TM

Safety BASICs

Electrical Hazards

Bussmann® Awareness of Safety Issues Campaign

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Electrical Hazards

What are the hazards as you approach

electrical equipment to perform work?
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Electrical Hazards

• Shock
• Arc flash
– Heat
– Fire
• Arc blast
– Pressure
– Shrapnel
– Sound
Example of an arcing fault

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Basic Electrical Theory

I=V/Z

• What happens with shock?

• What happens when there is a fault?

• What is the difference between a short-

circuit and an arcing fault?

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Electric Shock

• Over 30,000 non-fatal electrical shock

accidents occur each year
• Over 600 people die from electrocution
each year
• Electrocution remains the fourth (4th)
highest cause of industrial fatalities
• Most injuries and deaths could be
avoided
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Human Resistance Values
Resistance (ohms)
Condition Dry Wet
Finger touch 40,000 to 1,000,000 4,000 to 15,000
Hand holding wire 15,000 to 50,000 3,000 to 6,000
Finger-thumb grasp 10,000 to 30,000 2,000 to 5,000
Hand holding pliers 5,000 to 10,000 1,000 to 3,000
Palm touch 3,000 to 8,000 1,000 to 2,000
Hand around 1-1/2 inch pipe 1,000 to 3,000 500 to 1,500
Two hands around 1-1/2 inch pipe 500 to 1,500 250 to 750
Hand immersed 200 to 500
Foot immersed 100 to 300
Human body, internal, excluding 200 to 1,000
skin
This table was compiled from data developed by Kouwenhoven and Milnor.

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Electric Shock

Human body resistance (hand to hand)

across the body is about 1000 W

Ohms law: I = V / R amps

= 480 volts / 1000 W
= 0.48 amps (480 mA)

Product safety standards consider 5 mA to

be the safe upper limit for children and
adults
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Electric Shock

mA Affect on person
0.5 - 3 - Tingling sensations
3 - 10 - Muscle contractions and pain
10 - 40 - “Let-go” threshold
30 - 75 - Respiratory paralysis
100 - 200 - Ventricular fibrillation
200 - 500 - Heart clamps tight
1500 + - Tissue and organs start to burn
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Electric Current Pathways

(A) Touch Potential (B) Step Potential (C and D) Touch / Step Potential

Current passing through the heart and lungs is the most serious

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 Electric Shock Injury

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 Arc Flash

As much as 80% of all electrical injuries are

burns resulting from an arc-flash and ignition
of flammable clothing

Arc temperature can reach 35,000°F - this is

four times hotter than the surface of the sun
Fatal burns can occur at distances over 10 ft

Over 2000 people are admitted into burn

centers each year with severe electrical burns

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Arc Blast

An arc fault develops a “pressure wave”

Sources of this blast include:
– Copper expands 67,000 times its original volume
when vaporized
– Heat from the arc, causes air to expand, in the
same way that thunder is created from a lightning
strike
This may result in a violent explosion of circuit
components and thrown shrapnel
The blast can destroy structures, knock workers
from ladders, or across the room
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Bolted Arcing
Short Circuit Fault

Current
Thru Air

A B A B
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Electric Arc
Molten Metal
35,000 °F

Pressure Waves

Sound Waves

Copper Vapor: Shrapnel

Solid to Vapor
Expands by
Hot Air-Rapid Expansion
67,000 times

Intense Light
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Personnel Hazards Associated
With Arc Flash & Arc Blast
• Heat – burns & ignition of material
o
– Arc temperature of 35,000 F
– Molten metal, copper vapor, heated air
• Second degree burn threshold:
o o
– 80 C / 175 F (0.1 sec), 2nd degree burn
• Third degree burn threshold:
o o
– 96 C / 205 F (0.1 sec), 3rd degree burn
• Intense light
– Eye damage, cataracts
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Personnel Hazards Associated
With Arc Flash & Arc Blast
• Pressures from expansion of metals &
air
• Eardrum rupture threshold:
– 720 lbs/ft2
• Lung damage threshold:
– 1728 - 2160 lbs/ft2
• Shrapnel
• Flung across room or from
ladder/bucket
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Overcurrent Protection Role
Flash protection boundaries and
incident energy exposure calculations
both dependent upon:
Duration of arc-fault or time to clear
• Speed of the overcurrent protective
device

Arc-fault current magnitude

• Available fault current
• Current-limitation can reduce
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 IEEE / PCIC & NFPA 70E

• Ad Hoc Safety Subcommittee

– Users
– Consultants
– Manufacturers
– Medical experts

• Following are some of the tests run

– All of the devices used for this testing were
applied according to their listed ratings
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 IEEE / PCIC Staged Arc Flash Test
Set-up

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 22.6 KA Symmetrical
Available Fault Current
Test No. 4 @ 480V, 3 Phase

6 cycle STD
640A OCPD
Set @ 6 cycle opening Non Current Limiting
with Short Time Delay

Fault Initiated on
Line Side of 30A
Fuse
30A RK-1
Current Limiting Fuse

Size 1 Starter

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Test 4 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 4 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 4 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 4 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 4 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 4 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 4 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Results: Test No.4
Sound
141.5 db @ 2 ft. P1
T2 >2160 lbs/ft2
o o
>225 C/437 F T1
o
T3 >225 C/
o
o o 437 F
50 C/122 F
> Indicates Meter Pegged
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 22.6 KA Symmetrical
Test No. 3 Available Fault Current
@ 480V, 3 Phase

601A.
Class L
Current Limiting Fuse

Fault Initiated on
Line Side of 30A
Fuse
30A RK-1
Current Limiting Fuse

Size 1 Starter

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Test 3 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 3 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 3 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 3 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Results: Test No.3
Sound
133 db @ 2 ft. P1
T2 504 lbs/ft2
o o
62 C/143.6 F T1
o
T3 > 175 C/
o
(No Change 347 F
From Ambient)

> Indicates Meter Pegged

©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 22.6 KA Symmetrical
Test No. 1 Available Fault Current
@ 480V, 3 Phase

601A.
Class L
Current Limiting
Fuse

30A RK-1
Current Limiting
Fuse

Fault Initiated on
Load Side of 30A Size 1 Starter
Fuse
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Test 1 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 1 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 1 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Test 1 Still Photo

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Results: Test No.1

Sound
(No Change
From Ambient) P1
(No Change
T2 From Ambient)
(No Change
From Ambient) T1
T3 (No Change
From Ambient)
(No Change
From Ambient)
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Current-Limitation: Arc Energy
Reduction
Test 4 Non-Current Limiting

Test 3 Reduced Fault Current Test 1

via Current-Limitation

©2004 Cooper Bussmann

 Summary

• Shock, arc flash and arc blast are the

three recognized electrical hazards
• Shock injuries result from electrical
current flowing through the body
• Arcing faults can generate enormous
amounts of energy
• Injuries from arcing faults are a result of
the tremendous heat and pressure
generated
©2004 Cooper Bussmann
 Summary

• Overcurrent protective devices have an

impact on the two most important
variables of arc flash hazards:
– Time (speed of the OCPD)
– Fault current magnitude (current-limitation
may help reduce)
• Current-limitation may be able to
significantly reduce the energy released
during arcing faults

©2004 Cooper Bussmann