HF OPERATORS

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Notes on Lightning
by
John White
VA7JW

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 1

 LIGHTNING
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THUNDER

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 2

Generation of Lightning
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Thunderstorms
Cold front - air aloft sinks
Warm air at ground rises
Vertical air flow, up and down
Friction between water droplets
Droplets become charged
Charges separate within cloud
High voltages develop
Within, cloud to cloud
Cloud to Earth
Air breakdown occurs
LIGHTING DISCHARGE

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 3

Some Facts
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Average duration 50 microseconds
Average speed of Lightning stroke 20,000 mph
Average Temperature 30,000 degrees C
Average Length 3 km
Average Energy 300,000,000 joules
Average Power 10,000,000,000,000 watts (10 terawatts)
Average number of strokes per flash, 4
200 thunderstorms in progress world wide any time
100 flashes per second worldwide any time
Astraphobia fear of thunder and lightning
Reference Lightning and Lightning Protection, William Hard and Edgar Malone.
Don White Consultants publisher 1979. and other internet sources.

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 4

Forms of Lightning
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Cloud to Ground our major concern !
Cloud discharge to ground
Within a cloud
Discharge in a cloud
Cloud to cloud
Discharge between clouds
Heat lightning
Intracloud, far away
Thunder not audible
Sheet Lightning
Intracloud, diffuse
Cloud to air
Bolt-from-the-blue

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 5

Annual Thunderstorm
Days in America
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Numbers are storm days
Florida is Worst - ( Adam AB4OJ/VA7OJ will vouch for that)

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 6

Annual Thunderstorm
Days in Canada
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We are lucky, only ~ 5 days per year

IEEE ANSI/IEEE Std 142-1982

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 7

Number of Discharges
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World wide distribution of Lightning Discharges
Our part of the world 10 to 30
Central Africa 5400 !

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 8

Strikes vs Tower Height
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Lower Mainland @ 5 thunderstorm days per year = low risk
Until you get hit of course

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 9

 Thunder
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Sound of the explosion along the superheated lightning
channel
30,0000 degrees

Superheated air, gas pressures 10 to 100 atmospheres

Shockwave is what we hear

Rumblings are primarily due to the various distances between

observer and tortuous path of the lightning discharge
Speed of sound is ~ 1000 ft per second
count the seconds between the flash and the onset of thunder to
determine your distance to strike; seconds = thousands of feet

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 10

 Strike Current Waveform
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Example for a Typical Strike

Rise Time ~ 5 seconds
Crest ~ 25 kA
Fall time ~ 50 seconds to half of crest value

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 11

 Lightning Parameters
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Percentage of Strokes EXCEEDING Value indicated
Parameter
90% 50% 10% Max Observed

Crest (peak) Current 2 to 8 kA 10 to 25 kA 40 to 60kA 230 kA

Rate of Rise to Crest 2 kA/us 8 kA/us 25 kA/us 50 kA/us

Time to Crest 0.3 to 2 us 1 to 4 us 5 to 7 us 10 us

Duration of Single Stroke 0.1 to 0.6 ms 0.5 to 3 ms 20 to 100 ms 400 ms

Time between Strokes 5 to 10 ms 30 to 40 ms 80 to 130 ms 500 ms

Total Stroke Duration 0.01 to 0.1 s 0.1 to 0.3 s 0.5 to 0.7 s 1.5 s

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 12

 Current Distribution
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Percentage exceeding a given current
50 % will exceed 10,000 amps

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 13

 Strike Current Spectrum
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Most Energy concentrated DC to 1 kHz.

Destructive energy
range < 1 kHz

Not energy > 1MHz

that destroys radio
installations

It will sound loud

on radio though!

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 14

Primary Protection
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Cloud to Ground discharges of concern to us

Need to direct the lightning current to earth as

directly as possible

Protection of Life and Property

Fire Protection
Shock Protection
Equipment Protection

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 15

Ground
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Cloud to Ground Strike current seeks earth ground
the strike point
directly to surface or via tree, tower, antenna etc.

