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ArcFault
FromOpenElectrical

Contents
1ArcFlashHistory
2ArcFlashDefinitions
3ArcFlashMitigationinSwitchgear
4ArcFlashPPE
5ArcFlashCalculationaccordingtotheIEEEStd.15842002
5.1Determiningthearccurrent
5.2Determinetheincidentenergy
5.3Determinetheflashboundary
5.4Othercalculationapproachesfortheincidentenergy
6NPFA70E2004Application
7Methodsforreducingarcflashhazards
7.1ArcFlashDetectionPrinciples
7.2ResponsestoArcFlashFaults
8ArcFlashCalculator
9References

ArcFlashHistory
FirstofficialpublicationonthearcflashhazardwaspublishedbyRalphLeepublishedin"TheOtherElectricalHazard,
ElectricArcBlastBurns",1982.Inthispaperthethermaleventassociatedwithanelectricarcanditseffectsonthehuman
bodywasanalysedanddescribed.Valueofthe1.2cal/cm2wasdefinedasthe"curableburnlevel"(definedasthelower
limitfora3rddegreeburn)thatisstillusedtoday,alsosomecalculationstodeterminethecurableburndistanceforan
electricarcinair.In1987RalphLeepublishedanotherpaper,"PressuresDevelopedfromArcs",wherethesoundand
pressureeffectsofanarcinairweredescribed.Includedinthispaperwerechartstodeterminethepressurewaveforcesat
variousdistancesbasedonthefaultdutiesatthelocation.
Twomorepaperswerepublishedthatfurtherdefinedtheenergiesinarcingfaults.Thefirstwasthepaper"TestingUpdate
onProtectiveClothingandEquipmentforElectricArcExposure",1997,byBingham,Doughty,andNeal.Inthatpaperthe
authorsusedempiricaltestdatatodeterminetheincidentenergyatvariousdistancesfromalowvoltagearcingfault.They
werethefirsttoexpressthedirectionaleffectofanarcwithinanenclosure.In2000,Doughty,Floyd,andNealpublished
"PredictingIncidentEnergytoBetterManagetheElectricArcHazardon600VPowerDistributionSystems",which
definedincidentenergybasedonfaultduty,workingdistanceandclearingtimeforarcsinairorinanenclosure.
ThisworkwasusedintheNFPA70EStandardforElectricalSafetyRequirementsforEmployeeWorkplaces,2000Edition,
foruseindevelopingsafeworkpracticeswithregardtoarcflashhazards,butwaslimitedtolowvoltageapplications.It
alsorepresentedthebasisforfurtherresearchthatresultedinthepublicationoftheIEEEStd.15842002,"IEEEGuidefor
PerformingArcFlashHazardCalculations".

ArcFlashDefinitions
Anarcfaultisanelectricaldischargebetweentwoormoreconductors,wheretheinsulatingatmosphere(airorgas)has
beenbrokendownbytheelectricfieldbetweentheconductors.Wheneverthereisanarcfault,thegasesandvapoursthat
makeuptheatmospherebetweentheconductorsbecomeionised.
Themagnitudeofanarcfaultishighlyvariable.Theinstantaneousarcfaultcurrentmaybehigh,approachingthebolted
shortcircuitcurrent,orreasonablylow,comparabletotheloadcurrent.Anarcwillcontinueuntilitbecomesunstableand
extinguishesitselforuntilitisinterruptedbyaprotectiondevice(i.e.fuseorcircuitbreaker).

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Figure1.Arcfaultexplosionona480Vswitchboardwith23kAupstreamfaultcapacity

Arcfaultsarecharacterisedbyextremetemperaturesthatcancausesevereburnsdependingonthedistanceoftheoperator
tothearc.Nealetal[1]inTableIVdeterminedthata600V,40kAarcfaultwithadurationof0.5shasenoughenergyto
causeseconddegreeburnsatadistanceof77inches(1.96m).
Additionally,arcfaultstendtomeltterminalsthatcanpotentiallyshowertheimmediatevicinitywithmoltenmetal.The
extremetemperaturesproducedbyanarcfaultcanalsoleadtofires,causingmajordamagetoequipment.

