In November 2012, ABB announced the first ultrafast HVDC circuit breaker. Mechanical circuit breakers are too slow for use in HVDC grids, although they have been used for years in other applications. Conversely, semiconductor breakers are fast enough but have a high resistance when conducting, wasting energy and generating heat in normal operation. The ABB breaker combines semiconductor and mechanical breakers to produce a hybrid breaker with both a fast break time and a low resistance in normal operation.
In November 2012, ABB announced the first ultrafast HVDC circuit breaker. Mechanical circuit breakers are too slow for use in HVDC grids, although they have been used for years in other applications. Conversely, semiconductor breakers are fast enough but have a high resistance when conducting, wasting energy and generating heat in normal operation. The ABB breaker combines semiconductor and mechanical breakers to produce a hybrid breaker with both a fast break time and a low resistance in normal operation.