Lightning Protection of Aircraft, Power Systems and Houses Containing IT Network Electronics

Over the past decade, there has been an increasing interest in lightning and lightning protection for several reasons, including the proliferation of microelectronic equipment and IT systems in mission-critical systems as well as in everyday use in banks to homes. Lightning strikes to power lines produce large fast transient voltage and current surges which trickle down to IT systems, military command and control systems as well as to several other microelectronic equipment and control systems. Moreover, aircraft are struck by lightning when it is parked on ground, landing and taking off or in military operations where the aircraft has to keep close to the ground even when the atmosphere is electrified by thunderclouds. In this paper, we explore the protection of electronic equipment, structures and in-house systems from lightning. The paper will also explore lightning related Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) threat to aerospace vehicles and microelectronic systems. This is especially so with the increased use of non-metallic, composite material for the aircraft body. Moreover, the paper will report on the important lightning techniques used in the protection of electric power systems and houses

Lightning Protection of Aircraft, Power Systems and Houses Containing IT Network Electronics

Over the past decade, there has been an increasing interest in lightning and lightning protection for several reasons, including the proliferation of microelectronic equipment and IT systems in mission-critical systems as well as in everyday use in banks to homes. Lightning strikes to power lines produce large fast transient voltage and current surges which trickle down to IT systems, military command and control systems as well as to several other microelectronic equipment and control systems. Moreover, aircraft are struck by lightning when it is parked on ground, landing and taking off or in military operations where the aircraft has to keep close to the ground even when the atmosphere is electrified by thunderclouds. In this paper, we explore the protection of electronic equipment, structures and in-house systems from lightning. The paper will also explore lightning related Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) threat to aerospace vehicles and microelectronic systems. This is especially so with the increased use of non-metallic, composite material for the aircraft body. Moreover, the paper will report on the important lightning techniques used in the protection of electric power systems and houses

Power Transformer Fire and Explosion: Causes and Control

An increasing number of failures of power transformers over the world has led to greater interest in building up much needed expertise in electric power transformers, from its design to both preventive and prescribed maintenance. Winding failure is a frequent cause of transformer failure, bushing failure leads of fire and explosion, but it is still uncertain whether the increasing failure of transformers may be related to increasing lightning activity or increasing electric energy of the transient, surge voltages generated by lightning, especially long continuing currents and rate of rise of currents. But there are other important causes as well which need close attention, including wearing out of the contact points of tap changers in power generating and substation transformers, and poor maintenance of transformer oil. This paper seeks to review some of the well-known causes that lead to transformer fire and explosion, and highlights the important parts of the power transformer that need careful selection, installation, maintenance and condition monitoring. Moreover the containment of fires and measures that help to prevent transformer explosions in case of transformer fires are also discussed. Keywords: Embedded systems, Smart Antenna; Adaptive Array; Artificial Neural Network