Search

Premium Membership ♕

Limited Time Offer: Save 15% on PRO Plan with discount code: LRN15 and study specialized LV/MV/HV technical articles and studies.

Home / Technical Articles / Things About MCBs That Every Low Voltage Electrician Should Know

MCB Operation and characteristics

Miniature circuit breaker – MCB is a thermo-magnetic device, meaning that it has two methods of circuit interruption. A thermal mechanism, usually a bi-metallic strip, provides protection against moderate overcurrent.

Things About MCBs That Every Low Voltage Electrician Should Know
Things About MCBs That Every Low Voltage Electrician Should Know

The heating action of the current causes the bi-metallic strip to curve and break circuit contact. This method is complemented by a solenoid designed to respond to larger currents.

A diagram of an MCB is shown in Figure 1 below.

Figure 1 - Internal view of an MCB
Figure 1 – Internal view of an MCB

It should be apparent that the thermal trip has a slow response time and the solenoid trip has a rapid response time. When combined, these devices provide quite a sophisticated protection characteristic profile.

Table 1 //

BS EN 60898 device thermal characteristics

CurrentDesired Result
 1.13 In Must not trip within 1 h
 1.45 In ≤ 63A Must trip within 1 h
 1.45 x In, > 63A Must trip within 2 h
 2.55 In ≤ 32A Must trip between 1 and 60 s
 2.55 In, > 32A Must trip between 1 and 120 s

The two MCB’s characteristics are described:

  1. Thermal characteristic
  2. Magnetic characteristic

1. Thermal characteristic

The thermal, bi-metallic characteristic is summarized in Table 1. A further co-ordination of the requirement is that of Regulation 433.1.1 (iii) which is:

I2 ≤ 1.45 × Iz where I2 is the current that causes operation of the device.

By studying Table 1 above, it can be seen that this requirement is built into the product standard for BS EN 60898 devices and is effectively the calibration of the bi-metallic strip.

Go back to Characteristics ↑


2. Magnetic characteristic

The maximum rated current available for MCBs is 125A, and these BS EN 60898 devices are available with different magnetic sensitivities, denoted with a prefix B, C or D accordingly.

The different magnetic characteristics of BS EN 60898 circuit breakers are provided in Appendix 3 of BS 7671: 2008, but to illustrate the differences in the magnetic characteristics, Figure 2 shows a comparison of B, C and D types for devices of the same basic rating. A 32A circuit breaker with type C sensitivity is denoted C32, and it is a requirement of the equipment standard to apply this marking to the device.

The stated B, C or D sensitivities each have a minimum current that causes operation, and this is conventionally taken to be operation within 0.1 second. This is conventionally termed instantaneous operation or instantaneous tripping.

This minimum time convention is due to the mechanics of the circuit breaker, which will always require a certain minimum time, regardless of current for the trip mechanism to open.

Figure 2 - 32A MCB sensitivity characteristics comparison
Figure 2 – 32A MCB sensitivity characteristics comparison

Figure 2 shows that in order to achieve instantaneous tripping or tripping at 0.1 s, a 32A type B breaker requires 160A, a type C breaker 320A and a type D breaker 640A.


Table 2 //

Circuit breaker (BS EN 60898) selection for inrush current applications

TypeManufactured magnetic trip setting
(× In)
Typical applications
B3 to 5General domestic and resistive loads
C5 to 10Small motors (a few kW), small transformers fluorescent lighting and most inductive loads
D10 to 20DOL motors, large star delta motors, low- pressure sodium discharge lighting, larger transformers, welding machine supplies

Below these threshold currents the thermal mechanism is dominant, and has the same characteristic for all three devices. The magnetic characteristics determine the sensitivity type. Equipment connected or likely to be connected to the circuit must be assessed in terms of likely peak or inrush current.

Inrush current is the current that a load draws when the supply is switched on.

Values can range from being insignificant (a few times the normal current), 5 to 10 times normal current for iron core transformers (e.g. conventional ballast fluorescent luminaires) and up to 20 times normal current for much modern electronic equipment, including the power supplies found in user equipment.

While short-lived (often the peak current is a few milliseconds), this can cause circuit breakers to trip, but assessing the likelihood of a circuit breaker tripping is complicated. Table 2 above recommends circuit breaker types for typical inrush current applications.

Separately to inrush current, load peak current also needs to be considered. Peak current in respect of circuit breaker selection is a term used to describe a peak within the normal operation of a cyclic or time varying load.

If you have loads with significant cyclic peaks you need to confirm that the circuit breaker will not trip. This can be confirmed by studying the circuit breaker characteristic curve, but confirmation with the manufacturer may be necessary.

