: 22 Sep 2014 *

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