Protecting Against Lightning Strikes and Their Secondary Effects

By Jermone Kerr Lightning: those dramatic bursts of white-hot voltage from the heavens that can instantly incinerate trees, ignite fires, and knock out power and communications lines. Each year, lightning causes massive damage to business facilities across America. The destructive power of lightning is so great that even structures equipped with traditional lightning rods can suffer extensive damage. Strikes on petroleum industry facilities demonstrate the tremendous destructive power of lightning activity and its aftereffects. Millions of dollars of petrochemical products and facilities are destroyed worldwide each year by lightning and related phenomenon, and lives are often lost as a result of being in close proximity when these facilities ignite or explode. For example, in the Nigerian fire of 1990, a 670,000 barrel tank of light crude was set on fire by lightning, destroying the tank and its contents. Even if the facility is not directly struck by lightning, secondary effects such as bound charge and electromagnetic pulses can fry sensitive circuitry in the vicinity. Failures may be catastrophic or a momentary or long-term lockup, requiring replacement, repair, reprogramming, or rebooting. The danger of a lightning strike is exacerbated by so-called 'prevention' devices such as lightning rods and early streamer emitters, which are designed to collect and channel the force of a strike to ground. This 200-year old technology was never intended for protection of modern high-tech automated facilities, but rather barns and other wood structures of that era. These devices actually bring millions of volts and thousands of amps into close proximity to sensitive electronics systems and flammable products. Companies promoting such devices choose to ignore the underlying problems or the physics involved in protecting contemporary systems. No matter what claims are made about such devices, using them only increases the risk of lightning-related damage. What exactly causes the terrifying yet fascinating phenomenon of lightning? And more importantly, what can be done to prevent it from damaging your business and data? Let's start with the source. An electrical storm contains clouds called thunderheads - electrically-charged bodies suspended in the atmosphere. The air serves as an insulator, separating the electrical charge of the cloud from the ground or other clouds. These charges continue to build during the storm, inducing a similar charge of opposite polarity onto the earth. The earth charge is concentrated at

the surface just under the cloud and is roughly the same size and shape as the cloud, establishing a strong electrical field between the cloud and ground. As the storm intensifies, charge separation continues within the cloud until the air between the cloud and earth can no longer act as an insulator and a strike occurs. Charge neutralization (the 'strike') is caused by the flow of electrons from the cloud to the earth such that there is no charge difference between the two bodies. The process is similar to shorting out the terminals of a battery. When structures sit between the earth and the clouds, they are likewise charged. Since they short out a portion of the separating air space, they can trigger a strike. The lightning strike hazard for a given facility depends on a number of factors, including the facility's location, size, and shape. The characteristics of a structure -- its height, shape, size and orientation -influences the hazard. Taller structures tend to collect strikes from storm clouds in adjacent areas and trigger additional strikes as well. In mountainous areas, even lower structures will trigger lightning. The larger the structure size, the greater the hazard of lightning exposure. For example, longer power transmission lines attract more strikes. A 50-mile stretch of transmission line in central Florida could expect as many as 1,500 strikes per year. Given the random and destructive nature of lightning strikes, how can businesses protect their valuable facilities and electronic equipment and the lives of their employees? The answer lies not in channeling lightning, but in preventing the charge from accumulating in the first place. One technology, the Dissipation Array System (DAS), is being touted as the ultimate solution for lightning protection. DAS is based on a natural phenomenon known to scientists for centuries as the point discharge principle or charge transfer. A sharp point in a strong electrostatic field will leak off electrons by ionizing the adjacent air molecules, providing the point's potential is raised 10,000 volts above that of its surroundings. This principle is demonstrated by what scientists call natural dissipation. The ionization produced by trees, grass, towers, fences, and other structures can naturally dissipate up to 90% of the total energy generated by a storm, thereby preventing the formation of lightning. The DAS employs the point discharge principle by providing thousands of points with specific point separation which simultaneously produce ions over a large area, thus preventing the formation of a streamer, which is the precursor of a lightning strike. This ionization process creates a flow of current from the point(s) into the surrounding air. Under storm conditions, this ionization current increases exponentially with the storms electrostatic field, which can

reach levels as high as 30,000 volts per meter of elevation above earth during a mature storm. The charge induced on the site by the storm is removed from the protected area and transferred to the air molecules. These charged molecules then move away from the site. Thus DAS prevents strikes by continually lowering the voltage differential between the ground and the charged cloud to well below the lightning potential, even in the midst of a worse-case storm. This differential has been measured at up to 6,000 percent. Because it prevents rather than redirects lightning, DAS is possibly the best long-term solution to lightning strike problems. One company, Lightning Eliminators and Consultants, Inc. (LEC), based in Boulder, Colorado, has long been at the forefront of DAS development. In the three decades since LEC introduced DAS into the U.S. marketplace, it has been the only lightning protection system proven to prevent lightning strikes to any protected facility. The system has accumulated over 20,000 system-years of history with a 99.7 per cent reliability. Thousands of Dissipation Array Systems have been installed to date worldwide, in applications ranging from communications towers to tank farms, electrical power lines to public buildings. DAS has been used to protect facilities as large as three square kilometers and structures as high as 1,700 ft. Summarizing the benefits, DAS is: - Simple: The design is straightforward, reliable, and effective. - Passive: Consumes no power; it is activated by the energy of the storm itself. - Universal: DAS can be used to protect any kind of building, tower, power line, or large complex plant. Basic system concepts are customengineered for each individual facility, specially designed to account for size, height, area storm patterns, altitude, and other factors. - Preventative: Completely eliminates lightning strikes and all related secondary effects from the protected area. Avoids problems inherent in lightning rod systems, which attract energy and attempt to conduct it to ground. The National Fire Protection Association, 780 committee is currently examining the DAS technology because current lightning rod standards were recently shown to have no basis in physics, to determine how DAS can be incorporated into their fire protection standards. Jermone Kerr is with Lightning Eliminators and Consultants.
Q. What exactly does Lightning Eliminators do? A. LEC engineers and installs lightning prevention systems to eliminate the direct lightning strike and associated secondary effects. Our basic product is called the Dissipation Array System. The technology used to do this is called "charge transfer technology". We provide an engineered systems' integrated approach for Fortune 500 clients worldwide. If you wish to

