Study on the Short-Circuit Electrodynamic Forces and Structural Design of Vacuum GCB Switchgear for Pump Storage

The short-circuit electrodynamic force on a vacuum generator circuit breaker (GCB) switchgear with a rated short-circuit current of 80kA for pumped storage is studied through theoretical analysis and simulation. The results show that the layout of the electrical components inside the GCB switchgear has a important influence on the electrodynamic force, and accordingly the reasonable structural layout of the switches is proposed. Meanwhile, the short-circuit electrodynamic repulsion force between the contacts of the vacuum interrupter is analyzed and evaluated. It is found that electrodynamic repulsion force calculated through the existing empirical formulas is quite different from the test value of the vacuum GCB prototype. A new fitting curve is presented to evaluate the rated contact force of high-capacity vacuum interrupter base on the experimental research and the test data of the existing products. Finally, the dynamic and thermal stability test of the prototype of the vacuum GCB switchgear is carried out and the results show the feasibility of the design and study.