Transitional processes at capacitive currents switching-off by single and double-break interrupters of vacuum circuit breakers

Vacuum circuit breaker technology based on double-break vacuum interrupters has become the most requirements of high voltage circuit breakers that not environmentally harmful. The vacuum interrupter has an excellent ability to deal with the steep rising part of the transient recovery voltage, which makes it faster in the current interruption process. This paper presents results of computer simulations conditioned by capacitive currents switching-offs by using single and double interrupters of vacuum circuit breakers. These results demonstrate that use of double-break circuit breakers leads to notable decreasing of switching overvoltages and allows in the same time to meet the dielectric requirements for high voltage vacuum circuit breakers.