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The process of electrically connecting to the earth itself is often called "earthing", particularly in Europe where the term "grounding" is used to
describe the above ground wiring.
The main reason for doing earthing in electrical network is for the safety. When all metallic parts in
electrical equipments are grounded then if the insulation inside the equipments fails there are no
dangerous voltages present in the equipment case.
If the live wire touches the grounded case then the circuit is effectively shorted and fuse will
immediately blow. When the fuse is blown then the dangerous voltages are away.
Purpose of Earthing
To save human life from danger of electrical shock or death by blowing a fuse i.e. To provide
an alternative path for the fault current to flow so that it will not endanger the user
To protect buildings, machinery & appliances under fault conditions.
To ensure that all exposed conductive parts do not reach a dangerous potential.
To provide safe path to dissipate lightning and short circuit currents.
To provide stable platform for operation of sensitive electronic equipments i.e. To maintain the
voltage at any part of an electrical system at a known value so as to prevent over current or
excessive voltage on the appliances or equipment .
Lightning, line surges or unintentional contact with higher voltage lines can cause dangerously high
voltages to the electrical distribution system. Earthing provides an alternative path around the electrical
system to minimize damages in the System.
There are many sources of electricity. Every transformer can be considered a separate source. If there
were not a common reference point for all these voltage sources it would be extremely difficult to
calculate their relationships to each other.
The earth is the most omnipresent conductive surface, and so it was adopted in the very beginnings of
electrical distribution systems as a nearly universal standard for all electric systems.
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For Pipe type earthing normal practice is to use GI pipe [C-class] of 75 mm diameter, 10 feet long
welded with 75 mm diameter GI flange having 6 numbers of holes for the connection of earth wires and
inserted in ground by auger method.
These types of earth pit are generally filled with alternate layer of charcoal & salt or earth reactivation
compound.
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It is the resistance of soil to the passage of electric current. The earth resistance value (ohmic value) of
an earth pit depends on soil resistivity. It is the resistance of the soil to the passage of electric current.
It varies from soil to soil. It depends on the physical composition of the soil, moisture, dissolved salts,
grain size and distribution, seasonal variation, current magnitude etc. In depends on the composition of
soil, Moisture content, Dissolved salts, grain size and its distribution, seasonal variation, current
magnitude.
Different soil conditions give different soil resistivity. Most of the soils are very poor conductors of
electricity when they are completely dry. Soil resistivity is measured in ohm-meters or ohm-cm.
Soil plays a significant role in determining the performance of Electrode. Soil with low resistivity is
highly corrosive. If soil is dry then soil resistivity value will be very high.
(3) Moisture
Moisture has a great influence on resistivity value of soil. The resistivity of a soil can be determined by
the quantity of water held by the soil and resistivity of the water itself. Conduction of electricity in soil is
through water.
The resistance drops quickly to a more or less steady minimum value of about 15% moisture. And
further increase of moisture level in soil will have little effect on soil resistivity. In many locations water
table goes down in dry weather conditions. Therefore, it is essential to pour water in and around the
earth pit to maintain moisture in dry weather conditions. Moisture significantly influences soil resistivity
Pure water is poor conductor of electricity. Resistivity of soil depends on resistivity of water which in
turn depends on the amount and nature of salts dissolved in it.
Small quantity of salts in water reduces soil resistivity by 80%. common salt is most effective in
improving conductivity of soil. But it corrodes metal and hence discouraged.
Increase or decrease of moisture content determines the increase or decrease of soil resistivity.
Thus in dry whether resistivity will be very high and in monsoon months the resistivity will be low.
Different soil composition gives different average resistivity. Based on the type of soil, the resistivity of
clay soil may be in the range of 4 – 150 ohm-meter, whereas for rocky or gravel soils, the same may be
well above 1000 ohm-meter.
The location also contributes to resistivity to a great extent. In a sloping landscape, or in a land with
made up of soil, or areas which are hilly, rocky or sandy, water runs off and in dry weather conditions
water table goes down very fast. In such situation Back fill Compound will not be able to attract
moisture, as the soil around the pit would be dry.
The earth pits located in such areas must be watered at frequent intervals, particularly during dry
weather conditions.
Though back fill compound retains moisture under normal conditions, it gives off moisture during dry
weather to the dry soil around the electrode, and in the process loses moisture over a period of time.
Therefore, choose a site that is naturally not well drained.
Grain size, its distribution and closeness of packing are also contributory factors, since they control the
manner in which the moisture is held in the soil.
Effect of seasonal variation on soil resistivity: Increase or decrease of moisture content in soil
determines decrease or increase of soil resistivity. Thus in dry weather resistivity will be very high and
during rainy season the resistivity will be low.
Soil resistivity in the vicinity of ground electrode may be affected by current flowing from the electrode
into the surrounding soil.
The thermal characteristics and the moisture content of the soil will determine if a current of a given
magnitude and duration will cause significant drying and thus increase the effect of soil resistivity
Single electrode rod or strip or plate will not achieve the desired resistance alone.
If a number of electrodes could be installed and interconnected the desired resistance could be
achieved. The distance between the electrodes must be equal to the driven depth to avoid overlapping
of area of influence. Each electrode, therefore, must be outside the resistance area of the other.
(11) Obstructions
The soil may look good on the surface but there may be obstructions below a few feet like virgin rock.
In that event resistivity will be affected. Obstructions like concrete structure near about the pits will
affect resistivity.
If the earth pits are close by, the resistance value will be high.
A current of significant magnitude and duration will cause significant drying condition in soil and thus
increase the soil resistivity.
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If we rotate generator handle with specific speed we get directly earth resistance on scale. Spike
length in the earth should not be more than 1/20th distance between two spikes. Resistance must be
verified by increasing or decreasing the distance between the tester electrode and the spikes by 5
meter. Normally, the length of wires should be 10 and 15 Meter or in proportion of 62% of ‘D’.
Suppose, the distance of Current Spike from Earth Electrode D = 60 ft, Then, distance of Potential
Spike would be 62 % of D = 0.62D i.e. 0.62 x 60 ft = 37 ft.
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In this method error due to polarization effect is eliminated and earth tester can be operated directly on
A.C.
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After about 4 meter depth, there is no appreciable change in resistance to earth of the electrode.
Except a number of rods in parallel are to be preferred to a single long rod.
5% moisture in Salt reduces earth resistivity rapidly and further increase in salt content will give a very
little decrease in soil resistivity.
The salt content is expressed in percent by weight of the moisture content in the soil. Considering 1M3
of Soil, the moisture content at 10 percent will be about 144 kg. (10 percent of 1440 kg). The salt
content shall be 5% of this (i.e.) 5% of 144kg, that is, about 7.2kg.
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If the moisture content is already above 20% there is no point in adding quantity of water into the earth
pit, except perhaps wasting an important and scarce national resource like water.
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The usual practice is to select a diameter of earth electrode, which will have enough strength to enable
it to be driven into the particular soil conditions without bending or splitting. Large diameter electrode
may be more difficult to drive than smaller diameter electrode.
The depth to which an earth electrode is driven has much more influence on its electrical resistance
characteristics than has its diameter.
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