The company said sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) gas has higher global warming potential than CO2, therefore it has substituted SF6 with CO2 as the insulating and arc extinguishing medium.
Each new 72.5 kV LTA breaker, which has technology based on the same principles and components as its SF6 based predecessor, could reduce CO2 emissions by 10 tons through the product life cycle.
ABB is offering the new product as a conventional circuit breaker and as a disconnecting circuit breaker (DCB), which integrates the disconnecting function with the breaker.
ABB High Voltage Products business head Giandomenico Rivetti said this move is yet another ABB innovation milestone and reaffirms its ongoing commitment to minimizing environmental impact.
"This CO2 breaker is part of our strategic thrust to develop eco-efficient high-voltage products with increased reliability," Rivetti added.
Power and automation group ABB operates in around 100 countries and employs about 145,000 people.
