Vacuum interrupters form the core of medium voltage circuit-breakers. Reliability in service, high quality materials and long life are demanded of these maintenance- free components.
Competent manufacturers are nowadays able to supply vacuum interrupters which cover all primary and secondary medium voltage applications in power supply. These include switching of loads in general, and of transformers, motors, generators, overhead lines, cables and even capacitors.
The highly compact vacuum interrupters of the latest generation developed by ABB can be deployed in these applications without any additional external insulation, or are encapsulated in an insulating material such as silicone or epoxy resin to optimize the external dielectric strength and protection against environmental effects.
The innovative modular embedded pole for use on vacuum circuit-breakers, with its compactness, robustness and freedom from maintenance, will in particular ensure rising market shares worldwide for vacuum circuit-breakers in medium voltage in future.