ELCB

c
An arth eakage ircuit

reaker was the first name given to what is now called a round
ault ircuit nterrupter (GFCI) . The original type of ELCB or GFCI was designed only to
detect a current flowing in the safety "ground" or "earth" wire.
If there is no fault anywhere in a circuit supplying single-phase alternating power to a unit such
as an electrical appliance, machine or other equipment, the current flowing Ê the unit at any
instant in the "hot" or "live" wire should exactly match the current flowing from the unit in
the neutral wire. Similarly, there should be no current flowing in the unit's safety "ground" or
"earth" wire.
It is a basic fact of electrical engineering design that all current flowing to an electrical
appliance, machine or other equipment the power generation station via its supply circuit's
"hot" or "live" wire should only return Ê the power station via that same circuit's "neutral" wire.
So, as a result of that basic fact, if any current flowing in the ground wire, it must be caused by
a fault condition and the supply of current to the circuit needs to be stopped urgently. Many years
ago, before today's electronic RCDs or GFCIs were designed, much simpler electro-mechanical
relays called arth eakage ircuit
reakers (ELCBs) were invented so that, if any such ground
current exceeding just a few milliamps was detected, they would "trip" - meaning "operate" - to
break the current supply to the circuits for which they were installed to protect.
The original type of ELCB or GFCI did not check for any difference in current flowing in the
live and neutral wires, which is another indication of a very serious fault condition - even if no
current can be detected flowing in the ground wire - because the "missing current" may actually
be flowing to ground via someone's body!
When RCDs were invented, most manufacturers of GFCIs adopted the same technology because
it offers so much more protection to users than the original GFCI could ever give.
In the US and Canada such devices are still commonly known as "GFCIs" or "GFIs" even though
they have the additional "residual current detector" functionality, whilst in Europe and elsewhere
the more accurate name of "Residual Current Detector" or RCD has been widely adopted for
general use instead of using the name of the much simpler GFCI device.
c

A iniature ircuit
reaker. An MCB is a device designed to protect a circuit's wiring from the
serious damage which would be caused if it has to carry a current which is too high for the
diameter of its wires. Such a current could easily heat up the wires so much that their insulation
melts. If that situation were allowed to develop further it would soon cause the wires in a cable to
short out and to burn so hot that they could easily cause a house fire.
Before circuit breakers were invented, simple wire fuses were used: the wire in the fuses was
deliberately made much thinner than the wires in the circuits they were intended to protect. Thus,
if a fault condition occured, as the current in the circuit grew higher and higher, a point would be
reached at which the thin wire of the fuse would get so hot that it would melt - all safely
contained within the body of the fuse - and thus break the flow of current in the circuit it was
protecting.
The problem with fuses is that - depending on their design, as some are faster-acting than others -
it can take a significantly longer amount of time for them to operate compared with today's very-
fast-acting circuit breakers. That fact means that, if a circuit overload current fault condition
occurs, considerable damage can still occur both to the circuit wiring and/or to the unit it is
supplying with power. Then, after the fault condition has been fixed, the melted or "blown" fuse
wire in a rewireable type of fuse has to be replaced or - if it is a "disposable cartridge" fuse - the
blown fuse cartridge has to be thrown away and replaced by a new one. A circuit breaker, if it is
still in good condition, only needs to be reset.
It is no joke to say Ê Ê
Ê ! One more fact needs to be mentioned: a

significant design feature built into today's circuit breakers is their ability to "self-destruct on a
crowbar fault ". A "crowbar fault" is a very serious overload condition, so bad that it would
cause many thousands of amps to flow, just as if someone had thrown down a heavy metal
crowbar tool onto power lines to connect both hot and neutral wires... Such a fault condition can
only be stopped by what is the ultimate fail-safe function of all modern circuit breakers: by using
electro-magnetic technology similar to that of a simple relay, they are designed to self-destruct at
least as fast as - if not faster than - the fastest acting fuses!
In brief, wherever electrical equipment - and the wiring which supplies it - need to be protected
from overload current fault conditions then:
a) if the physical space available allows circuit breakers to be installed, and
b) if the higher initial costs of deploying circuit breakers can be afforded
then it is significantly better to deploy circuit breakers instead of fuses.
For more information on all these topics see the answers to the 0 shown below

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÷

! "#÷ $÷%

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What if lights do not 2 but outlets 2?

You probably blew the breaker for the lights. While usually the lights and outlets in a room
are on the same breaker, it isn't always done that way. And you may have blown the light
bulbs in the...
What can be done for a speedometer that 2 and then does not 2 then 2?
You can check the speedometer cable for breaks and the ends to make sure they are still
square. also check the plastic gear in the transmission, it could be stripped. my experience
leans towards the...
How battery 2 and how capacitor 2?
Batteries work frrom a circut so they make eletrcul things work
Can you 2 in a pub for 2 experience?
If you're working in the services industry then yes a pub experience would count.
Where do fisherman 2 in japan and how do they 2?
sea

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c

An arth eakage ircuit

It is no joke to say Ê Ê

Ê ! One more fact needs to be mentioned: a

a) if the physical space available allows circuit breakers to be installed, and

b) if the higher initial costs of deploying circuit breakers can be afforded

then it is significantly better to deploy circuit breakers instead of fuses.

What if lights do not 2 but outlets 2?

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ELCB

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ELCB

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c 

An arth eakage ircuit

It is no joke to say  Ê  Ê

  Ê ! One more fact needs to be mentioned: a

a) if the physical space available allows circuit breakers to be installed, and

b) if the higher initial costs of deploying circuit breakers can be afforded

then it is significantly better to deploy circuit breakers instead of fuses.

What if lights do not 2 but outlets 2?

You might also like

c

An arth eakage ircuit

It is no joke to say Ê Ê

Ê ! One more fact needs to be mentioned: a

What if lights do not 2 but outlets 2?