This figure shows the results of a numerical simulation of the arc-flow interaction in a circuit breaker. The breaker chamber is axisymmetric and the arc bridges the left and right electrodes located close to the axis. The blowing gas enters the upper left boundary at a total pressure of 23 atmospheres.
Atmospheric pressure is imposed at the outlets.
A finite-volume method based on a second order Riemann solver is used to solve the conservation equations. The arc is modelled with two source terms in the energy equation representing, respectively, the ohmic heating and the radiation transport. The upper figure illustrates the computational grid colored according to the Mach number distribution. The central figure represents the temperature distribution inside the chamber. The lower figure shows the pressure distribution resulting from the interaction.