Experimental research on the comparison of the arc characteristics between DC 270V and DC 28V

In order to fulfill the increasing need for high electric power and to decrease the weight of electrical equipments, the supply level must be increased and the electrical apparatus has to be upgraded accordingly. In our present work, experiments are carried out to compare the arc characteristics on break between DC 28V and DC 270V under the conditions of different current and transverse magnetic fields (TMF). The current is lower than 10A, and the flux density is below 100mT. Arc images are acquired with high speed cameras and arc voltage waveforms are obtained. Arc characteristics such as arc duration, extinction gap, displacement of arc root are analyzed. Experiment results show that under the same break power, TMF is more effective in arc inhibition under the condition of DC 270V compared with DC28V. The work can offer some guide for the design of arc extinction system for DC 270 V relays.