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Lightning Protection of Substation
Assoc.Prof.Dr.-Ing. Thanapong Suwanasri
The Sirindhorn International Thai-German Graduate School of Engineering
(TGGS), KMUTNB, Bangkok
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Contents
1. Lightning Overvoltage
2. Impact of Lightning Strokes
3. Lightning Protection
4. Parameters used in calculation by Electrogeometric models
5. Protection against lightning for substation
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1. Lightning Overvoltages
1.1 Thunderstorms
+
E s : basic electric field strength
Earth
E s 100...200 V
m
Ionosphere
j ~ + 300 kV
h ~ 100..300 km
Separation of Charges
ES - Ice or water drop falls down (direction E )
s
- influences charges
- after elastic collision, small drop carries positive charge
- prerequisites : a) humidity
b) wind
up going wind
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Reasons for up going wind
I. Thermic warm weather thunderstorm
II. Cold front front based thunderstorm
warm air
cold weather
front
Earth
Clouds
10 km
++
E G : thunderstorm electric field strength
++
++ ++
v E G 1 kV
m
(1..10 kV
m
)
cloud stroke+
+
+ Remark : opposite direction to E s
ES + + 1 km
up going
wind EG
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1.2 Lightning Impulses in Power Systems – „external overvoltages“
Main impact: direct or indirect stroke in power/overhead lines
Lightning stroke at phase line
Lightning stroke at ground wire
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Development of thunderstorms
Life cycle of a cloud: (1) phase of generation; (2) development phase, (3) saturation phase, (4) reduction phase
Highest internal activity
highest external activity
Average life time: approx. 1 h
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Development of a Lightning Stroke
Negative charges fed by Development of leader discharge
center of cloud
As soon as breakdown field strength is exceeded:
- start of leader discharge within cloud
- growth of leader (some 10 ... 200m length)
Electric streamer: Ø some 10 m
Plasma channel: Ø approx. 2 mm
Influenced positive charge
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Development of a Lightning Stroke
Negative charges fed by center
of cloud
Development of leader discharge
After some 10 µs ... 100 µs
(recharging of stroke channel),
Growth of new leader
Influenced positive charge
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Development of a Lightning Stroke
Negative charges fed by center Development of leader discharge
of cloud
Continuous leader growth step-wise
(stepped leader)
Leader with
plasma
channel and
v 300 km/s (1/1000 c)
electric
streamer No uniform direction!
Growth until distance of some 10m
towards earth/earthed parts!
Significant growth of
electric field intensity on earth!
Influenced positive charge
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Development of a Lightning Stroke
Negative charges fed by center Development of leader discharge
of cloud
Upward leader growing towards
Leader with leader discharge
plasma
channel and
electric subsequently:
streamer
return stroke
• growth upwards
Upward • lightning
leader
• „noise“
• v 30.000 km/s (1/10 c)
• î up to 200 kA
Influenced positive charge • duration some few 10 µs
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Development of a Lightning Stroke
multiple strokes within time span of 10 ms up to 100 ms within ionized channel
Continuous leader (dart leader) with v 3000 km/s (1/100 c)
• higher rate of rise of lightning current
• reduced amplitude
• up to 54 multiple strokes reported --> „flashing“ of lightning
• often current tube of last stroke
11 strokes with peak currents between
7 and 63 kA
Current tube
Current tube
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Development of a Lightning Stroke
No multiple
strokes; highest Cloud-cloud-stroke
recorded current
peaks and
> 90% charges
Downward stroke
seldom!
Negative cloud-earth stroke Positive cloud-earth stroke
Starting from towers,
high rise buildings,...
Upward stroke
Negative earth-cloud stroke Positive earth-cloud stroke
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Lightning stroke parameter
Lightning strokes are load independent!
Source impedance of lightning channel:
• 900 Ohm (@ 50 kA)
• 2000 Ohm (@ 10 kA)
Surge impedance of transmission line: 300 Ohm
Earthing impedance: < 10 up to some 10 Ohm
Stroke parameters:
1. Peak current Î
di
2. Maximum rate of rise of current
î , , idt, i ² dt
3. Integration on current-time dt m ax
4. Integration on current²-time
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2. Impact of Lightning Strokes
a) Voltage
a.1) Direct Stroke (î low)
Z P i(t) Z stroke: high impedance current
source
load independent current !
u(t)
u(t) i(t) Z 12 Example:
î 20 kA; Z 380 Ω (110kV transmission line)
a.2) Indirect Stroke û 3.8 MV
travelling wave due to cloud lightning : Û 200 kV(experim ents)
cloud dangerous for - communicat ion lines
- medium/low voltage lines
line - gas-, water pipes etc.
earth
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a.3) Direct Stroke into Tower
1
u(t) i(t) R E
2
z.B. : î 80 kA; R E 5 Ω
û 400 kV only critical in caseof phase opposition!
