SIQuench ®
Arc quenching device
for medium-voltage switchgear
"Protection beyond the standards"
The controller
A microprocessor-based device designed to control and monitor SIQuench switching elements.
Connected via fiber optical input to the arc flash relay, it is triggered in the event of an arc fault, and at almost the same time operates the switching elements.
LEDs at the front panel provide information about the current state of the controller and the switching devices. The status of the SIQuench system can be communicated to a substation control system.
The arc flash protection relay
Rapidly and reliably detects the ignition of an internal arc via continuously monitoring light and overcurrent. These are the standard characteristics of an arc that makes it detectable.
SIQuench
The enhanced internal arc quenching functionality of SIQuench is achieved by consciously creating a solid metal short-circuit to earth by closing the main current path of the SWG to ground thus extinguishing the arc fault instantaneously. Long before the pressure peak, and before the arc can cause any significant damage to the switchgear. The power is back on very soon.
The switching process is reversible hence SIQuench is reusable.
The arc light point sensors
Each high voltage compartment of the switchgear is equipped with light point sensors with a light sensitive photodiode element activated by arc light. This enables a quick and accurate location of the faulted area. They are continuously self-supervised through the connected arc flash protection relay.
