Circuit Breaker

Department of Maintenance
Central Tool Room & Training Center,
Circuit Breaker
A circuit breaker is an automatically
operated electrical switch designed to protect an
electrical circuit from damage caused by
overload or short circuit. Its basic function is to
detect a fault condition and, by interrupting
continuity, to immediately discontinue electrical
flow. Unlike a fuse, which operates once and then
has to be replaced, a circuit breaker can be reset
(either manually or automatically) to resume
normal operation. Circuit breakers are made in
varying sizes, from small devices that protect an
individual household appliance up to large
switchgear designed to protect high voltage
circuits feeding an entire city.
 Origins
Inspired by the works of American scientist Joseph
Henry and English scientist Michael Faraday, the
circuit breaker was invented in 1836 by an American,
Charles Grafton.
An early form of circuit breaker was described by
Thomas Alva Edison in an 1879 patent application,
although his commercial power distribution system
used fuses. Its purpose was to protect lighting circuit
wiring from accidental short-circuits and overloads. A
modern miniature circuit breaker similar to the ones
now in use was patented by Brown, Boveri & Cie in
1924. Stotz's invention was the forerunner of the
modern thermal-magnetic breaker commonly used in
household load centers to this day.
 Operation
 All circuit breakers have common features in their operation,
although details vary substantially depending on the voltage class,
current rating and type of the circuit breaker.
 The circuit breaker must detect a fault condition; in low-voltage
circuit breakers this is usually done within the breaker enclosure.
Circuit breakers for large currents or high voltages are usually
arranged with pilot devices to sense a fault current and to operate
the trip opening mechanism. The trip solenoid that releases the
latch is usually energized by a separate battery, although some
high-voltage circuit breakers are self-contained with current
transformers, protection relays, and an internal control power
source.
 The circuit breaker contacts must carry the load current without
excessive heating, and must also withstand the heat of the arc
produced when interrupting (opening) the circuit. Contacts are
made of copper or copper alloys, silver alloys, and other highly
conductive materials. Service life of the contacts is limited by the
erosion of contact material due to arcing while interrupting the
current. Miniature and molded case circuit breakers are usually
discarded when the contacts have worn, but power circuit breakers
 Types Circuit Breaker
MCB- MINIATURE CIRCUIT BREAKER
MCCB- MOLDED CASE CIRCUIT
BREAKER
RCCB- RESIDUAL CURRENT CIRCUIT
BREAKER
ELCB- EARTH LEAKAGE CIRCUIT
BREAKER
ABCB- AIR BLAST CIRCUIT BREAKER
ACB- AIR CIRCUIT BREAKER
OCB- OIL CIRCUIT BREAKER
 MCB
MINIATURE CIRCUIT BREAKER
MCB
MCB means Miniature Circuit Breaker.A
circuit breaker is an automatically-
operated electrical switch designed to
protect an electrical circuit from damage
caused by overload or short circuit.
Before circuit breakers were invented,
simple wire fuses were used: the wire in
the fuses was deliberately made much
thinner than the wires in the circuits they
were intended to protect. Thus, if a fault
condition occured, as the current in the
circuit grew higher and higher, a point
would be reached at which the thin wire
of the fuse would get so hot that it would
 The problem with fuses is that - depending on
their design, as some are faster-acting than others
- it can take a significantly longer amount of time
for them to operate compared with today's very-
fast-acting circuit breakers. That fact means that,
if a circuit overload current fault condition
occurs, considerable damage can still occur both
to the circuit wiring and/or to the unit it is
supplying with power. Then, after the fault
condition has been fixed, the melted or "blown"
fuse wire in a rewireable type of fuse has to be
replaced or - if it is a "disposable cartridge" fuse -
the blown fuse cartridge has to be thrown away
and replaced by a new one. A circuit breaker, if it
 MCB
1.Actuator lever - used to manually trip
and reset the circuit breaker. Also
indicates the status of the circuit breaker
(On or Off/tripped). Most breakers are
designed so they can still trip even if the
lever is held or locked in the "on"
position. This is sometimes referred to as
"free trip" or "positive trip" operation.
2.Actuator mechanism - forces the
contacts together or apart.
3.Contacts - Allow current when touching
and break the current when moved apart.
4.Terminals
5.Bimetallic strip.
6.Calibration screw - allows the
manufacturer to precisely adjust the trip
current of the device after assembly.
7.Solenoid
8.Arc divider/extinguisher .
 SAILIENT
FEATURES OF MCB
MCB having breaking capacity of 10 KA,2
positions and 20 KA,3 positions
Silver graphite contacts for weld free operation.
Trip-free mechanism ensures tripping even if
operating knob is held forcibly in ‘ON’ position.
Terminals on both sides, with pressure plates
suitable for 25 sq. mm cables.
Operating current range of 0.5 to 63 Amps (the
ranges are fixed).
 TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATONS OF MCB
 Specifications conforming – IEC 898-1995 (IEC - Indian Electrical
Certified )
 No. of. Poles : 1, 2, 3, & 4 Poles (SP,SPN,DP,TP,TPN&FP)
 Tripping characteristic : B, C, & D
 Current rating : 6, 10, 16, 20, 25, 32, 40, & 63A on request 1A to 5A.
 Rating Voltage : 415 V, AC
 Frequency : 50 / 60 Hz
 Fixing: On 35 mm Din rail.
 Breaking capacity 10 KA.
 Mechanical Life : 100,000 Operation
 Electrical Life : 20,000 Operation
 Temperature : 5°C to 55°C
 Terminals: On both sides with pressure plates for 25 sq mm cable.
 TYPES OF MCB
There are 3 types of Tripping
Characteristices of MCB
There are
‘B’ TYPE
‘C’ TYPE
‘D’ TYPE
 ‘B’ TYPE