RE
earthing resistance dependent on frequency!
b) Induced Voltage
b.1) Mutual Inductance
di
i(t) u(t) u max M but : evaluation of M difficult
max
dt
use EMC assured electronics
M
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b.2) Self Induction
reactive voltage drop :
L di
û L
d
dt m ax
avoid small bending radius!
c) Lightning Base Point
u A/K f(i) 20 V (main impact factor : i(t)dt)
electric arc energy input :
WA/K u i dt u A/K i(t)dt
u A/K i(t)dt
melted volume : V
energy radiation γ (c W S cS )
WA/K with : γ S : specific density
c W : specific thermal capacity
conductor
S : melting temperatur e
cS : heat of fusion
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d) Conductor
d.1) Adiabatic Heating precondition : ρ ρ 0 (1 αΔ)
c W const
i²dtαρ0
A²γc W
Δ α1 (e 1)
with : ρ : resistivit y
α : temperatu re coefficien t
A : conductor cross section in [m²]
d.2) Specific Line of Force
i/2 i/2
107
Fdt ´ i²dt
F F 2s
Ns [m] [A²s]
m²
s
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Lightning impulse voltage due to direct ligtning stroke
ilightning
u u
i i
i=i /2
lightning
u = Z ·i
Traveling waves for u, i due to direct lightning stroke
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Peak current of lightning stroke
Peak value î î = 5 kA ... 100 kA (250 kA very few cases)
Impulse voltage due to current and resistivity of earthing system
(overvoltages, flashovers)
Peak Value of traveling wave: û = Z·î
earthing resistance should be < 10 Ohm!
soil ρE in Ωm
Protection by:
Humid soil 30
1. Ground wire
Humid sand 200 2. protected zone concept
3. Surge arresters
Dry gravel 1000 4. Earthing systems
rock 3000
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Lightning protection of overhead lines
Reversed flashover
iB = 2·iE + iM
uM = iM·RM
Ground wire
RM ... Surge earthing impedance of tower
uIsol. = uM - uL
Phase wire
In case of phase opposition:
uIsol. = uM + |uL|
if
uIsol. > uimpulse
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Lightning protection of overhead lines
Reversed flashover Counter measure: RM < 10 Ohm
If not: phase arrester
Ground wire
Without spark gap
Phase wire
With spark gap
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Stroke to a tower:
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Lightning protection of overhead lines
Current distribution due to direct stroke into ground wire
Stromaufteilung auf benachbarte Masten nach einem Masteinschlag bzw. einem Einschlag in das Erdseil
in Spannfeldmitte; gleiche Maststoßerdungswiderstände angenommen
• current distribution after direct stroke into ground wire
• same surge impedances for all towers assumed
• dependent on surge impedance and phase angle of power system phases a reversed flashover may
occur
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Traveling waves due to lightning stroke in phase conductor
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
1 Lightning stroke two voltage waves each of û = ½ ·Z · î (example: û = ½ · 300 · 50 kA = 7,5 MV)
2 First flashover (example: flashover voltage 1.500 kV for Um = 420 kV)
3 Traveling wave: 1. peak = flashover voltage, 2. Peak dependent on tower surge earthing impedance
4 At 2. isolator: flashover in case that 2. Peak value exceed flashover breakdown strength
5 Traveling wave: 1. and 2. peak = flashover voltage, 3. Peak dependent on tower surge earthing impedance
6 7 Residual traveling wave with lower peak is traveling without further flashovers
3. Lightning Protection
2.1 Basic Theory
Causes an extremely large number of transients on power systems every year. Incidence
depends on the keraunic level – numbers of day / year when thunder is heard (T).
Lightning strokes tend to terminate on tall structures.
Vulnerability depends on the shadow cast by the object.
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If the stroke penetrates the region of the shadow, there is a good chance that it will strike
the line.
Number of strokes to earth / year / km 2 N kT 0.1 k 0.2
NW NW
Number of strokes to a line / year /100 km N L x100
1000 10
W is in meters
If k 0.12, for example, N L 0.012TW 0.012 X 25 X 160 48
number of lightning flashes to a line per hundred mile per year
Lightning stroke current
Magnitude is high, 30 kA, 50 kA are not unusual.
Computation of effects of lightning on power systems
Should try, as far as possible, to keep lightning out of the system
A useful way to look at lightning is as a current source. Use the Thevenin equivalent
current generator
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IS
IS stroke current ZS Z
ZS impedance of lightning channel
Z impedance of object struck
Z0
If lightning strikes a conductor between towers, Z
2
Z .Z S IS Z Z 1
surge voltage I S . IS 0 .
Z Z S 1 Z / Z S 2 Z
1 0
2Z S
Z0
ZS is typically several thousand ohms, so surge voltage I S
2
If IS 30 kA, Z 0 400 6 MV! !
which is likely to cause a sparkover or flashover.
