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ABB circuit breakers , or ABB circuit breakers for short, are what we will be talking about in this article. ABB circuit breakers, which are used in electrical panels of apartments or private houses, are divided into two series. The first series is the “stripped-down” budget SH 200 and the second, more sophisticated series of ABB S200 automatic machines. In my electrical panels, I use ABB S200 circuit breakers , which have a number of advantages over the budget ABB SH200 circuit breakers. After all, you must admit that in order to make a budget version of any product, you need to remove something, cut down, save on something, and so do the ABB SH200 automatic machines.
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When choosing a quality machine,
the main criterion is a well-known brand and purchase from official dealers .
When assembling electrical panels, I buy components from E, which are official representatives of ABB and Schneider Electric in Russia. ABB circuit breakers are switching devices
which disconnect and switch off the power to cable lines, ABB circuit breakers protect cables from short circuit currents and overloads (currents higher than the rated currents of ABB circuit breakers). Or, to put it briefly, ABB circuit breakers protect against overcurrents.
circuit breakers disconnect currents up to 6 kA , ABB SH200 circuit breakers up to 4.5 kA, i.e. These are the currents that ABB circuit breakers can switch off without causing a fire. Short circuit currents are calculated based on the load; in everyday life they do not exceed 6 kA, and therefore there is no need to install ABB circuit breakers with higher maximum current values in the panel of an apartment or private house.
ABB automatic machines. Device
ABB automatic machines of the S200 series have been on sale not so long ago, approximately since 2012. Compared to the previous series, the body and mechanisms of ABB S200 machines have undergone changes. The body of the ABB S200 machines is made of polyamide, the melting point of which is about 950 degrees. We added an indication on the body of the machine “on” (red) and “off” (green). We increased the terminal cross-section of S200 automatic machines to 35 mm2.
Why I liked not only ABB machines, but also all modular products. This is the presence of double terminals, both above and below. This provides certain advantages when assembling electrical panels. Wires of different sections can be connected to the terminals of ABB circuit breakers.
ABB machines have a very wide temperature range of operation from – 50 to +70 degrees C. I provide an excerpt from an information letter from ABB confirming this information.
The ABB automatic machine is a complex mechanism made up of many parts. This is the high reliability and quality of ABB automatic machines. Indeed, despite the large number of small parts of a single mechanism, ABB automatic machines are a reliable design. I will not write about everyone, but will indicate only the main elements of ABB machines:
- Control lever or “beak”.
- Latch for mounting the machine on a DIN rail.
- Arc extinction chamber.
- Screw terminals (bottom and top).
- Bimetallic plate (thermal release).
- Screw for adjusting the setting (response time) of the thermal release.
- Fixed contact of an ABB machine.
- Movable contact of an ABB machine.
- Coil with core (electromagnetic release).
Advantages and disadvantages
ABB is a Swedish-Swiss corporation founded in 1988 by the merger of the Swedish ASEA and the Swiss Brown, Boveri & Cie.
She specializes in electrical engineering, energy and information technology. It is familiar to the average consumer from the circuit breakers with a red stripe on the front panel. Advantages:
- Circuit breakers comply with the declared electrical parameters.
- Excellent quality materials.
- Good mechanics and assembly.
- Production is in European countries, Russia, a smaller part is produced in Asian countries.
- The assortment includes machines of different price categories, which will allow you to choose a high-quality product that matches your capabilities.
The main disadvantage of all ABB products is that there are a lot of fakes of dubious quality on the market. This is due to the popularity of the brand. Therefore, purchase equipment for electrical panels only from large retail outlets or dealer stores.
ABB's main competitor is Schneider Electric, so there are debates on forums about the pain of choosing between them; also, Legrand brand products may be an alternative.
ABB automatic machines. Operating principle
In normal operation, ABB circuit breakers pass through themselves a current not exceeding the rated current for an infinite time. But if an overload occurs in the lines on which ABB circuit breakers are installed (current - which does not significantly exceed the rated current), in which case the ABB circuit breakers are turned off by a thermal release . The bimetallic plate (5) of the thermal release heats up (overload) and activates the tripping mechanism of the ABB circuit breaker. Triggering of the thermal release when I rated is exceeded. from 1.13 to 1.45 will occur in a time exceeding 1 hour, over 1.45 from I nom. in less than 1 hour. That is, the thermal release will turn off the ABB circuit breaker when you connect several heaters and electric kettles to this cable.
If a short circuit occurs on the line and devices connected to it, i.e. a current several times higher than the rated current “appears”, in this case the ABB circuit breaker triggers an electromagnetic release , which turns off the ABB circuit breaker. A current several times higher than the rated current flows through the winding of the solenoid (9), inducing a magnetic flux that moves the coil core, opening the contacts of the ABB machine. Unlike a thermal release, an electromagnetic release operates in a fraction of seconds, almost instantly turning off ABB circuit breakers.
Characteristics of the electromagnetic release
According to the response characteristics of the electromagnetic release, ABB circuit breakers are divided into the following types (classes):
ABB automatic machines type B (3-5)*I nom - for residential and commercial premises, widely used in Europe. I recommend installing ABB circuit breakers with characteristic B on all cable lines in apartments and private houses, with the exception of those with large starting currents (pumps, motors, etc.).
ABB automatic machines type C (5-10)*I nom are the most common type in Russia. In older networks, where the lines are in poor condition and short-circuit currents may be small, ABB type C circuit breakers may not operate at all. It is correct to install “B” machine guns in new shields.