Current flows outwards from strike point through earth

Earth ground is not a good conductor

Thousands of amperes flow through ohms of resistance

Thousands of volts per foot exist outwards from strike point

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 16

A Simple Calculation
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Strike current = 20,000 A
for 10 usec ANTENNA
Voltage along feedline = 2000 V
bye bye coax Feed line
0.1 ohms & Tower
Voltage across ground rod = 200 V
4 MW for 10 usec
0.01 ohms Rod
Voltage at top of ground rod = 200,000 V
Side flashing may occur
10 -100 ohms Earth
This is called GROUND RISE
This 200 kV will diminish exponentially with
distance from the ground point
Voltage gradient immediate vicinity is dangerous
See cow >

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 17

 Station Grounds
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Multiple grounds exist out of necessity

Electrical - AC Power green wire power safety

Lightning - Towers, feed lines

Signal chassis, shields, coax,

Antenna RF ground planes, counterpoises

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 18

 Unsafe Ground System
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Multiple unconnected Grounds > Problem

Lightning currents flowing in each

ground system not equal

Dangerous voltages will develop

between equipments due to different
ground system impedances

Extreme shock hazard.

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 19

 Safer Ground System
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Multiple, Connected Grounds much Safer

Connecting all grounds together creates

an EQUIPOTENTIAL environment

Voltage drop between ground systems

ideally ZERO if wire has zero resistance

Ground rise will be same everywhere

and differential voltages will be minimal

Multiple ground points leads to lowering resistance to ground

thus lowering of Ground Rise overall

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 20

 Wire Sizing
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What Gauge wire is needed to carry a strike current
Wire Melt, called FUSING as in blowing a fuse, is the issue

#6 is typical code

For 50 sec, fusing

current ~ 800 kA

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 21

 Bonding
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Objective is to create an EQUIPOTENTIAL AREA

Bonding means an electrical connection between equipments

mechanically connected hardware is not bonding.

Independent, random unconnected ground systems where conductivity

is not assured is unacceptable

All grounds and equipments must be electrically connected

voltage differences are small and shock hazard is suppressed
lower impedances are achieved
large currents are distributed over many paths lowering voltages

All grounds . must be bonded together in order to protect life and

property (ARRL 2010 Handbook pg 28.7)

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 22

 Grounding Impedance
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Grounding is not just a simple Resistance problem

The rate of rise of current, kA / microsecond, is same as a High

Frequency Signal and must be treated the same way.

LOW IMPEDANCE to Ground is the requirement

DC resistance can be achieved with large diameter copper

INDUCTANCE of the ground system is the limiting factor

(how could the inductance of straight wires be of any consequence?)

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 23

 Inductance
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Conductors carrying the rapidly increasing strike current
generate a rapidly changing magnetic field.

A changing magnetic field produces a back EMF that

opposes the applied voltage thus constraining the rate at
which the current can rise.

This is Inductance

Current cannot rise instantly in the presence of inductance

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 24

 Inductive Voltage
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Relationship between Voltage and Current for an inductance

V is the voltage developed across and inductor

L is the inductance value
i is the current
t is time
di/dt is the rate of change of current with time,
i.e amps per sec

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 25

 Wire Inductance
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1 foot of #6 AWG copper K7MEMCalculator

Inductance = 0.26 H per foot

Resistance = 0.0004 ohm per foot
2 S rise time

Resistive Voltage drop / foot at 20 kA = 8 volts / foot

Inductive voltage drop / foot at 10 kA/s = 2600 volts / foot

The impedance to ground is clearly limited by L

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 26

 Voltage Flashover
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A 50 foot vertical run of coax from feed point to ground could
develop 130 kV (ignoring Ground rise)

Very difficult to make all ground and bonding systems

run in a straight line

90o corners and bends in cable runs INCREASE inductance

Higher yet voltages are developed

High voltage will flash over from cable to cable or equipments or

other structures whichever forms the lowest impedance to earth!

