ON VIDEO Difference Between Isolator and Circuit Breaker

 

Difference Between Isolator and Circuit Breaker

Electricity plays a major role in our society. Almost all household appliances and industrial machines run on electricity. Despite its extreme utility, electricity can be harmful when faults occur in the electrical system. Current overloads and short circuits can damage the equipment. The prevention of such incidents is imminent during the installation of an electrical system. Insulator and circuit breakers are such prevention systems.

Learn more about circuit breakers


A circuit breaker is an automatic switch, which is an on-load device, designed using electromechanical techniques to prevent overload damage and short circuits. A circuit breaker has a solenoid inside, and it is held at a certain voltage level, in order to keep the trip mechanism in balance. When a fault is observed in the circuit, such as an overload or a short circuit, the switch is tripped and the current flow is interrupted. After solving the problem with the electrical system, the circuit breaker can be turned on again.

Like fuses, circuit breakers are also available in many sizes and packages, to suit the requirements of the electrical system. At higher voltage levels, the circuit breaker mechanism can be submerged in an insulating material, such as oil, to improve performance. More advanced circuit breakers used in industrial applications regulate interruptions due to small inductive currents, capacitive switching, and asynchronous switching. They have a rated current and voltage indicating the maximum allowed current and voltage.

Learn more about Isolator

Isolator, unlike the circuit breaker, is a vacuum device and performs the task as the name suggests. It disconnects or isolates the circuit from the main power supply. Insulators are most commonly found in industrial grade electrical systems.

Even though Isolator is a switch, it does not serve as a normal switch. It is used only when the electrical system needs to be disconnected from the main power supply to perform maintenance operations or related activities involving direct contact with live machine components. Isolators can provide additional safety functions, for example, when the trapped load is turned off, it is grounded through a ground terminal located in the isolator. The isolators are normally placed after the circuit breaker, which allows the internal circuit to be disconnected from the main power supply without affecting the circuit breaker.

 

Difference Between Isolator and Circuit Breaker

Electricity plays a major role in our society. Almost all household appliances and industrial machines run on electricity. Despite its extreme utility, electricity can be harmful when faults occur in the electrical system. Current overloads and short circuits can damage the equipment. The prevention of such incidents is imminent during the installation of an electrical system. Insulator and circuit breakers are such prevention systems.

Learn more about circuit breakers


A circuit breaker is an automatic switch, which is an on-load device, designed using electromechanical techniques to prevent overload damage and short circuits. A circuit breaker has a solenoid inside, and it is held at a certain voltage level, in order to keep the trip mechanism in balance. When a fault is observed in the circuit, such as an overload or a short circuit, the switch is tripped and the current flow is interrupted. After solving the problem with the electrical system, the circuit breaker can be turned on again.

Like fuses, circuit breakers are also available in many sizes and packages, to suit the requirements of the electrical system. At higher voltage levels, the circuit breaker mechanism can be submerged in an insulating material, such as oil, to improve performance. More advanced circuit breakers used in industrial applications regulate interruptions due to small inductive currents, capacitive switching, and asynchronous switching. They have a rated current and voltage indicating the maximum allowed current and voltage.

Learn more about Isolator

Isolator, unlike the circuit breaker, is a vacuum device and performs the task as the name suggests. It disconnects or isolates the circuit from the main power supply. Insulators are most commonly found in industrial grade electrical systems.

Even though Isolator is a switch, it does not serve as a normal switch. It is used only when the electrical system needs to be disconnected from the main power supply to perform maintenance operations or related activities involving direct contact with live machine components. Isolators can provide additional safety functions, for example, when the trapped load is turned off, it is grounded through a ground terminal located in the isolator. The isolators are normally placed after the circuit breaker, which allows the internal circuit to be disconnected from the main power supply without affecting the circuit breaker.