What if I filled my renuable fuses with sand?


"R. O'Brian" wrote in message
news:7DdFd.21187$Wo.3145@lakeread08...
The sand is an essential component in current limiting fuses. It provides
a
heat sink and absorbent for the metal vapor created when the fuse element
blows. Without it, the fuse barrel would be filled with ionized gases and
metallic vapor when interrupting high currents. Current interruption(if
it
occurred at all) would have to wait for a natural current zero before
enough
time would elapse to allow the ionization to dissipate. Conversely,
current
limiting fuses have the ability to interrupt the current flow well before
the first half cycle completes. This feature much reduces total energy
released by a fault, saving equipment damage and reducing fire hazard. A
side benefit is that the fuse does not vent any hot gases into the
enclosure
in which it is mounted.

Randy


wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi, Jeff.
The sand is not to quench the arc, but to hold the fusable material
steady through all those years of heating almost to the fusing point,
and then cooling. Without the sand support, the thin material would
rather quickly break.

Paul, KD7HB