Electrical contact alloy for vacuum contactors
AssigneeEaton Intelligent Power Limited
InventorsLOUIS GRANT CAMPBELL, GANESH KUMAR BALASUBRAMANIAN, BENJAMIN ALEX ROSENKRANS
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Abstract
An improved electrical contact alloy, useful for example, in vacuum interrupters used in vacuum contactors is provided. The contact alloy according to the disclosed concept comprises copper particles and chromium particles present in a ratio of copper to chromium particles of 2:3 to 20:1 by weight. The electrical contact alloy also comprises particles of a carbide, which reduces the weld break strength of the electrical contact alloy without reducing its interruption performance.
Claims7
A method of making an electrical contact for use in a vacuum interrupter comprising:
- milling carbide particles to a desired size;
- providing copper and chromium particles that are larger in size than the milled carbide particles;
- mixing the milled carbide particles with the copper and chromium particles, present in a ratio of copper to chromium particles at 2:3 to 20:1 by weight;
- pressing the mixture into a compact;
- and,
- heating the compact to a temperature appropriate to a sintering process selected from the group consisting of solid state sintering, liquid phase sintering, spark plasma sintering, vacuum hot pressing, and hot isostatic pressing, such that the compact attains the properties suitable for use as a vacuum interrupter contact.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.