What’s over three times hotter than the surface of the sun, explosive and a real risk to your workforce? Arc Flash! Don’t worry though. While arc flash safety statistics can be alarming, there’s no need to be concerned when you use Eaton switchgear products designed for arc flash mitigation.
Level up your arc flash safety to protect your workforce with these Eaton arc flash mitigation solutions.
LEVEL 1: TIME AND DISTANCE
Are you at square one asking yourself “What do I need for arc flash safety?” Before you identify the best arc flash safety solution, it is important to understand the basics of reducing arc flash risk. The two best ways of reducing arc flash risk are reducing arc time and increasing distance from the equipment. There are roughly 5-10 arc flash explosions in the U.S. per day, and an arc flash blast can kill someone within 10 feet of the incident.
LEVEL 2: ARC FLASH REDUCTION MAINTENANCE SYSTEM (ARMS)
How it works:
Eaton’s Arc Flash Reduction Maintenance System uses a separate bypass path that is strictly analog, bypassing the electronic trip unit to save critical milliseconds over using instantaneous trip settings. This provides the fastest possible breaker clearing time which results in the lowest arc energy exposure to the worker.
When there is a fault under normal running conditions, you want a branch circuit breaker to trip first, so you don’t kill power to the entire building. Thus, a time delay is built into the settings of the main breaker to allow the branch circuit breaker to trip first. If somebody is working on a panel however, you want the main breaker to operate as quickly as possible without seeing if something downstream clears first. Why? Because reducing arc time is one of the ways to reduce arc flash risk.
When maintenance mode is activated, Eaton’s ARMS system eliminates any delay in the trip unit, which reduces the arc flash energy that could be generated if it was allowed more time to accumulate. If the arc is given time to build up, it can turn into an explosion (literally!) that would hurt people. Instead, Eaton’s technology can reduce the arc energy by over 60%.
Whether in a panelboard, switchboard or switchgear, if you buy an Eaton breaker with an electronic trip unit, the arc flash mitigation is built into the trip unit.
LEVEL 3: REMOTE ACCESS
Activating maintenance mode from the switch on the breaker typically means you have to get within the arc flash boundary (and add risk) to operate the switch. Different companies have different philosophies about whether interacting with the equipment in this format is an acceptable level of risk, so make sure you understand your company’s guidelines.
A more conservative, safer approach would be to remotely mount the switch with an indicating light or wire it through a communication network, so workers don’t have to get within the arc flash boundary to activate maintenance mode on the breaker.
On Eaton panelboards, you can operate the trip unit with a switch on the breaker or remotely with a shunt trip. For the main breaker on a switchboard, an insulated case breaker (or power breaker) will charge the springs in a breaker and allow it to be opened or closed remotely.
You can either hardwire it with a switch or control through communication networks on Modbus TCP protocol where you plug an Ethernet cable into the switchboard and connect it to the network. Then you can open and close the breakers from your computer or another connected device. That’s important because asking the breaker to open or close could trigger an arc if the breaker or gear is faulty. With remote control, there won’t be someone standing in the vicinity if there is an arc flash.
LEVEL 5: ARC RESISTANT SWITCH GEAR
Eaton’s arc resistant switchgear is designed to contain and redirect arc flash energy away from operators. If an arc occurs inside the gear and the doors are closed, it will contain the arc within the gear without the explosion injuring anyone. It will still damage the gear, but the explosion will be contained within the gear before the gas is vented out through the ductwork to an area it can’t harm anyone.
LEVEL 6: ARC QUENCHING SOLUTIONS
Keeping your workforce safe is the top priority, but keeping your switchgear intact is important too. Eaton’s unique arc quenching solutions can help with both.
Arc quenching is similar to an arc flash detection system where it is constantly looking for an arc event, but it has an additional device inside the switchgear that is about the size of a breaker. Instead of just tripping the main breaker, it tells the arc quenching device to close, and during an arc flash event, the arc quenching device takes the damage instead of your people or your equipment.
It works quickly too. Eaton’s arc quenching switchgear can detect and mitigate an arc flash in less than four milliseconds. For perspective, it takes about 100 milliseconds to blink. Electrical current always flows along the path of least resistance, and the arc quenching device is always the lowest impedance device for a fault to go to.
Eaton’s arc quenching switchgear can detect and mitigate an arc flash in less than four milliseconds. For perspective, it takes about 100 milliseconds to blink.
The arc quenching device can pinpoint where the fault occurred, so you can clear up the situation and turn the gear right back on. Normally an arc flash explosion would cause downtime until you can repair or replace the damaged equipment, but with an arc quenching device, you can start running again right away.
THE FINAL LEVEL: PARTNER WITH EATON AND VAN METER
How can you learn more about these arc flash mitigation solutions and identify the solution that will work best for you? Partner with Van Meter to improve workforce safety with Eaton arc flash safety solutions on your next project.
