High-voltage multibreak circuit breaker with means for accelerating restoration of normal voltage distribution following sparkover and clearance of one break

Claim 2

A high-voltage electric circuit breaker comprising: a. a plurality of main-interrupting breaks electrically connected in series, said breaker being of the type that during normal opening operations relies upon said breaks to withstand the full open-circuit voltage without assistance from a seriesconnected disconnect switch, b. a plurality of series-connected capacitors respectively connected across said breaks for distributing voltage among the breaks when the circuit breaker is open, c. a plurality of high ohmic resistors connected in series with each other and respectively connected across said capacitors during and following a breaker-openinG operation, d. each of said resistors having a value such that the time constant of a loop circuit comprising said resistor and the capacitor across which said resistor is connected is between 0.2 and 5 cycles on a 60-cycle-per-second basis, e. the values of said resistors being sufficiently high that the total current through the open circuit breaker is no more than substantially 30 percent greater than the current through said open circuit breaker with said resistors absent.

Claim 3

A circuit breaker as defined in claim 1 and further comprising: a. in parallel with each of said main-interrupting breaks the series combination of a resistor switch and a low ohmic resistor for reducing the rate of rise of the recovery voltage during interruption, b. each of said resistor switches being closed during the initial portion of an interrupting operation to permit current to flow through said low ohmic resistors but being opened during a subsequent portion of the interrupting operation to interrupt said resistor current, c. said capacitors being respectively connected across said series combinations of resistor switch and low ohmic resistor.

Claim 4

A high-voltage electric circuit breaker comprising: a. a plurality of main-interrupting breaks electrically connected in series, said breaker being of the type that during normal opening operations relies upon said breaks to withstand the full open-circuit voltage without assistance from a series-connected disconnect switch, b. a plurality of series-connected capacitors respectively connected across said breaks for distributing voltage among the breaks when the circuit breaker is open, c. a plurality of high ohmic nonlinear resistors connected in series with each other and respectively connected across said capacitors during and following a breaker-opening operation, d. each of said nonlinear resistors having resistance characteristics such that the resistors are capable of returning voltage distribution across said open breaks to normal following clearance of a sparked-over break more quickly than could linear resistors respectively connected across said capacitors in loop circuits, each with a time constant of 5 cycles on a 60-cycle-per-second basis, e. the steady-state resistance of said nonlinear resistors being sufficiently high that the total r.m.s. current through the open circuit breaker is no more than substantially 30 percent greater than the current through said open circuit breaker with said resistors absent.

Claim 5

A high-voltage electric circuit breaker comprising: a. a plurality of main-interrupting breaks electrically connected in series, said breaker being of the type that during normal opening operations relies upon said breaks to withstand the full open-circuit voltage without assistance from a series-connected disconnect switch, b. a plurality of series-connected capacitors respectively connected across said breaks for distributing voltage among the breaks when the circuit breaker is open, c. a plurality of high ohmic nonlinear resistors connected in series with each other and respectively connected across said capacitors during and following a breaker-opening operation, d. each of said nonlinear resistors having resistance characteristics such that the resistors are capable of returning voltage distribution across said open breaks to normal following clearance of a sparked-over break more quickly than could linear resistors respectively connected across said capacitors in loop circuits, each with a time constant of 5 cycles on a 60-cycle-per-second basis, e. the steady-state resistance of said nonlinear resistors being sufficiently high that the total r.m.s. current through the open circuit breaker is no more than substantially 30 percent greater than the current through said open circuit breaker with said resistors absent.

Claim 6

A circuit breaker as defined in claim 3 and further comprising: a. in parallel with each of said main-interrupting breaks the series combination of a resistor switch and a low ohmic resistor for reducing the rate of rise of the recovery voltage during interruption, b. each of said resistor switches being closed during the initial portion of an interrupting operation to permit current to flow through said low ohmic resistors but being opened during a subsequent portion of the interrupting operation to interrupt said resistor current, c. said capacitors being respectively connected across said series combinations of resistor switch and low ohmic resistor.