Quote:
Originally Posted by adciv
I'm basing this off my experience with other types of circuit breakers and what we would permit with them. This is regardless of if it works or not.
Yes, ambient temperatures affect thermal circuit breakers. Using any sort of device to intentionally cool the breaker violates the intent of the safety mechanism. If a team is popping breakers after X time, they are then exceeding the ratings. The only reason for attempting to cool it down is to "cold soak" the breaker to attempt to uprate the breaker and increase the current required to trip it. I see little difference between intent in using compressed air and packing dry ice around a breaker during a match.
Now, if a team wishes to cherry pick which breaker they want to use, that is a different matter. But intentionally manipulating the environment around the breaker to prevent the breaker from tripping is a direct attempt to bypass the safety mechanism the breaker provides.
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Your fallacy is in assuming the intent of the breaker is to limit temperature of the bar inside and not to limit current through the breaker.
If the breaker under normal operating conditions (ie: starting at roomp temp) can reach current A before tripping, due to temperature A, then if a match is played shortly thereafter, and the temperature of the bar has not returned to room temp, it will actually trip at some current less than A.
How is restoring the breaker to the properties it has at room temperature a safety risk? If you accept that the breaker is meant to operate at room temperature in a safe manner, there is no justification for claiming that cooling it to room temperature rapidly is any different than operating it as if it were always at room temperature.