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Figure2.Damagecausedbyarcfaults

AnnexCofIEEEStd1584[2]outlinescasehistoriesofreallifearcfaultincidents.Themajorityofincidentsoccurred
duringenergisationandswitchingoperationsorliveelectricalinstallationwork.Thepotentialcausesofarcfaultsinclude
contamination/pollutioningress,equipmentfailure,rodents/verminandaccidentalcontactwithtools.
Commondefinitions:
IncidentEnergyExposure:theamountofthermalincidentenergytowhichtheworker'sfaceandchestcouldbeexposedat
workingdistanceduringanelectricalarcevent.Incidentenergyismeasuredinjoulespercentimetersquared(J/cm2)or
caloriespercentimetersquared(cal/cm2).
FlashProtectionBoundary:theflashprotectionboundaryisanapproachlimitatadistancefromexposedlivepartsor
enclosedlivepartsifoperation,manipulation,ortestingofequipmentcreatesapotentialflashhazard,withinwhicha
personcouldreceiveaseconddegreeburnifanelectricalarcflashweretooccur.
IncidentEnergyatFlashProtectionBoundary:thearcflashprotectionboundary(FPB)distanceforthespecificincident
energy,usuallyprovidedfromthemanufacturesforthecorrespondingpersonalprotectionequipment(PPE).
HazardRiskCategory:thisistheminimumlevelofthepersonalprotectiveequipment(PPE)incal/cm2,asevaluatedin
theIEEEStandard1584,withtheintenttoprotecttheworkerfromthethermaleffectsofthearcflashat45cmor18inches
fromthesourceofthearc.
GroundingType:accordingtotheIEEE1584proceduretwogroundingclassesareapplied:
a)ungrounded,whichincludedungrounded,highresistancegroundingandlowresistancegrounding,and
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b)solidlygrounded.
GapbetweenConductors:equipmentbusgapinmm.Gapsof3to40mmwereusedforlowvoltagetestingtosimulate
gapsbetweenconductorsinlowvoltageequipmentandcables.Gaps13,104and152mm.wereusedin5and15kV
equipmenttestings.Forcaseswheregapisoutsidetherangeofthestandardempiricallyderivedmodel,thetheoretically
derivedLeemethodcanbeapplied.
WorkingDistance:typicalworkingdistanceisthesumofthedistancebetweentheworkerstandinginfrontofthe
equipment,andfromthefrontoftheequipmenttothepotentialarcsourceinsidetheequipment.Arcfashprotectionis
alwaysbasedontheincidentenergylevelontheperson'sfaceandbodyattheworkingdistance,nottheincidentenergyon
thehandsorarms.Thedegreeofinjuryinaburndependsonthepercentageofaperson'sskinthatisburned.Theheadand
bodyarealargepercentageoftotalskinsurfaceareaandinjurytotheseareasismuchmorelifethreateningthanburnson
theextremities(seeFig.3).

Figure3.Arcflashzones

FortheFigure3.followingdefinitionscanbeapplied:
FlashProtectionBoundary:Anapproachlimitatadistancefromexposedlivepartswithinwhichapersoncouldreceivea
seconddegreeburnifanelectricarcflashweretooccur.Appropriateflashflameprotectionequipmentmustbeutilizedfor
personsenteringtheflashprotectionregion.
LimitedApproachBoundary:Anapproachlimitatdistancefromanexposedlivepartwithinwhichashockhazardexists.
Apersoncrossingthelimitedapproachboundaryandenteringthelimitedregionmustbequalifiedtoperformthejob/task.
RestrictedApproachBoundary:Anapproachlimitatadistancefromanexposedlivepartwithinwhichthereisan
increaseriskofshock,duetoelectricalarcovercombinedwithinadvertentmovement,forpersonnelworkinginclose
proximitytothelivepart.Thepersoncrossingtherestrictedapproachboundaryandenteringtherestrictedspacemusthave
adocumentedworkplanapprovedbyauthorizedmanagement,usePPEthatisappropriatefortheworkingbeingperformed
andisratedforvoltageandenergylevelinvolved.
ProhibitedApproachBoundary:Anapproachlimitatadistancefromandexposedlivepartwithinwhichworkis
consideredthesameasmakingcontactwiththelivepart.Thepersonenteringtheprohibitedspacemusthavespecified
trainingtoworkonenergizedconductorsorliveparts.Anytoolsusedintheprohibitedspacemustberatedfordirect
contactatthevoltageandenergylevelinvolved.

ArcFlashMitigationinSwitchgear
AnnexZC6ofAS3439.1[3]providesguidelinesfortheminimisation,detectionandcontainmentofinternalarcfaultsin
switchgear.Thesearesummarisedbelow:
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Insulationofliveconductors(inadditiontoclearancesinair)
Arrangementofbusbarsandfunctionalunitsinseparateventedcompartments,formorerapidextinguishingof
thearcandtocontainanarcfaultinasinglecompartment
Useofprotectiondevicestolimitmagnitudeanddurationofarcingcurrent
Useofdevicessensitivetoenergyradiatedfromanarctoinitiateprotectionandinterruptarcingcurrent
Useofearthcurrentdetectiondevicesforinterruptionofarcfaultstoearth
Combinationsoftheabove
Itshouldbenotedthatuncontainedarcfaultscanspreadtootherpartsoftheswitchboardanddevelopintolargerfaults(e.g.
functionalunitarcfaultspreadingtobusbars).

