Data Bulletin Arc Flash Protection With Masterpact NW and NT Circuit Breakers
Data Bulletin Arc Flash Protection With Masterpact NW and NT Circuit Breakers
Data Bulletin Arc Flash Protection With Masterpact NW and NT Circuit Breakers
07/2003
Data Bulletin Cedar Rapids, IA, USA
SQUARE D / SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC Square D / Schneider Electric has always stated in documentation that
SAFETY PRACTICES equipment must be de-energized and placed in an electrically safe condition
before work can be done on it. Further, we work very hard in our own
facilities to follow, and always recommend to our customers that they follow,
safety guidelines such as National Fire Protection Association 70E
(NFPA 70E), “Electrical Safety Requirements for Employee Workplaces.”
Although we design and manufacture equipment to and exceeding
standards for safety, no design can provide complete protection without safe
working practices. One unsettling statistic shows that many accidents
happen when the electrician thought the equipment was de-energized.
Square D has led the industry with products that create safer conditions. Our
company pioneered the safety switch, enclosed circuit breakers, current-
limiting circuit breakers, ground-fault circuit interrupters, and arc-fault circuit
interrupters. However, even with safe equipment, accidents can happen. A
multi-faceted approach must be used: safe equipment and safe working
practices.
1
Arc Flash Protection with Masterpact® NW and NT Circuit Breakers 0613DB0202R603
Data Bulletin 07/2003
Arcing Faults Arcing faults occur when electrical clearances are reduced or compromised.
These conditions come about when insulation deteriorates or when an
accident happens, such as an electrician slipping with a screwdriver or
dropping a wrench that comes in contact with opposite phases or phase-to-
ground.
The arc burns in open air, creating a large amount of energy until an
upstream overcurrent protection device opens to clear the fault.
The amount of energy released during an arcing fault is a function of the
available fault current at the point in the system reduced by the dynamic
impedance of the arc and the time the arc persists.
Bolted Faults Bolted faults are typically caused by mistakes made during installation or
maintenance. Here, opposite phases or phase-to-ground are connected
together (bolted). The overcurrent protective device upstream of the fault
opens to protect the system. Arcing occurs inside the protective device as
the contacts open. When the device is a circuit breaker, arcing and gassing
is vented through the arc chute to the outside of the circuit breaker.
HISTORY OF ARC FLASH PROTECTION Through the years, Square D has worked to minimize the exposure of
electricians to the effects of arc flash. Our products include dead fronts,
covers, doors, interlocks, and other equipment that protect users and service
personnel by preventing accidental contact and limiting exposure to arcing
events. These safeguards, along with our insistence that equipment be de-
energized before opening or disassembling, have played an important part
in personnel protection.
Square D has also worked within the Institute of Electrical and Electronic
Engineers (IEEE) to quantify arc flash hazards in different types of
equipment so that the appropriate PPE can be recommended.
Fused switches and fused circuit breakers utilizing current-limiting fuses
have been used to provide additional arc flash protection. The fuses provide
quick clearing times during high-level short circuits and limit the amount of
current available for the arc flash event. Thus, fuses can reduce the arc flash
effects, but they create another set of problems for the user. These problems
include:
• arcing fault currents that are not high enough to melt the fuse element, or
fuses that provide little protection;
• hazards associated with changing fuses;
• the need for additional mechanical hardware and items that can wear
out, including fuse holders, blown fuse indicators, anti-single-phasing
devices, etc. that must be maintained or replaced and can become
dislodged and cause arcing events;
• higher energy costs caused by additional resistances in the fuse holder
and connections;
• larger equipment footprints;
• higher installation and service-life costs; and
• the need to stock and replace fuses after overloads or short circuits.
MASTERPACT® NW AND NT CIRCUIT Breakthrough technology was used to design the new Masterpact NW and
BREAKER TECHNOLOGY NT circuit breakers to interrupt large amounts of fault current without being
protected by fuses.
The same technology and design that allows the Masterpact NW and NT
circuit breakers to interrupt large fault currents without fuses also provides
very good arc flash limitation.
The decision to design the Masterpact NW to eliminate the need for fuse
protection is based on the following:
• requirements for smaller footprints and space-saving installations;
• avoidance of fuse installation, maintaining supplies, and the need to
enter the equipment in order to check and change fuses;
• the need for adjustability to provide coordination with downstream
products and better arc flash protection.
SYSTEM DESIGNS
Fused System Design As discussed earlier, systems have been designed employing fused circuit
breakers. The reason for the fuse is to protect the circuit breaker at fault
current levels above the interrupting rating of the circuit breaker. The fuse is
sized so that it does not interfere with the circuit breaker protection during
normal system operation like energizing transformers or switching loads but
operates to protect the circuit breaker at high fault currents. It is not desirable
or necessary for the fuse to open at low level overcurrent conditions.