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 27

 Magnetic Field
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Mechanical forces develop between conduction paths due to
their magnetic fields

2 Conductors carrying 20,000 amps

Side x side, 1 cm separation

Force between conductors ~ 500 lbs / foot

Cable bundles burst, wires break, cables straps rupture,

brackets break, cables deform etc.
ARRL Handbook 2010, sec 28.1.8

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 28

 Tower Grounding
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Grounded plate at base of tower

Coax protected with arrestors

Copper strap tying off to

the system ground

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 29

 Secondary Protection
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Primary Protection
Diversion of high currents and voltages to ground

Secondary Protection
Limiting dangerous Voltages to non destructive values

Divert excessive Currents to non destructive values

Lightning Arrestor Devices

Placed on cables and equipments

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 30

 Cone of Protection
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A Rule of Thumb (old theory)
You are protected from a strike if a tall structure is close by.
Distance out (radius) = height.
Defines a cone
Theory - Safe inside
from a hit

Your Tower / Antenna

probably IS the
Air Terminal !

A big tree might help

but dont depend on it

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 31

 Arrestors
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Coaxs, Rotor Cables, any wires, to outdoor antennas are
prime conduits for destructive energy to enter house / shack.

Arrestors are placed across cables to ground

Zero current flow to ground under normal conditions

Does not shunt your signal to ground

Elevated voltages to ground will cause conduction to ground

to divert harmful current and limit excessive voltages

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 32

Arrestor Requirements
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Designed for TRANSIENT performance, the strike.

NOT for continuous application of high voltage or current

Excessive power dissipation will cause failure

Industry Standard test waveform is 8 x 20 s

Rises to peak in 8 s and falls to 50% in 20 s

Arrestors pass currents / clamp voltages for the 8 x 20 s

test without self destructing

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 33

 Gas Tubes
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Gas filled ceramic or glass cylinder
Metal ends for circuit connection
Often in a fuse-like holder, replaceable
Fire on transient, divert current, clamp voltage to safe level

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 34

 Gas Tubes
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Available with various firing and clamping voltages and
current ratings
Operating voltage up to 250 VDC
Transient strike voltage 500 VDC
Clamp voltage 100 V
High current conduction

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 35

 Varistors
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Commonly called MOV - Metal Oxide Varistor
A resistor that changes value when voltage is applied
Resistance decreases with increasing voltage
Clamps excessive voltage
Conducts high surge currents to ground

Don White Consultants

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 36

Surge Rated Zener Diodes
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Low Operating Voltage Applications
High surge current rating 100A / 10 s
Clamps voltage to rated Zener Voltage
Used singly or back to back
Power supply rails, AC signal lines

Vsig = +/1 15V

Vpwr = +15V

Vz = 24V
Vz = 24V

Vz = 24V

General Semi

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 37

 System Approach
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Combination MOV - Gas Tube protector for Lines

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 38

 Comparisons
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Comparison of common arrestors

Use Gas Tubes and then MOVs closer to threat

Use Diode clamps closer to protected equipment

TYPE SURGE CURRENT NUMBER of SURGES RESPONSE TIME

GAS TUBE > 20 kA > 20 @ 20 kA 5 uS
MOV to 70 kA 1000 @ 100A 1 nS
DIODE 100 A infinite @ 50 A 1 uS

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 39

 Coax Surge Suppressors
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Placement in series with Coax
Typically gas tube
Place on grounded Service Entrance Plate

Alpha Delta
$50 DX Engineering
$55

R&L
Electronics
$45
MFJ $35
RF Parts $55

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 40

Cable Suppressors
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For use on rotors or other control lines
Internal arrestor devices not known
Place on Grounded Entrance Plate

Array Solutions
$46
DX Engineering
$133

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 41

NSARC Antenna Protection
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Copper Plate

Connected to Building
ground System
(big bare copper wire)

In Roof Top Equipment

Room

27 Jan 2011_r NSARC HF Operators 42

NSARC Rotor Protection
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Copper Plate

Connected to Building
ground System
(green wire)

In Roof Top Equipment

Room

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Home System
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