Influence of Breaking Arc on Mass and Surface Condition of Current-Collecting Materials

Abstract

Examination methods that involve a slide between contact wires and contact strips are methods that simulate the actual current-collecting phenomena encountered in the railway field. However, the influence of a breaking arc on the mass and surface of contact materials cannot be clarified by these methods, because the mass change includes the wear and arc erosion that occur during the methods. This paper tries to clarify these problems by using a breaking arc that is generated without using a wire to begin an arc discharge. The breaking arc is generated in this way to resemble the phenomena of arc generation in the railway field.