Safety in electrical systems

Electricity distribution and safety measures:

Insulation, fuses, earths, and circuit breakers
 Electricity is dangerous
The electricity supply we rely on so much in our homes is extremely dangerous.
We therefore need to take great care in its use, and provide several different
levels of protection.
A typical house will have a 240V electricity supply capable of providing 15kW.
This is needed to allow the use of electric showers (8kW) electric heaters (1 – 3
kW each), electric cookers (4kW or more) etc.
A simple calculation shows why the voltage used for mains electricity is so high.
Remember Power = Volts * Current

15 kW = 240V * 60A - or- 12V * 1250A - or - 36 kV * 0.4A

Distributing the necessary power at low voltage would require extremely thick
wires which would be both impractical and expensive. Distributing the power at
very high voltages would be very unsafe, and require impracticably high
standards of insulation. However very high voltages (415 kV) are used for
overhead lines where people are not exposed to the hazard.
 Supply connections and Earths
Electricity
Your house All domestic electrical
sub-station L
appliances will work with
Fuses,
only two wires the Live
Consumer
N Unit & wire (Brown or Red) and
E
Meter the Neutral wire ( Blue or
Black). The electrical
supply in normal operation
will only flow through
these two wires. The third
wire, if used, is the Earth
or Ground (Green or
Substation
earth
Local earth Yellow/Green).
 Three phase electricity distribution
Mains electricity is distributed as three ac signals of the same voltage but with
different phases, as shown in the diagrams below, and in the photo of overhead
electric wires. The neutral line is connected at your local electricity sub-station.

1

3

2

N
Here you can see:
• High voltage (180kV)
distribution via pylons –
3 wires each side
• Medium voltage
(30kV) distribution via
poles – three wires
• Transformer
• Local distribution
(240V) via poles – four
wires – three phases plus
neutral.
Insulation, Earths, Fuses and Circuit
Breakers

Techniques to provide safety in using electricity

 1: Insulation protects people
• Insulation protects us from the electricity.
• All cables used to carry electricity consist of a metal core
of one or more wires, covered by a layer of insulating
material.
• All electrical fittings – switches, sockets, etc. are made of
a plastic or ceramic insulator. (sometimes the outside is
metal)
• Electrical sockets have an insulating shutter that closes
when the plug is removed. Also the conductors are placed
deep inside the socket so they cannot be touched directly.
• All equipment that does not have a secure earth must be
double-insulated. This means that even if the case is
removed no electrical connections are exposed.
 2: Fuses protect equipment
If a fault develops in a piece of equipment
it can draw too much current. This leads to
overheating due to the increased power,
and poses a risk of fire. Without
something to stop the current flow either
the equipment or the supply wiring would
burst into flame.
A fuse is a thin piece of wire in a carrier. If
the current increases too much it gets hot
and melts. This stops the current from
FUSE flowing. The fuse is placed in the live
connection. All modern electrical
equipment has a fuse in the mains plug.
 FUSES
The problem here is that the fuse on each
product needs to be rated at a slightly higher
current that the products need for normal
operation. So my fridge which needs 2 to 3
amps to run has a fuse rated at 5 amps. If an
electrical fault occurs such as a faulty motor
the fuse blows.
If the electrical insulation breaks down the
metal case of the fridge is connected to the
electrical circuit. When I touch it the fuse will
only blow if I get five amps through my
body.  (After a second or two I would not care
– death is a great tranquillizer!)
 3: Earths protect people
The earth on the appliance is connected to any metal part and
the earth in the socket is connected to a water pipe, earth
spike, or any conductor sunk into the ground.
Should the fridge casing now be accidentally connected to the
electrical supply the current will flow from the supply to the
casing, then down to earth and back to the power station.  The
power station has a similar earth system connected to it
allowing the current return to its source. Because the fridge
casing is a good conductor of electricity large currents will
flow thus blowing the fuse in a fraction of a second.
If the metal case of an appliance is effectively earthed no
hazardous voltages can appear on it.
.. If they are correctly wired!
Circuit breakers (MCB’s and RCCB’s)

Electromechanical relays can be

used to disconnect the supply if the
current being drawn exceeds their
rated capacity. These are called
circuit breakers. (MCB’s)
They behave in the same way as
fuses, except that they can be reset
by the switch.
 RCCB’s or RCD’s
Modern safety systems are available
which compare the flow of current
through the live and  neutral wires.
If they are not the same they cut off
the electrical supply. These circuit
breakers are called Residual Current
Circuit Breakers. They are
available as wired in devices, and
also in plugs and adaptors to
provide additional protection e.g.
for hedge trimmers or lawnmowers.
Protection: a mismatch of 30mA
will trip the breaker within 40msec.
This is sufficient to provide
protection from dangerous electric
shocks.
 Shock hazards
Your body from an electrical point of view is like
a bag of conductive jelly. Most of the resistance is
in the skin, and this is why electric shocks cause
burns.
In most cases where electric shock can be
dangerous there are no good electrical connections
to the body. For example when you touch a live
wire the current flows through your skin, inside
your body to your feet, and through your shoes,
carpet, floor etc to ground. Usually the resistance
is so high you only feel a slight tingle.
(Don’t try this at home boys & girls!)
 Electric shock
The time a real problem can occur is if you
are touching both live and neutral or earth at
the same time. If you can, unplug or take the
fuses out before working on electrical
equipment. Then test with a neon
screwdriver or similar to make sure there are
no live connections.
Current paths through your body
A good rule is to keep
one hand behind your
back when working
with electrical
connections that could
be live. This prevents
the possibility of a
circuit path across
your chest (left). Dry
shoes are usually an
effective insulator, so
the path down your
body is much less
likely (unless you are
struck by lightning)
 Patient / operator safety
Special care needs to be taken when a patient or operator has
connections made to their body. For example when a patient
in hospital is having an ECG with good electrical connections
to their chest, or EEG with good connections to their skull the
possibility exists of fatal shocks. Clearly extreme measures
need to be taken to prevent this, and the ideal is for
equipment to use only low voltage supplies that are totally
isolated from the mains – ie using batteries.
Signal connections can then be made to mains operated
equipment via non-conductive optical fibers.
 Electrical safety outdoors
A second hazard situation exists when electrical equipment is
to be used out of doors, where damp conditions can
drastically reduce resistance of skin, clothing and footwear,
and where the operator is usually standing directly on the
ground.
Gardening equipment – hedge trimmers, chainsaws,
strimmers, lawnmowers etc can all create a major shock
hazard especially if the connecting cable is accidentally
damaged. They MUST be protected by an RCD breaker
directly in the line – either as a fixed plug or as a plug-in
adaptor.