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4. Parameters used in calculation by Electrogeometric models
Lightning Current ( BIL )
Is
Zs
2
Where Is = lightning current [kA]
BIL = Basic Lightning Impulse Insulation Level [kV]
Zs = surge impedance [Ohm]
Surge Impedance
2 hav
Z s 60 ln
r
Where Zs = surge impedance [Ohm]
hav = average height of conductor [m]
r = outside radius of conductor [m]
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Critical Lightning Current
lightning current at zero soil resistivity
I sc 1 . 1I s
where Isc = critical lightning current [kA]
Is = lightning current [kA]
Striking Distance S 8 . 5 kI sc2 3
where S = striking distance [m]
Isc = critical lightning current [kA]
k = 1 for ground wire protection
= 1.2 for protection with mast
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5. Protection against lightning for substation
3 methods
1. Lightning Mast
2. Overhead Ground Wire
3. Combination of both methods
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5.1 Lightning Mast
1 lightning mast by rolling sphere method
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Distance between mast to protected equipment
r S 2
S hm
2
S 2
S he 2
where
r = radius of protected
hm = height of lightning mast [m]
he = height of protected equipment [m]
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Protected Zone of Mast (Electrogeometric model)
hB = Final breakdown distance
Leader
hb
Equivalent circuit diagram: Capacity
^i
leader-earth
u R
Eaver = decisive field intensity; Eaver 3 kV/cm
î UR EaverR h B h B f(î) î1
experiments : h B 2î1 30(1 e 6.8
); h B in [m]; î1 in [kA]
î1 protected zone
Protected zone
h B1 Example: “Protection Against Neg. Downward Stroke”
hB2
Requirement Normal High Extreme
% of all strokes 90 99 99,9
h B1
h B2
Î [kA] 10 5 2,5
hB [m] 43 26 14
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Shielding failure
S=aIb I1<I2<I3
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Lightning protection
Geometric-electric model „protected zone theory“
assumption:
In case that leader has a „final breakdown distance“ to earth, it is assumed that
the upward leader discharge will bridge this distance on shortest way.
The final breakdown distance is dependent on the peak value of current
of first return stroke - it has been found:
î
hB 2 î 30 (1 e 6,8
) hB in m; î in kA
The higher the peak current, the higher hB.
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Lightning protection
Protected zone of a lightning rod
Lightning rod
Protected zone
Protected zoneeines
Schutzraum of a Fangstabes
lightning rodder
of height
Höhe hh << hBB
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Lightning protection
Protected zone of a lightning rod
Protected zone will never be
larger than the one of a
lightning rod with h = hB!
Protected zone
Schutzraum
Protected zone of eines
a lightning rodFangstabes
of heightmith h> >hhB B
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Lightning protection
Protected zone of a lightning conductor
Protected zone
Schutzraum einer
Protected Fangleitung
zone mit conductor
of a lightning der Aufhängungshöhe
of height h <hh<B hB
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Lightning protection
Protected zone of a lightning conductor
Protected zone can even
become smaller than the
one of a lightning conductor
with h = hB!
Protected zone
Protected
Schutzraumzone
einer of a lightning
Fangleitung conductor
mit der of height
Aufhängungshöhe h > hh
B
> hB
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2 masts protection
r1 S 2 S he
2
2
2 d
X1 S S hm
2
2
where
d = distance between mast [m]
hm = height of mast [m]
he = height of equipment [m]
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Overhead ground wire
1 overhead ground wire
r S 2 S hw S 2 S he
2 2
hw = height of wire in the middle of wire
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2 overhead ground wires
2
2 ds
X1 S S hw
2
2
ds = distance between ground wires [m]
r1 S 2 S he
2
r1 = radius of protective zone caused by both ground wires [m]
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The 115 kV substation used overhead ground wire for lightning protection with
high bus profile (Bus height 7.30 m)
Al tube 3 inch (from Bus Insulator Design Al. tube 3 inch has inside dia. = 3.068
inch and outside dia. = 3.5 inch) Then r1 = 0.044 m and r2 = 0.039 m.
Step 1
r12 ln r1 r22 ln r2 1 0.044452 ln 0.04445 0.03896 2 ln 0.03896 1
ln r 3.176
r12 r22 2 0.044452 0.03896 2 2
Step 2 r e 3.176 0.0417 r1
r2
X X
2h 2 x7.3 Tubular Bus
Z s 60 ln av 60 ln 351.45 Y
r 0.0417
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Example of substation shielding
Design substation shielding with overhead ground wire
2hav 2 x7.3
Step 1 Z s 60 ln 60 ln 351.45
r 0.0417
Step 2
1.1x 2 xVCFO 1.1x 2 x610
I sc 3.82kA
Zs 351.45
Step 3
S 8.5kI sc2 3 8.5 x1x3.832 3 20.81m
Zone of Protection
r S 2 S hw S 2 S he
2 2
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r 20.82 2 20.82 15 20.82 2 20.82 7.3 4.16m
2 2
2 2
d 9
X 1 S 2 s S hw 20.82 2 20.82 15 19.48m
2 2
2 2
r1 S 2 S he 20.82 2 20.82 7.3 15.83m
2 2
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Courtesy of Lapp Insulator