Engineered PMMA-CuO nanocomposites for improving the electric arc interruption process in electrical switching applications

Polymer-based nanocomposites (PNCs) display fascinating functionalities to be useful in electrical switching applications like circuit breakers, switch gears, etc. These PNCs are fabricated by incorporating nanoparticles (NPs) into a polymer by in-situ polymerization. When the PNCs interrupt the high energetic fault currents generate between the two contacts in a circuit breaker, they outgas (ablation) chemical species and cooling gases, which change the thermodynamic properties of the arcing environment leading to quench the electrical arcs quickly. Two PNCs are fabricated with different wt% of oleic acid modified CuO NPs and a polymer matrix i.e. poly methyl methacrylate (PMMA). These PNCs are tested with the electrical arcs of a prospective current of 1.6 kA generated in the test-setup. The electrical signals (arc current and voltage) and computed dissipated enegy i.e., ∫ i(t)V(t)dt help to understand the effect of PNCs on the electrical arcs. In addition to that, the computed joule integral and mass loss of the PNCs due to outgassing is reported. The re-depositions of the chemical species are analyzed by using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and the morphological changes on the surface of outgassed PNCs are analyzed by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). These results help to understand the effect of PNCs on the arc interruption process in circuit breakers.