Its magnetic operating

limit is 3 to 5 times rated
current. This is used
primarily for wiring
protection in lighting,
socket outlet and control
circuit.
 ‘C’ TYPE

Its magnetic operating limit is 5

to 10 times rated current. This is
used for over load and short
circuit protection primarily to
protect equipment with high
making current (e.g. Motors and
Transforms).
 ‘D’ TYPE
Its magnetic operating limit is
10 to 20 times rated current.
This is used in electrical
equipment with very high
making current as starting of
heavy motors, transformers,
capacitor switching,Group of
lights etc.
SP,SPN,DP,TP,TPN&FP
RCCB
Residual-Current Circuit Breaker
(RCCB)
A Residual-Current Circuit Breaker (RCCB) is an
electrical wiring device that disconnects a circuit whenever it
detects that the electric current is not balanced between the
energized conductor and the return neutral conductor. Such
an imbalance may indicate current leakage through the body
of a person who is grounded and accidentally touching the
energized part of the circuit. A lethal shock can result from
these conditions. RCCBs are designed to disconnect quickly
enough to prevent injury caused by such shocks. They are not
intended to provide protection against over current(overload)
or short-circuit conditions. RCCBs are intended to operate
within 25-40 milliseconds, before electric shock can drive the
heart into ventricular fibrillation, the most common cause of
death through electric shock.
RCCB
 CONSTURACTION
The RCCB works on the current balance
principle. that in an electrical circuit the
incoming current is the same as outgoing
current. RCCB incorporates a core balance
transformer having
Primary and secondary windings and a sensitive
relay for instantaneous detection of fault signal.
The primary winding lies in series with the
supply mains and load. Secondary winding is
Connected to a very highly sensitive
electromagnetic trip relay, which operates the
trip mechanism.
 OPERACTION
 In a healthy circuit, sum of the currents in
phases, is equal to the current in the neutral
and the vector sum of all currents is equal to
zero. If there is any insulation fault in the
current and leakage current flows to earth, the
currents do not balance and their vector sum
is not equal to zero. This imbalance is detected
by the core balanced current transformer,
During flow of leakage current in the circuit an
imbalance is created in the circuit which gives
Rise to leakage flux in the core. This leakage
flux generates an electrical signal that is
sensed by the relay and it trips the Mechanism
thereby disconnecting the supply.
Principle of
operation.
1. Electromagnet
with help electronics
2. Current
transformer
secondary winding
3. Transformer core
4. Test switch
L. live conductor
N. neutral conductor.
Animated 3-phase RCCB
schematic.
Internal
construction.
 Technical characteristics
Number of poles
RCCBs may comprise two poles for use on single phase supplies (two
current paths), three poles for use on three phase supplies (three current
paths) or four poles for use on three phase & neutral supplies (four current
paths).

