Research on the Bounce Suppression of the 3-D Interpenetrating Cu-W

Abstract

The bouncing of the contactor upon closing can cause adhesion of contacts and wear of the contact tips, and these factors directly influence the reliability and electrical longevity of the contactor. In this study, a 3-D interpenetrating Cu-W contact with rhombic dodecahedron (RD) skeleton was fabricated using 3-D printing and infiltration technology; some commercial Cu-W contacts were prepared as comparison. Based on Hertz contact theory and extended theory, combined with the Kelvin-Voigt spring damping model, the principle of energy dissipation in contactor contact collision was analyzed. The Young modulus and damping coefficient of the two types of Cu-W contacts were obtained through stress-strain experiments and damping experiments using an INSTRON 5582 testing machine and a DpV55 shaker. The contact bounce characteristics of the two contact tips under different contactor parameters were obtained using a contact bounce test device and finally validated in practical contactors. The results show that the RD-structured Cu-W contact tip with a higher damping coefficient has more internal friction and better energy absorption when subjected to collision impacts, effectively suppressing contact bounce and exhibiting superior anti-bounce performance, especially at high-speed closings.