Vacuum circuit breaker switching in photovoltaic power plants - investigation on transient overvoltages

The goal of the work presented in this article is to investigate transient overvoltages that can occur during vacuum circuit breaker (VCB) opening operation on a grid connected photovoltaic (PV) power plant. Breaking of several amps of current using a vacuum interrupter can lead to generation of multiple arc re-strikes, which at certain network topologies can be hazardous in terms of high overvoltage peak values and significant voltage steepness. Extensive studies of transient overvoltages in these topologies are required due to the fact that the transient response of the de-energized compartment is dependent not only from medium voltage side components, but also from the low voltage ones. This is a result of the fact that PV panels generate DC voltage and current that have to be converted…