Determination of Cr Density in the Active Phase of a High-current Vacuum Arcs

Abstract

Melting and evaporation of the anode surface strongly influence the interruption capability of vacuum circuit breakers, because they lead to injection of atomic vapour into the inter-electrode gap. Determination of the vapour density and its dynamics with respect to different anode phenomena is therefore of great importance. Results of Cr density measurements in a high-current vacuum arc by using broadband absorption spectroscopy are presented. The vapour density of atomic Cr is determined after the formation of anode spots as well as close to the current zero. Cr I resonance lines at 425.43 nm have been used for the analysis. An AC current pulse with maximum value of 7 kA and a frequency of 100 Hz is applied to a vacuum arc between two cylindrical butt electrodes made of CuCr7525 with a diameter of 10 mm. The high-current anode modes are observed by means of high-speed camera imaging. The temporal evolution of the Cr ground state density is presented and discussed.