Power overloads and fluctuations can cause serious issues to any electrical appliance. If not prevented at the right time, overcurrent can lead to a fire and pose serious threats to the entire electrical installation. This can significantly impact Industrial and commercial infrastructures that rely heavily on their equipment to ensure the stability of operations.
Circuit breakers and fuses are safety components that stop a current overload from damaging any electrical circuit. They can prevent equipment damage and alleviate the risk of fire. Used across electrical appliances, circuit breakers have evolved over the years to become effective and highly efficient. This article gives you a complete look at the different types of circuit breakers and their role in maintaining the longevity of your electrical appliances. But first, let’s understand what a circuit breaker is.
Circuit Breakers: Explained
A circuit breaker is defined as a mechanical component that offers effective protection to an electrical circuit from the flow of high magnitude current. It consists of an electrical switch that interrupts the abnormal flow of power. Circuit breakers are configured to deal with a variety of currents such as fault current, capacitive current, load currents, and small inductive currents. A circuit breaker has a pre-defined safe current limit. As soon as any current exceeds the set limit, the circuit breaker trips to kill the power. In situations of a sudden high electric discharge, circuit breakers are activated immediately, whereas there is a slow response if the overcurrent is just around the safe limit.
Circuit breakers provide seamless protection against short circuits and power overloads. In the case of a power overload, the bimetallic strip present inside the circuit breaker identifies the surge in current, heats up, and trips. Once the job is done, circuit breakers can be manually set back to their original position.
The Types of Circuit Breakers
- Direct current circuit breakers: They are used to protect electrical devices that make use of DC current to operate. DC current is primarily used by uninterruptible power supplies and other battery-powered electrical circuits.
- Alternating current circuit breakers: These are leveraged to operate high power motor devices as they can seamlessly transition between positive and negative voltage multiple times in a second.
Circuit breakers are further broken down into the following:
- Low voltage: These are the preferred choice for circuits that are rated below 1000v. Moreover, the voltage output cycles multiple times in a second.
- High voltage: These circuit breakers are used typically for circuits that are rated above 1000v. There are two types of high voltage C/Bs classified as oil-less and oil circuit breakers.
The Benefits Associated with a Circuit Breaker
Investing in high-quality circuit breakers can assure the utmost safety of any electrical installation. A circuit breaker can:
- Offer adequate protection to the electrical circuit from excessive current
- It is a reliable piece of equipment as compared to fuses
- It is highly sensitive in nature and can detect even the slightest of surges with maximum ease
- A circuit breaker can be set back to its original position
Investing in a High-Quality Circuit Breaker
The market is open to a wide variety of circuit breakers; however, only a few can ascertain the safety of your electrical appliance. If you’re looking for a circuit breaker that would seamlessly align with all your electrical installations, we would recommend you get in touch with a renowned manufacturer. The foremost manufacturers and suppliers will have an extensive range of circuit breakers that offer seamless functionality and durability.
