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Fire pump station lightning protection design review

  • 18.08.2017

ZANDZ Technical Center has received the request to review the fire pump station lightning protection design of Afipka oil refinery plant. There is a chillers location on the building roof. We shall find out the appropriateness of the design solution for their lightning protection.

Lightning protection review

Figure 1 – Chillers location on the roof

Lightning protection design analysis and comments

Having analyzed the lightning protection design, the technical experts found the following deficiencies:

  1. The chillers are not protected by the lightning arresters and are not covered by the protective zone of any natural lightning arresting structures.
  2. A cable with cross-section of 6mm2 between the building parts, which can be subjected to direct lightning strike and the ground terminal, cannot serve as a conductor. Materials used for conductors shall have dimensions given in GOST R IEC 62561.2-2014 "Lightning protection system components. Part 2. Requirements for conductors and earthing electrodes".

 

Fire pump station lightning protection design

Figure 2 – Fire pump station drawing

Solutions for elimination of the deficiencies

The following solutions are proposed to eliminate deficiencies in the lightning protection system:

  1. Install 3 lightning rods with the height of 4 meters above the location. The lightning arresters along with the air conduit mounting metallic structure with the height of 15 m will provide a protective zone with the reliability of 0.99 as per SO 153 on the chillers top elevation.
  2. A metallic platform, as well as existing galvanized steel strip connecting the platform to the building ground terminal, can be used as conductors.
  3. Replace cables of insufficient cross-section with the conductors complying with GOST R IEC 62561.2-2014.

 

Fire pump station lightning protection

Figure 3 – Lightning protection elements layout and protective zone

The list of materials required for elimination of deficiencies in the lightning protection system is given in Table 1.

Table 1 – The list of required materials

Item #

Fig.

Part number

Product

Quantity
Lightning protection system
1. ZANDZ Vertical lightning mast, 4 m (stainless steel) ZZ-201-004 ZANDZ Vertical lightning mast, 4 m (stainless steel) 3

 

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