Therefore, the fuse or fuse-limiter used with a circuit breaker is usually rated
twice the ampere rating of the circuit breaker.
Since the fuses have relatively high thresholds of current limitation, they are
not necessarily good protectors of personnel in arc flash circumstances. A
1600 A fuse-limiter (typically used to protect 800 A circuit breakers) will not
operate within the threshold of current limitation until about 32,000 A. Below
that level, the opening time will be considerably longer than the 1/2-cycle
time in which fuses are thought to open under short circuit conditions. The
additional time increases the potential hazard to personnel.
Further, during an arcing fault, the arc impedance will reduce the current
level and the effectiveness of the fuse. (With 65,000 A available, typical arc
current would be 38,000 A, which falls just into the current-limiting threshold
of the fuse. With 40,000 A available, arc current would be 27,000 A, which
falls below the current-limiting threshold of the fuse.)
MASTERPACT NW and NT System The Masterpact NW and NT circuit breakers do not need to be protected by
Design fuses. They clear faults very quickly and provide arc flash protection that is
comparable to fuses at high currents and better protection than fuses at
lower currents.
The following chart shows test data of fuses and Masterpact circuit breakers:
Example: A system in a large chemical plant Figure 1: Incident Energy Values for Masterpact NW and NT and
uses an 800 A fused circuit breaker. The Circuit Breakers with Class L Fuses
company chose the 800 A fused circuit breaker,
which is protected by 1600 A class L fuses, to 30
provide arc flash protection for its electricians at 800 A NW
This design can be called “blow closed” because as the current flow
1/3 increases, the force to keep the contact assembly closed increases. This is
A Magnetic forces accomplished by moving the pivot point of the contact assembly toward the
keep contacts contact. This design is very effective and provides high withstand ratings and
2/3 closed high close and latch ratings. This type of design is employed in the standard
Masterpact NW circuit breakers that are available with Ampere Interrupting
Ratings (AIR) of 100,000 A at 480 V and lower.
Current Flow
Contacts Arm breaker. The shaded areas constitute the current path. The blow-open
terminal is shaped so there is a reverse current loop at the moving arm. This
reverse current flow creates a magnetic force that is proportionate to the
amount of current. When the current is high enough, the force pushes open
the contacts. The contacts open very quickly, without waiting for the
mechanism to unlatch and the springs to pull the moving arm open. Between
the folds of the blow-open terminal, where the reverse current loop is
located, is the U-magnet, which intensifies the magnetic opening force.
The Masterpact NW arc flash-protecting circuit breaker is designed to open
quickly. This quick-opening action clears the fault and reduces the arc flash
incident energy.
Arc
Chute U-Magnet Blow-open Here is another view. The blow-open terminal is shaded:
Terminal
Blow-open
Terminal
06135392
U-Magnet
MASTERPACT NW AND NT NOTE: The following data apply only to circuit breakers with trip units
PERFORMANCE DATA incorporating instantaneous tripping.
0.1000
Time (sec)
0.0100
0.0010
1 10 100 1000
3 In – NW08 3 In – NW20
3 In – NW08 2 In – NW20 Fault Current (KA)
Clearing Time
Masterpact NT 800A – 1200A 60HZ
1.0000
User-defined Range:
Automatic Range:
Requires circuit
No user-configurable settings
breaker to be adjusted
to trip in instantaneous
mode
0.1000
Time (sec)
0.0100
0.0010
1 10 100 1000
2 In – NT08 3 In – NT12
3 In – NT08, 2 In – NT12 Fault Current (KA)
Arc Flash Calculations To calculate incident energy, use the following equations:
800 A NW-L Masterpact Circuit Breaker
• E = 0.067 + 0.064 x Ib for 15 < lb < 42 kA
• E = 2.16 + 0.017 x Ib for 42 < lb < 100 kA
Where:
• E is incident energy in calories/cm2
• Ib is available bolted fault current in kiloamperes at the location of interest
• Working distance is 18 inches (457 mm) from the point of arcing
• Instantaneous trip setting is set at maximum (lower settings may result in
lower incident energy values)
Where:
• Db is the flash protection boundary in millimeters
• Ib is available bolted fault current in kiloamperes at the location of interest
• Working distance is 18 inches (457 mm) from the point of arcing
• Instantaneous trip setting is set at maximum (lower settings may result in
lower incident energy values)
Square D Company
3700 Sixth St. SW Electrical equipment should be installed, operated, serviced, and maintained only by
Cedar Rapids, IA 52404 USA qualified personnel. No responsibility is assumed by Schneider Electric for any
1-888-SquareD (1-888-778-2733) consequences arising out of the use of this material.
www.SquareD.com © 2003 Schneider Electric All Rights Reserved