Silver Tin Oxide Contact Material using Nano-technology for LV Switchgear

Electrical Research and Development Association (ERDA)

Silver based alloys are used for electrical contacts in low-voltage switchgear. Silver-tin oxide of 90:10 composition is the most commonly used material amongst all. Due to continuous escalation as well as unpredictable variation in the cost of silver, possibilities of reduction in use of silver are being explored. Recent developments in materials processing technologies have made it possible to develop new compositions for many applications. In view of this, technology for preparing silver-tin oxide contacts (using 14% Tin Oxide) has been developed at ERDA.  

The contact tip made using the new process has been evaluated for material properties (Density: 98% of theoretical density; Electrical Conductivity: 82% IACS & Hardness: 95 HV). The performance of contacts in contactor of 16A, AC3 rating conforms to IEC 60947-4-1 (2012) for endurance test and is found to be at par with conventional (90: 10 Ag-SnO2) contacts.

Highlights of Technology

01

Specification of a contact tip made is as follows

  • Composition: Silver (86%) – Tin oxide (14%)
  • Density: 98% of theoretical density of monolithic material
  • Electrical Conductivity: 82% IACS
  • Hardness: 95 HV
  • Microstructure of contact tip: Uniform distribution of tin oxide particles in the silver matrix
  • Performance evaluation: Conforms to IEC 60947-4-1 (2012) for endurance test carried-out on contactor of rating 16A AC 3
01

Salient features of the process developed

  • Non-toxic
  • Less energy consumption
  • Less time
01

Application

  • Potential applications of this contact material will be low voltage circuit breakers like MCB, contactors, ELCB etc.
01

Benefits

  • Higher resistance to arc-erosion & higher anti-weldability
  • Higher hardness along with conductivity
  • As the Silver content is less than conventional by 4%, cost of the LV Switchgear made with new contact tips will be less by 4%.

ERDA's

Leadership Team

Dr. Satish Chetwani

Director

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01.

Dr. Uday Puntambekar

Asst. Director & Head of Division Mechanical and Insulating Materials, Rajahmundry, Purchase

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02.

Mr. Rajib Chattopadhyay

Sr. Manager & Head of Division PETE II (Impulse, Cable, CT-PT, Calibration), Rabale, Narol, ERDA North, Maintenance, (Electrical & Civil)

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03.

Mr. Anil Khopkar

Asst. Director & Head of Division Business Development & CRM, Corporate (Accounts & Finance, P&A, HR)

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04.

Mr. Anil Aswani

Asst. Director & Head of Division SEC (Third Party Inspection, Energy Meter, EMI/EMC, Appliance, Lamps & Luminaries, Motor & pumps, Power Systems)

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05.

Mr. Yashinkhan Pathan

Sr. Manager & Head of Division PETE I (Transformers, Switchgear, Short Circuit – Makarpura & Savli)

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06.

ERDA's

VISION

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ERDA's

MISSION

To Achieve Excellence by Virtue of Competence through R&D, Testing, Calibration, Training and Information Dissemination to Improve Quality and reduce the cost of Equipment, Materials and Services for Electrical Industries, Utilities and Users of Electricity.

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ERDA's

Middle Management Team

Name of Employee
Mr. Mehul Patel
Sr. Manager
HR
Mr. Pratik Shah
Asst. Manager
Accounts & Finance
Mr. Pranav Parikh
Dy. Manager
Business Development
Mr. Shailesh Patel
Sr. Manager
Cables, CT-PT, Capacitors & PD
Mr. Ravi Nandwana
Sr. Engineer
CT-PT & Capacitors
Mrs. Vidya Kapse
Dy. Manager
Customer Relationship Management
Mr. Puran Gajera
Dy. Manager
EMI/EMC
Mr. Nitin Chitte
Asst. Manager
Impulse – Makarpura
Mr. Anil Solanki
Sr. Manager
Information Technology
Mr. Jaydeep Sheth
Dy. Manager
Liquid Dielectric
Mr. Ravi Singh
Dy. Manager
Motors & Pumps, Solar Pump & Converters
Mr. Anil Suthar
Dy. Manager
Mechanical
Mr. Bhavesh Vasiyani
Manager
Non Destructive & Energy Management
Mr. Mitesh Prajapati
Sr. Engineer
Quality System
Mr. Sandeep Soni
Manager
Short Circuit 3– Savli
Mr. Amar Shah
Dy. Manager
Third Party Inspection
Mr. Asheesh Dhaneria
Manager
TM5(A) NPT Electronics,
TM5 (B) NPT Electrical
Mr. Munaf Patel
Manager
Short Circuit 2 – Makarpura
Mr. Pankaj Chawla
Manager
ERDA (North)
Name of Employee
Mr. Laxman Bhekare
Sr. Manager
Admin
Mr. Rakesh A Patel
Dy. Manager
Appliance
Mr. Brijesh Sachdeva
Manager
Business Development ERDA (North)
Mrs. Sheetal Panchal
Dy. Manager
Cables
Mr. Nirav Taunk
Manager
Calibration
Mr. Umesh Soni
Manager
Electrical Diagnostics
Mr. Tejas Mistri
Dy. Manager
Energy Meter
Mr. Tirthashankar Vishwakarma
Manager
Impulse – Savli
Mr. Nitin Patel
Dy. Manager
Lamps & Luminaires & Solar
Mr. Pramod Patel
Dy. Manager
Maintenance (Civil & Electrical)
Mrs. Sneha Sheth
Manager
Solid Dielectrics
Mrs. Bhoomi Patel
Dy. Manager
Metallurgy
Mr. Shailesh Modi
Sr. Manager
Power Systems
Mr. Jeetendra Tahilwani
Sr. Manager
Transformers & Short Circuit 2 – Makarpura
Mr. Goutam Som
Manager
Switchgear & IP
Ms. Shefali Talati
Dy. Manager
TM4 Power Systems (R&D), Documentation
Mr. Kapil Sharma
Dy. Manager
Transformers
Mr. Nitin Doshi
Sr. Manager
ERDA (West)
Mr. Rajesh Marri
Dy. Engineer
ERDA (South)

Where else are we located?

These services are provided through its 28 state-of-the-art centres located at its head office in Vadodara and three regional laboratories located

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Our Mission and Values statement clearly declares that we shall achieve excellence in our areas of operation. Achieving this excellence is not possible if we do not act with Integrity, Honesty, Impartiality, Dignity, Loyalty and Pride for the organization. We must always ensure that we live out those values every day.

One of our primary objectives is to help our customers, meet quality standards for virtually any market in the world and protect them against risk by ensuring compliance with local, national and international laws. The accuracy and validity of reports and certificates that we provide and maintaining the trust and confidence of our customers, their customers and others impacted by our work, are therefore important factors which contribute to our success.

Our objective is to achieve excellence by virtue of competence through R&D, testing, calibration, training and information dissemination to improve quality and reduce cost of equipment, materials and services for electrical industries, utilities and users of electricity.

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ERDA collaborates with Manufacturers, Distribution & Transmission Companies, Power Plants & Process Plants across India and Globe to meet their requirement for laboratory evaluation and contract research. Our state of the art laboratories along with highly competent manpower ensures proper evaluation of our client’s products and to get greater market access. With “Customer First” centric approach, more than 10,000 customers are part of ERDA family.

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A patent has also been filed on this technology. (Indian patent application No. 3274/MUM/2015 – Title “Method of making electrical contact tips for switch gears”)

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