The Siemens SENTRON 3VA2010-7JP36-0AA0 is a 3-pole molded case circuit breaker rated for 100 A continuous current, built around the ETU550 electronic trip unit. It's designed for line protection — the primary feeder or distribution circuit in a panel, not motor or generator protection. The ETU550 gives you adjustable long-time, short-time, instantaneous, and ground-fault pickup settings, which means you can tune the curve for selectivity with downstream breakers without sacrificing coordination upstream. That matters when you're trying to keep a single fault from dropping half the plant.
Interrupting ratings and what they mean for your panel
This breaker carries a 330 kA interrupting rating at 240 V, 242 kA at 415 V and 440 V, 187 kA at 500 V, and 3 kA at 690 V. The 330 kA figure at 240 V is the headline number — that's the fault current it can safely clear at the most common low-voltage distribution level. At 415 V and 440 V the 242 kA rating still covers most industrial service-entrance and large feeder applications. The sharp drop to 3 kA at 690 V tells you this is a 600 V class breaker; it's not intended for 690 V distribution duty. For a buyer sizing SCCR for a 480 V panel, the 242 kA at 440 V is the relevant number — that's the available fault current the breaker can interrupt without welding contacts or venting plasma.
Physical fit and panel integration
The breaker measures 105 mm wide, 181 mm tall, and 86 mm deep. That's a standard 3-pole MCCB footprint for the SENTRON 3VA platform — it mounts on a DIN rail or directly to a backplate with the supplied hardware. The 105 mm width means it occupies roughly four 27 mm module spaces on a DIN rail, which is typical for a 100 A frame. Front IP40 protection keeps dust and accidental contact out of the trip unit and terminals, but it's not sealed against washdown — mount it inside a cabinet, not in a wet location.
Trip unit and adjustment range
The ETU550 electronic trip unit gives you adjustable overload and short-circuit protection. The continuous current rating is fixed at 100 A across the full ambient temperature range from -25 °C to 70 °C — no derating needed up to that limit. The breaker's minimum trip setting is 150 A and maximum is 1 200 A, which covers the short-time and instantaneous pickup ranges. For a 100 A feeder, you'd typically set the long-time pickup around 100 A (the rated value), short-time at maybe 400-600 A for selectivity with downstream 20-30 A branch breakers, and instantaneous at 800-1200 A to clear bolted faults fast. The ETU550 also supports communication functions — you can read trip events and settings over a bus if the panel is wired for it.