How lightning strikes and how to protect your installation

Lightning is one of the deadliest natural phenomena, with lightning temperatures higher than the surface of the sun. As electrical engineers know, lightning can increase injuries, equipment downtime, plant fires and other hazards. While it is understandable that lightning can cause catastrophic damage to facilities, equipment and personnel, there are ways to reduce the risk. But before we reduce the dangers associated with lightning, let’s pull back the curtain on the basics of lightning.

What causes lightning?

First, the upper atmosphere becomes unstable due to a combination of heat and a vertical column of air in the cooler upper air mass. The storm’s rising air masses carry water vapor, which increases the convective activity of the storm when it encounters cooler air. From there, pressure and temperature form the basis of a cumulonimbus cloud. For lightning to be generated, the cloud must be between three and four kilometers deep. The higher the cloud, the more likely it is to generate lightning. About 90% of all lightning is cloud-to-cloud, with the remaining 10% being cloud-to-ground lightning. Cloud-to-cloud attacks are also the most powerful.

How to protect your installation from damage caused by lightning?

Although no lightning protection system is 100% effective, there are certain methods you can follow to reduce the risk. These risks range from unsafe working conditions to mechanical damage in the installation.

To get a lightning protection system, you need to do the following:

• Intercept lightning to create a prime point of attack.
• Perform the ground attack.
• Dissipate the current in the earth.
• Create an equipotential connection to avoid dangerous power differences.
• Consider ERICO’s Six-Point Protection Plan, which helps implement the most effective solutions as part of a holistic strategy.