I was going through the Factories (Electricity) Regulations of Zambia. Regulation number 8 has two parts;
(1) Every switch intended to be used for breaking a circuit and every circuit breaker and each pole of a double-pole or multi-pole switches or circuit-breakers shall be so constructed that it cannot with proper care be left in partial contact.
(2) Every switch intended to be used for breaking a circuit and every circuit breaker shall so be so constructed that an arc cannot be accidentally maintained.
So what is partial contact and how is it different form arcing? Can we call two separate contacts with different potentials having an arc maintained between them in partial contact? Why is a single pole switch not mentioned in (1)?
(1) Every switch intended to be used for breaking a circuit and every circuit breaker and each pole of a double-pole or multi-pole switches or circuit-breakers shall be so constructed that it cannot with proper care be left in partial contact.
(2) Every switch intended to be used for breaking a circuit and every circuit breaker shall so be so constructed that an arc cannot be accidentally maintained.
So what is partial contact and how is it different form arcing? Can we call two separate contacts with different potentials having an arc maintained between them in partial contact? Why is a single pole switch not mentioned in (1)?