ABB automatic circuit breakers type D from (10-20)*I nom - used mainly in industry, in control circuits of motors, machine tools, low-voltage transformers and other devices where inrush currents are high.
ABB circuit breakers type K from (10-14)*I nom - used to protect electric motors, transformers and control circuits.
ABB automatic circuit breakers type Z (2-3)*I nom – protection of control circuits from short circuits and small continuous overloads.
The designation of the characteristics (type) of the electromagnetic release for ABB circuit breakers is applied to the housing.
Depending on the sensitivity (type of electromagnetic release), ABB circuit breakers are produced with different rated currents. Because machines with characteristic B are more sensitive than C and D, then ABB does not make them less than 6 A:
ABB type B circuit breakers (rated currents from 6 to 63 A)
ABB automatic machines type C and type D (rated currents from 0.5 to 63 A)
Circuit breaker from S200 series
This product is one of the most powerful and advanced machines among the rest. It refers to a special professional system with increased power.
Please note that this circuit breaker has a short circuit electrolysis current, that is, a stopping property, that can reach up to 30 thousand amperes. At the same time, its power connections can break the circuit that passes an electric current of a given power through itself, without damaging themselves.
There are several types of ABB circuit breakers from this professional series: S200, S200 M and S200 P. The difference between them is only in the disconnecting property: 6, 10 and 25 thousand amperes.
The highest permissible current at which the equipment can operate indefinitely is – 100. The entire scale of these values: 0.5, 1, 1.6, 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 16, 20, 25, 32, 40, 50, 63, 80, 100.
All products are manufactured with all possible technical characteristics: B, C, D, K and Z.
In addition, an important detail of these automatic devices is that it is easy to connect to them a special connecting bus PIN rail, for which special conclusions are made.
In the event that you do not have such a bus during electrical installation, you can use another cable instead.
This must be done so that all other wires are not compressed in one clamp. For products with a power of 80-100 amperes, use cores with a cut diameter of 50. And for machines with a power of less than 60 amperes - up to 40
Important! The use of connecting busbars during electrical installation makes it high quality and safe. In addition, such an element helps to save space in the electrical panel. Sometimes, this is the first priority. It is also easy to maintain - there is a special screen with indicators on the outside of the panel.
ABB automatic machines by number of poles
ABB circuit breakers are produced with a number of poles from 1 to 4. Single-pole ABB 1P circuit breakers occupy 1 module in the panel and are designated S201, two-pole ABB 2P circuit breakers - 2 modules (S202), three-pole ABB 3P circuit breakers - 3 modules (S203) and four-pole 4P - 4 module (S204).
Two-module ABB S200 circuit breakers are available with both two 2P releases in each pole and one 1P+N (S201 NA). Also four-module automatic machines ABB 4P or 3P+N (S203 NA). That is, there is no protection in the neutral conductor circuit.
For people who understand little about electrical engineering or who do not want to understand the intricacies of connecting an RCD with several circuit breakers , I recommend installing 2P or 1P+N circuit breakers in the electrical panels of apartments or private houses, i.e. two-pole or two-module.
Brief characteristics of ABB circuit breakers
As we said at the beginning of the article, you can find three types of medium voltage switches on the manufacturer’s official website. They are often found in electrical panels of high-rise buildings.
- S200
- SH200l
- Basic M
Now let's look at a more detailed description of each type of circuit breaker and their functional properties.
It should be noted that all products from these series can have either one or four polarities at once. Pay attention to combinations such as:
- An automatic switch with two poles, at the same time, they have a thermal release and a special electromagnetic release (it is designated as 2p);
- A circuit breaker with two poles, but there is tripping only on one of the poles (it is designated as 1p + N).
These rules also apply to automatic switches for three-phase circuits.
Circuit breaker from the Basic M series
The final type of circuit breakers from which we will consider today is Basic M. The product’s functional properties are similar to SH200l. By the way, it is produced in Bulgaria, and the previous two types are produced in Germany.
Products from this line have a disconnecting property at 5 thousand amperes. The scale of minimum electric currents is: 6, 10, 16, 20, 25, 32, 40, 50, 63.
Time-current characteristic - C. For machines with a power of up to 40 amperes, conductors with a diameter of less than 30 are connected. And for circuit breakers with a power of up to 65 amperes - 30. The difference between the front panels can be seen in the picture below.
Despite the fact that the Basic M series machines are much cheaper than their “colleagues,” most buyers recommend them. Due to the convenience of electrical installation and reliability.
Connecting busbar (comb) PIN type
Experts say that it is impossible to achieve high-quality and safe electrical installation without the use of connecting busbars.
We are talking about PIN rails, which are used when connecting circuit breakers in an electrical panel. There are three types of them:
- PS – used to connect circuit breakers from the S series.
- PSH – used for the SH series.
- Basic M.
It should be said that there are very big differences between them.
For example, if you use a PSH bus with products from the S200 series, you will need to turn it in the opposite direction - facing the plastic protection. If this is not done, the bus will become crooked and the wires will not connect.
PIN type connecting combs are manufactured with different numbers of poles. This, in turn, makes it possible to perform work on a three-phase circuit, install a residual current device, and much more.
The number of bus poles is determined by the first digit after the alphabetic code. For example, PS1 has one pole, and PS3 has three. The poles change every three times: 1-2-3-1-2-3.