ArcFlashPPE
Asageneralguideline,Nealetal[1]recommendsthefollowingpersonalprotection
equipmenttosafeguardagainstarcfaults:
Clothingconsistingofouterlayer(s)ofloosefittingflameresistantfabric
withoutopeningsandinnerlayersofnonmeltablefibres
Switchmanshoodorfaceshieldwith0.08inchthickpolycarbonateviewing
window
Heavydutyflameresistantworkgloves
Heavydutyworkboots
AnnexCofIEEEStd1584[2]illustratesacasestudy(No.42)ofa2.3kVswitching
operationthatultimatelyendedinanarcfault.Theoperatorwaswearingafullarcflashsuit,
safetyglassesandfireresistantshirtandpants.ThePPEpreventedanyburninjuriesfrom
thearcflash.OthercasestudieswheretheoperatorswerenotwearingappropriatePPE
resultedinsevereburnsordeath.
ArcflashPPEisnormallyratedtoanArcThermalPerformanceexposureValue(ATPV),
whichspecifiesthemaximumincidentarcfaultenergythatcanprotectthewearer
(measuredincaloriespercm2).
Bywayofexample,theresultsofanarcflashhazardcalculationbasedonIEEEStd1584
followstodeterminetheappropriateATPVratingofPPE.Theprospectivefaultcurrentused
was25kA.Afaultclearingtimeof0.5swaschosen,whichissuitablyonerousforaworst
caseincident.

Figure4.Typicalarcflash
suit

Thecalculationconcludedthattoprotectagainstinjuryfromanarcfaultofthismagnitude,PPEwithanATPVratingof
over50cal/cm2).isrequired.TheATPVratingistypicallyquotedoncommonlyavailablearcflashPPE.
TypicalarcfaultPPEisavailablefromvendorssuchasOberon(http://www.oberoncompany.com/index.php).

ArcFlashCalculationaccordingtotheIEEEStd.15842002
IEEEStd15842002containscalculationmethodsdevelopedthroughtestingbyseveralsourcestodetermineboundary
distancesforunprotectedpersonnelandtheincidentenergyattheworkingdistanceforqualifiedpersonnelworkingon
energizedequipment.TheincidentenergylevelcanbeusedtodeterminetheproperPPErequiredforpersonnel.The
equationsdevelopedintheIEEEstandardassessthearcflashhazardbasedontheavailable(bolted)faultcurrent,voltage,
clearingtime,equipmenttype,grounding,andworkingdistance.Theworkingvoltageisalsousedtodetermineother
variables.Theequationshaveothervariablesthataccountforgrounding,equipmenttype,andconstruction.Thismethod
canalsodeterminetheimpactofcertaincurrentlimitinglowvoltagefusesaswellascertaintypesoflowvoltagebreakers.
Itisanimprovementoverthepreviousworkinthatthecalculationscanbeappliedoveralargerangeofvoltages.Themany
variablesofthismethodmakeitthepreferredchoiceforArcFlashevaluations,butatthesametimerequireseithera
complexspreadsheetorcomputerprogramtobeusedefficiently.
Determiningthearccurrent
Forapplicationsunder1kV:

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Forapplicationsabove1kV:

Andgettingthevaluefromthelog10:

where:
Iathearcfaultcurrent(kA),
Kfortheopenconfigurations(0.153),fortheclosed/boxedconfigurations(0.097),
Ifistheboltedfaultcurrentforthreephasefaults(symmetricalRMS)(kA),
Usysthesystemvoltage,
dGthegapbetweenconductors(mm).
Thesecondarccurrent(I2a)isequalto85%ofthefirstcurrent,or:

Determinetheincidentenergy
Whenthearccurrentisknowntheincidentenergycouldbecalculated.Butfirsttheincidentenergynormalizedforthetime
anddistanceiscalculated:

Nowtheincidentenergycanbecalculatedasfollows,forthesystemswherethevoltagedoesnotexceed15kV:

Andforthelocationwherethevoltageexceeds15kVtheLeemethodisused:

Where:
Entheincidentenergynormalizedfortimeanddistance(cal/cm2),
K1fortheopenconfigurations(0.792),fortheclosed/boxedconfigurations(0.555),
K2fortheungroundedorhighresistancegroundedsystems(0),forgroundedsystems(0.113),
dGthegapbetweenconductors(mm),
Etheincidentenergy(cal/cm2),
Cfthevoltagefactor(1.0forUsys>1kV,1.5forUsys<=1kV),
tthearcdurationtime(s),
Dthedistancefromthepossiblearclocationtotheperson(mm),
xthedistancefactor(checktablebelow),
Ifistheboltedfaultcurrentforthreephasefaults(symmetricalRMS)(kA),
Usysthesystemvoltage.
Thearcdurationtimeistheclearingtimeforthesourcesideprotectingdevicethatclearsthefaultfirst.
Systemvoltage(kV) Equipmenttype

Typicalgapbetweenconductors(mm) Distancefactor,x

Openair

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1040

2.0

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0.2081.0

Switchgear

32

1.473

MCCandpanels
Cable

25
13

1.641
2.0

Openair

1040

2.0

Switchgear

13102

0.973

Cable

13

2.0

Openair

1040

2.0

Switchgear

153

0.973

Cable

13

2.0

>1.05.0

>5.015.0

Determinetheflashboundary
Theflashboundaryisthedistancefromanarcingfaultwheretheincidentenergyisequalto1.2cal/cm2.FortheIEEEStd.
1584empiricallyderivedmodelequationis:

FortheLeemethod:

Where:
DBthedistanceoftheboundaryfromarcingpoint(mm),
Entheincidentenergy(cal/cm2)normalizedfortimeanddistance,
Cfthevoltagefactor(1.0forUsys>1kV,1.5forUsys<=1kV),
tthearcdurationtime(s),
EBtheincidentenergyincal/cm2attheboundarydistance,
xthedistancefactor(checktableabove),
Ifistheboltedfaultcurrentforthreephasefaults(symmetricalRMS)(kA),
Usysthesystemvoltage.
Othercalculationapproachesfortheincidentenergy
In2000,Doughty,Floyd,andNealpublished"PredictingIncidentEnergytoBetterManagetheElectricArcHazardon600
VPowerDistributionSystems",whichdefinedincidentenergybasedonfaultduty,workingdistanceandclearingtimefor
arcsinairorinanenclosure.Foropeninstallations:

Andforclosed/boxedinstallations:

Where:
EMAincidentenergyforanarcinopenair(cal/cm2),
EMBincidentenergyforanarcinabox(size50cmor20inchesmaximum)(cal/cm2),
DA,DBdistancefromthearc,

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Ifistheboltedfaultcurrentforthreephasefaults(symmetricalRMS)(kA),
tAthearcdurationtime(s).

NPFA70E2004Application
InApril2004.,theNFPAreleasedanupdatetoNFPA70EthatadoptedtheIEEEStd.15842002methodsfordetermining
theincidentenergy.ThestandardwasrenamedtoNFPA70EStandardforEmployeeSafetyintheWorkplace2004Edition.
ItisdifferentfromIEEEStd.1584withregardtoarcflashinthatitisusedtodeterminetheappropriatePPEbasedonthe
incidentenergycalculated.PPEisratedbytheArcThermalPerformanceValue(ATPV)withunitsincal/cm2.Therequired
PPEisdeterminedbycomparingthecalculatedincidentenergytotheratingsforspecificcombinationsofPPE.Anexample
isgiveninNPFA70Easfollowsintablebelow:
Hazard/Risk
Category

TypicalProtectiveClothingSystems

RequiredMinimumArcRatingof
PPE(cal/cm2)

Nonmelting,flammablematerials(naturalortreatedmaterials
withatleast4.5z/yd2)

N/A(1.2)

FRpantsandFRshirt,orFRcoverall

CottonUnderwear,plusFRshirtandFRpants

CottonUnderwear,plusFRshirtandFRpantsandFRcoverall

25

CottonUnderwear,plusFRshirtandFRpantsandmultiple
layerflashsuit

40

WhereFRreferstotheflameresistantorflameretardant.
ThisexampleshouldNOTbeusedforfinalcalculations.
Foractualapplications,thecalculatedincidentenergy
mustbecomparedtospecificPPEcombinationsusedat
thefacilitybeingevaluated.Theexceptiontothisisthe
upperlimitof40cal/cm2.WhilePPEisavailablein
ATPVvaluesof100cal/cm2ormore,valuesabove40
areconsideredprohibitedduetothesound,pressureand
concussiveforcespresent.Abovethisleveltheseforces
aremoresignificantthanthethermalvalues.

