高压真空断路器的电气寿命是指设备技术条件中规定的和型式试验中实际进行的满（负荷）容量开断次数。但由于在实际应用中，高压真空断路器触头是不能维修和更换的，所以要求高压真空断路器有足够高的电气寿命是很有必要的。

The electrical life of a high voltage vacuum breaker is the number of full (load) capacity that is actually carried out in the technical conditions of the equipment and in type trials. But because in practical applications, the high voltage vacuum circuit breaker contacts cannot be repaired or replaced, so life of electric high voltage vacuum circuit breaker has a high enough, it is very necessary.

　　新一代真空灭弧室采用了纵向磁场电极和铜铬触头材料。纵向磁场电极成倍的降低了短路/开断电流作用下的电弧电压。为使电弧在触头表面尽可能均匀分布，铜铬触头材料降低了单位电弧能量所造成的触头烧损量。这两者的有机结合，使得高压真空断路器的电气寿命有了突破性的提高。当前，我国高压真空断路器在开断/闭合能力等方面的性能是比较高的，也是比较稳定的。

The new generation vacuum arc chamber adopts longitudinal magnetic field electrode and copper chrome contact material. The longitudinal field electrode has reduced the voltage of the arc in short circuit/open circuit. In order to make the electric arc as uniform as possible on the surface of the contact surface, the copper and chrome contact material reduces the amount of contact burned by the unit arc energy. The combination of the two has led to a breakthrough in the electrical life of the high-pressure vacuum breaker. At present, the performance of high voltage vacuum circuit breaker in open/close capacity is high and stable.

　　我国早期高压真空断路器电气寿命只有30次，运行最长的已有20余年，在电力系统至今还没有发现高压真空断路器因为短路/开断电流的电气寿命问题而退役，也没有发现因为短路/开断电流的电气寿命短导致事故发生，这就充分说明这些高压真空断路器基本上能够满足电力系统对于短路/开断电流电气寿命的要求。所以，高压真空断路器的短路/开断电流电气寿命并不要求越高越好。

Early life of electric high voltage vacuum circuit breaker is only 30 times in China, the longest running more than 20 years, in the power system has yet to find high voltage vacuum circuit breaker because life of electric short circuit/open circuit current and retired, also found no because they have a short life of electric short circuit/open circuit current lead to accidents, it is that these high voltage vacuum circuit breaker can basically meet the power system to the requirement of short circuit/open circuit life of electric current. Therefore, the short circuit/open current of high voltage vacuum breaker is not as high as the higher the better.