Diversified industrial manufacturer Eaton Corporation expanded its solar disconnect solutions for commercial and utility PV solar applications. With its new Eaton bi-directional disconnect switches, Eaton is the first in the industry to offer a product that can switch one circuit per pole and remove polarity limitations. The new disconnect switches incorporate the latest switching technology to enhance operator safety, extend equipment life and reduce installation costs in both grounded and ungrounded systems.

“Part of Eaton’s balance of system solutions, these new safety switches incorporate the latest advances in DC switching technology and are engineered to break potentially dangerous, high-energy DC arcs regardless of current flow direction,” said Brendan Foley, product line manager at Eaton.

 

The new safety switches are available at 30, 60 and 100 amperes and have either 600 volts (V) direct current (DC) or 1000 V DC configurations, and meet Underwriters Laboratories® (UL) rigorous 98B standard.  These new switches are available for either grounded or ungrounded PV Systems, and are capable of breaking up to six circuits with one switch.  Switches for grounded systems include individual, isolated terminals for landing the grounded conductors.

 

The disconnects leverage Eaton’s latest switching technology utilizing dual-magnetic fields to quickly break the DC arc. The technology allows the Eaton switch to interrupt a 600v circuit with only one switching pole, and 1000v with three poles in series.

 

For more information about the disconnect switches or Eaton’s complete balance of system solutions and services for solar PV systems, visit www.eaton.com/solar.

 

Eaton’s electrical business is a global leader in power distribution, power quality, control and automation, power monitoring, and energy management products and services. Eaton is positioned, through its global electrical product series and solutions to answer today’s most critical electrical power management challenges.

 

Eaton Corporation is a diversified power management company with more than 100 years of experience providing energy-efficient solutions that help our customers effectively manage electrical, hydraulic and mechanical power. With 2011 sales of $16.0 billion, Eaton is a global technology leader in electrical components, systems and services for power quality, distribution and control; hydraulics components, systems and services for industrial and mobile equipment; aerospace fuel, hydraulics and pneumatic systems for commercial and military use; and truck and automotive drivetrain and powertrain systems for performance, fuel economy and safety. Eaton has approximately 73,000 employees and sells products to customers in more than 150 countries. For more information, visit www.eaton.com.

 

 

###