Go back to Characteristics ↑


Circuit Breakers – How they Work, What’s Inside


How does a Miniture Circuit Breaker (MCB) work


Reference // Guide to the Wiring Regulations – Darrell Locke IEng MIEE ACIBSE

Premium Membership

Get access to premium HV/MV/LV technical articles, electrical engineering guides, research studies and much more! It helps you to shape up your technical skills in your everyday life as an electrical engineer.
More Information
author-pic

Edvard Csanyi

Electrical engineer, programmer and founder of EEP. Highly specialized for design of LV/MV switchgears and LV high power busbar trunking (<6300A) in power substations, commercial buildings and industry facilities. Professional in AutoCAD programming.

30 Comments


  1. Sumesh V
    Jul 17, 2023

    Sir,
    It is learned that, the let through energy of a 32A MCB is 1110000A2Sec.
    Let me kindly be informed, how this value is arrived.


  2. Yoong
    May 31, 2023

    Pls review table 1 against IEC 60898.


  3. Ganagalla Polaraju
    Mar 28, 2021

    Can I use above image in my YouTube channel for explanation..


  4. Abdul Seaforth
    Mar 12, 2021

    Thank you


  5. Draoui Abdelghani
    Jun 19, 2018

    Clear and concise explanation , thank you so much :) .


  6. Arslan Tariq
    Dec 31, 2017

    Nice one sir. Thanks for so much info through this portal.


  7. Doug Tucker
    Mar 28, 2017

    Excellent article. Everything you need to know about ‘breakers’ summarised


  8. Joshua
    Jun 08, 2016

    Sir edvard thank you…sir if i may ask what are the common tests done to a building during the turnover or testing and commissioning? thanks and God Bless.


  9. Joshua
    Jun 08, 2016

    Thank you sir edvard for this…God Bless…would just like to ask sir what are the tests conducted on a building during turnover or testing and commissioning exercises? Thanks again sir.


  10. S.Yasitharan
    Oct 21, 2015

    excellent this is very use full to Me Thank a lot ….


  11. Mohammad Omar Thapet
    Oct 08, 2015

    Hello everybody I have 220 VAC /20A circuit breaker can I use it for 12 VDC of 20A load ? Please help me.


  12. Yuva
    Sep 28, 2015

    Good news


  13. Pavel Bulka
    Sep 06, 2015

    Hi, Edvard!
    I hope You are Ok!
    I’m got from You another important informations in my job.
    Thank You!


    • Edvard
      Sep 06, 2015

      Excellent, I’m glad for you!


  14. Tyler
    Aug 25, 2015

    Thank you for your insight and information. Great Information for my customers. Can we share this?


    • Edvard
      Sep 06, 2015

      Sure, that’s the whole point :)


  15. Milivoj *Mil) Zec
    Aug 25, 2015

    Maybe what is missing is the use of MCB in DC. Tripping values are different. Unless I have overlooked it?
    Regards Mil Zec


    • Edvard
      Aug 25, 2015

      Good notice, but I haven’t consider DC MCB at all, it’s about the most common AC MCBs.


  16. mahmoud sayed
    Aug 25, 2015

    thank you edvard hope too much progress for you and your partenrs


  17. piet
    Aug 24, 2015

    very interesting


  18. San
    Aug 24, 2015

    Hi Edvard,
    Then there is overload capability for MCBs ?
    for how many times In and for how long?


    • Edvard
      Aug 24, 2015

      Yes, MCB has circuit protection against both short-circuit currents and overload currents. On this example from main picture, MCB with B curve will trip on 3,5xIn and without any delay, immediately.


  19. Tarek El-Shennawy
    Aug 23, 2015

    Thanks Edvard, I used to teach faculty of engineering students a distribution course, can I use the material supplied in this technical note?


  20. Stephen Peacock
    Aug 22, 2015

    Another very informative and concise reference.


    • Edvard
      Aug 22, 2015

      Thank you Stephen.


      • Bharath
        Aug 22, 2015

        In the MCB image above c60HB means..


        • Edvard
          Aug 22, 2015

          This is the complete meaning of MCB nameplate from above MCB picture:

          C60 – Circuit breaker model number (Schneider Electric // Merlin Gerin)
          B – Magnetic characteristic, type B
          H – Limitation capability of MCB, in this case of 3-pole up to 63A (like on pic) is 15kA
          B32 – Tripping curve, set to 32A
          415V – Operating voltage
          10000 – Rated breaking capacity (in Amps)
          3 – I2t classification

Leave a Comment

Tell us what you're thinking. We care about your opinion! Please keep in mind that comments are moderated and rel="nofollow" is in use. So, please do not use a spammy keyword or a domain as your name, or it will be deleted. Let's have a professional and meaningful conversation instead. Thanks for dropping by!

ninety five  −    =  eighty nine

Learn How to Design Power Systems

Learn to design LV/MV/HV power systems through professional video courses. Lifetime access. Enjoy learning!

Subscribe to Weekly Newsletter

Subscribe to our Weekly Digest newsletter and receive free updates on new technical articles, video courses and guides (PDF).
EEP Academy Courses - A hand crafted cutting-edge electrical engineering knowledge