Why is Overpressure Protection Necessary on Electrical Equipment?
Overpressure protection is a necessity for many process applications and many different products can meet specific application needs.
When considering to choose a Safety Valve, a Safety Relief Valve, a Tank Vent, or a Bursting or Rupture Disc, it is important to review the application for which they will be utilized. Our example today has to do with Switchgears.
Switchgears use rupture discs on cabinets where conductors and contacts are insulated by pressurized (SF6) sulphur hexafluoride gas. Molecule seen below.
The reason for this is that within switchgear housings, very large amounts of energy are released in the form of heat and even radiation. This energy may give rise to pressure increases which may burst the enclosure unless the heated gases are given the possibility to flow out through relief openings.
In the event of an internal fault, a pressure relief device would operate before internal pressure exceeds the design limit of the compartment. The pressure relief device should be designed so that discharges resulting from internal faults are directed away from locations where personnel may be present.
Our OEM partner, Continental Disc Corporation (CDC) provides solutions for even the toughest pressure protection problems.
The benefits of using a Switchgear Overpressure Bursting Disc from CDC are:
- Reduces costs and risk by protecting against damage to surrounding equipment and injury to personnel due to catastrophic overpressure events.
- Clean consistent opening pattern to provide optimum flow conditions.
- Thicker rupture disc materials contribute to superior corrosive resistance.
Contact us today to learn more about what solutions are best suited to your application. The above information has been adapted from a CDC technical brief found here.