understand more about this technology see the technical papers in our digital Library. While our main concern is our clients' lightning protection, we are also on the cutting edge of scientific studies in the field of atmospheric science, as it relates to lightning. Q. How long has LEC been doing this kind of work? A. LEC has been researching lightning and engineering and installing systems since 1971. Q. How long will a DAS system last? A. An LEC Dissipation Array System (DAS) is made of stainless steel with galvanized supports, and has a service life of over 20 years under normal conditions. As a matter of fact, some systems are still functioning that were the first installation prototypes made in 1971. It's our client's responsibility to advise us of the existence of corrosive environments in close proximity to the DAS system; we will then fabricate the components of special materials for extended service life. Additionally, LEC offers optional re-certification or full maintenance programs for installed systems on a yearly schedule, allowing the systems' useful life to extend far beyond 20 years, reducing costs still further over the life of the system. It is also the client's responsibility to advise LEC of perceived problems once a system is installed so measures may be taken by LEC to rectify any issues during the warranty period. Q. Have any DAS systems ever been hit by lightning? A. Yes. What might cause a system to be struck? Detached cables, cut ground wires, no maintenance performed for many years, damage by wind, rain, tornados, or incomplete original engineering data from the site, new equipment surrounding the site, changes made to the site, etc. With over 3000 systems installed, strikes account for less than 0.5 percent to date, a remarkable record. To allow for such possibilities we always issue a no-strike warranty for each system installed, and have been doing this for over 30 years. If we are informed by the client of problems at a site, steps are immediately taken to find the root cause and upgrade the system as needed, at our expense within the warranty period. Q. Can DAS meet NFPA-780? A. Yes! The DAS can be designed to integrate with NFPA-780 systems. The DAS however performs far above rods or other concepts. Don't be mislead with others performance claims. The DAS is a proven system with thousands of users worldwide in every industry. LEC also provides SBT and SBI components as part of UL Master label, NFPA 780 systems, should our clients desire it. NOTE: The current NFPA-780 standard actually has a disclaimer attached to it, absolving the NFPA from any legal ramifications because of applying the so-called standard. What this means is "you're on your own". Q. Is a DAS system safe? A. Yes it is. Think about this, strikes that hit your lightning rod or mini-brush system bring along with them 30,000 to over 350,000 amps, as well as high di/dt producing severe secondary effects. Rods are totally missed from 20% to 40% of the time, that is lightning rod's performance. The DAS does not allow strike-enticing upward or counter leaders to form, thus, no strikes to the protected area. Should a leader come directly at a Dissipation Array System, the leaders' tip energy is dissipated and delayed as it approaches the array, long enough to stop a direct strike from developing. Far safer than inviting 30,000 to 350,000 Amps into or near your building and delicate electronics. If a DAS should fail, it always "fails safe" by the collection process.

Q. Are LEC staff members engineers? A. Yes, many of LEC's sales and management team members are degreed electrical and mechanical engineering professionals, including E.E., PhD, P. E.'s. All DAS projects pass through tight engineering scrutiny prior to production, installation and commissioning. Q. Just exactly how does a DAS save me money? A. The DAS has the unique ability to discharge the site continually, eliminating direct strikes and the associated secondary effects. Many facilities managers normally consider maintenance costs for repairs, due to storm activity, as "normal" not knowing that most, up to 85%, can be eliminated. The cost of equipment replacement is spread across all departments, along with labor and down time. Our clients continually tell us that they have experienced up to 85% reduction in electrical and electronic maintenance, and that's just in replacement parts. Q. Why do some "me too" manufacturers claim they have equal or better performance in brush type layouts? A. Some manufacturers do claim they have Dissipation Array systems, calling it a "generic" term, even though it is a fully protected and clearly copyrighted name. Some also say they have more points in mini-brushes attached to lightning rods. While brushes do some dissipation, they quickly fall into the saturation or upward/counter leader mode, as tests have shown. Once this happens, your chances of being struck rise significantly. The mini-brushes are no match for the 30,000 to 350,000 amps that may strike and vaporize them. What you'll have left after such an event is a very expensive lightning rod system minus the mini-brushes. It should be noted that brush components are actually UL listed as lightning rods, not dissipators. When buying such systems one should consider the replacement costs. The critical issue is not the number of points, its the spacing between points, and the arrangement of arrays based on engineering data from the site that provides no-strike performance. Even if basic testing were done by the manufacturers of these so-called brush systems, it would reveal the distance between points makes a huge difference in performance. LEC long ago rejected this "brush," approach as unacceptable for protecting our clients' facilities. When looking at others components, ask the lightning rod salesman, "What is the discharge capability factor for your products? Are you providing a written workmanship and performance warranty? The DAS's specially engineered points, separated by specific distances, optimized and upgraded over the years for correct discharge, allows no buildup of strong attractive streamers or counter leaders. This careful approach is based on studies done in Japan, Russia and at our U.S. based technology development center for over 30 years. In addition, each DAS design is carefully engineered for each site, and comes with our guarantee of performance. If lightning strike protection performance is critical to your facilities' operations, then choose a DAS system.