Rated current
The rated current of an RCCB is chosen according to the maximum
sustained load current it will carry (if the RCCB is connected in series
with, and downstream of a circuit-breaker, the rated current of both items
shall be the same).

Sensitivity
RCCB sensitivity is expressed as the rated residual operating current,
noted IΔn. Preferred values have been defined by the IEC, thus making it
possible to divide RCCBs into three groups according to their IΔn value.
High sensitivity (HS): 6 – 10 – 30 mA (for direct-contact / life injury
protection)
Medium sensitivity (MS): 100 – 300 – 500 – 1000 mA (for fire protection)
EFFECT OF ELECTRIC CURRENT THROUGH HUMAN BODY
Type
Standard IEC 60755 (General requirements for residual current operated
protective devices) defines three types of RCCB depending on the
characteristics of the fault current.
Type AC: RCCB for which tripping is ensured for residual sinusoidal
alternating currents
Type A: RCCB for which tripping is ensured
for residual sinusoidal alternating currents
for residual pulsating direct currents
for residual pulsating direct currents superimposed by a smooth direct
current of 0.006 A, with or without phase-angle control, independent of the
polarity
Type B: RCCB for which tripping is ensured
as for type A
for residual sinusoidal currents up to 1000 Hz
for residual sinusoidal currents superposed by a pure direct current
for pulsating direct currents superposed by a pure direct current
for residual currents which may result from rectifying circuits
three pulse star connection or six pulse bridge connection
two pulse bridge connection line-to-line with or without phase-angle
monitoring, independently of the polarity
Break time
There are two groups of devices:

G (general use) for instantaneous RCCBs (i.e. without a

time delay)
Minimum break time: immediate
Maximum break time: 200 ms , 150 ms, and 40 ms

S (selective) or T (time delayed) for RCCBs with a short

time delay (typically used in circuits containing surge
suppressors)
Minimum break time: 130 ms, 60 ms, and 50 ms
MOULDED CASE CIRCUIT
BREAKER (MCCB)
MCCB OVER VIEW
MCCB, in which a circuit breaker and trip device are
assembled in a mould case, can manually or electrically
open and close the electric circuit. MCCB can automatically
cut off electric power in case of overload and short circuit.
MCCBs are Moulded case Circuit breakers, with
protection facilities of over current, earth fault. it has a
variable range of 50% to 100% operating current. They can
be wired for remote as well as local operation both. They are
manufactured for fault levels of 16KA to 50KA and
operating current range of 25A to 630Amps.They are used
for application related with larger power flow requirement.
power application Generally 3 pole or 4 pole.
Thermal or thermal-magnetic operation.
Trip current may be adjustable in larger
ratings.
 Characteristics
Thermal magnetic circuit breakers, which are the
type found in most distribution boards, incorporate both
techniques with the electromagnet responding
instantaneously to large surges in current (short circuits)
and the bimetallic strip responding to less extreme but
longer-term over-current conditions. The thermal portion of
the circuit breaker provides an "inverse time" response
feature which provides faster or slower response for larger
or smaller over currents respectively.
Load Line range of Moulded Case
Circuit Breakers are designed and
manufactured to world-class standards. Load
line series MCCBs provide overload and short-
circuit protection for all applications. The
thermal & magnetic elements, adjustable over
Range :
25A to 1600A in 5 frame sizes in single pole, three pole
and four pole with switched neutral execution.

Specification :
Conforms to IEC:60947-1&2 / IS:13947-1&2.

Features :
Wide range : 25A to 1600A (AC) Compact
dimensions
Adjustable thermal setting (70-100% In).
Adjustable magnetic setting (5-10 times In / 4-10 times In).
Suitable for use as switch disconnected
In 4PwSN version, neutral makes first and breaks last
Push to trip button provision Uniform front escutcheon plate
Positive dolly position indication Suitable for DC application up
to 1600A