Methodsforreducingarcflash
hazards

Figure5.Typicalarcflashwarninglabel

ReducingtheArcingCurrent:certainprotectivedevicesarecurrentlimitingindesign.Bylimitingthecurrentavailable
forafaultthereisacorrespondingreductionintheincidentenergyforclearingtimesthatareshortinduration(13cycles).
Faultdutiesatthesedevicesmustbeinthecurrentlimitingrangeforthemtobeeffective(typicallyatleast1015timesthe
devicerating).
IncreasingtheWorkingDistance:sincetheincidentenergyisproportionaltothesquareofthedistance(inopenair),
increasingtheworkingdistancewillsignificantlyreducetheincidentenergy.Workingdistancecanbeincreasedbyusing
remoterackingdevices,remoteoperatingdevices,andextensiontools(i.e.hotsticks).
ReducingtheClearingTime:traditionalmethodstoreduceclearingtimesinclude:lowereddevicesettings(permanently
ortemporarily),busdifferentialprotection,andzoneselectiveinterlocking(typicallylowvoltageonly).Itshouldbenoted
thatthecalculationsassumethattheprotectivedevicesaresetinaccordancewiththestudy,andthatthedevicesoperate
properly.

ArcFlashDetectionPrinciples
Anarcflashfaulttypicallyresultsinanenormousandnearlyinstantaneousincreaseinlightintensityinthevicinityofthe
fault.Lightintensitylevelsoftenrisetoseveralthousandtimesnormalambientlightinglevels.Forthisreasonmost,ifnot
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all,arcflashdetectingrelaysrelyonopticalsensor(s)todetectthisrapidincreaseinlightintensity.Forsecurityreasons,the
opticalsensinglogicistypicallyfurthersupervisedbyinstantaneousovercurrentelements(ANSIdevice50)operatingasa
faultdetector.Arcflashdetectionrelaysarecapableofissuingatripsignalinaslittleas2.5msafterinitiationofthearcing
fault.Arcflashrelayingcomplimentsexistingconventionalrelaying.Thearcflashdetectionrelayrequiresarapidincrease
inlightintensitytooperateandisdesignedwiththesinglepurposeofdetectingverydangerousexplosivelikeconditions
resultingfromanarcflashfault.Itoperatesindependentlyanddoesnotneedtobecoordinatedwithexistingrelaying
schemes.

ResponsestoArcFlashFaults
Oncethearcflashfaulthasbeendetected,thereareatleasttwodesignoptions.Oneoptioninvolvesdirectlytrippingthe
upstreambusbreaker(s).Sincethearcflashdetectiontimeissoshort,overallclearingtimeisessentiallyreducedtothe
operatingtimeoftheupstreambreaker.Asecondoptioninvolvescreatinganintentionalthreephasebusfaultbyenergizing
ahighspeedgroundingswitch.Thisapproachshuntsthearcingenergythroughthehighspeedgroundingswitchandboth
faultsarethenclearedbyconventionalupstreambusprotection.Becausethegroundingswitchtypicallyclosesfasterthan
theupstreambreakeropens,thisapproachwillresultinlowerincidentenergylevelsthanthefirstapproach.However,it
alsointroducesasecondthreephaseboltedfaultonthesystemanditrequiresthataseparatehighspeedgroundingswitch
beinstalledandoperational.Assumingthereisspaceavailablefortheadditionofthegroundingswitch,thereisa
significantlyhighercostofimplementationinvolvedcomparedtothefirstapproach,andsomaynotbeapractical
alternative,especiallyforexistingswitchgearlineups.

ArcFlashCalculator
Also,wehaveprovidedafreearcflashcalculatorforandroidbasedsmartphonesArcFlashCalculator
(https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.openelectrical.arcflashcalculator&hl=en)

References
1.Neal,T.,Bingham,A.,Doughty,R.L,ProtectiveClothingforElectricArcExposure,IEEE,July/Aug1997
(http://www.openelectrical.org/wiki/images/e/ec/Neal_Protective_Clothing_Arc_Fault_Exposure.pdf)
2.IEEEStd1584,ArcFlashHazardCalculations,2002
3.AS3439.1,LowvoltageswitchgearandcontrolgearassembliesPart1:Typetestedandpartiallytypetested
assemblies,2002
4."Arcflashhazardanalysisandmitigation",2004,ChristopherInshaw,RobertA.Wilson
5.Arcadvisordata(http://www.arcadvisor.com/)
Retrievedfrom"http://www.openelectrical.org/wiki/index.php?title=Arc_Fault"
Category:Protection
Thispagewaslastmodifiedon2February2014,at13:03.

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