A Study of a Large Bipolar Lightning Event Observed at the Säntis Tower

An unusual negative lightning flash was recorded at the Säntis Tower on June 15, 2012. The flash did not contain an initial continuous current typical of upward negative lightning, which is the most common type of event at the Säntis Tower. The flash contained four strokes, the last three of which were normal while the current associated with the first stroke resembled a Gaussian pulse with an unusually high peak value of 102.3 kA, a long risetime of 28.4 μs, and a pulsewidth of 53.8 μs, which was followed by an opposite polarity overshoot with a peak value of 8.5 kA. Our current records suggest the involvement of a long upward connecting positive leader in response to the approaching downward negative leader in the formation of this flash. Lightning location system (LLS) data indicate that a positive cloud-to-ground stroke occurred 1 ms prior to the first stroke of the flash. In this paper, we present a detailed description of the data associated with this event. Moreover, both a return stroke model and anM-component model are used to reproduce the far-field waveform of this bipolar stroke. The simulations result in a radiated electric field waveform that is similar to those of large bipolar events (LBEs) observed in winter thunderstorms in Japan. A sensitivity analysis of the used simulation models reveals that, by proper selection of the input parameters, all field waveform characteristics, except for the positive half-cycle width, can be made

Electromagnetic Fields Associated With the M‐Component Mode of Charge Transfer

Mohammad Azadifar, Lixia He, Davide Pavanello, Marcos Rubinstein

In upward flashes, charge transfer to ground largely takes place during the initial continuous current (ICC) and its superimposed pulses (ICC pulses). ICC pulses can be associated with either M-component or leader/return-stroke like modes of charge transfer to ground. In the latter case, the downward leader/return stroke process is believed to take place in a decayed branch or a newly created channel connected to the ICC-carrying channel at relatively short distance from the tower top, resulting in the so-called mixed mode of charge transfer to ground. In this paper, we study the electromagnetic fields associated with the M-component charge transfer mode using simultaneous records of electric fields and currents associated with upward flashes initiated from the Säntis Tower. The effect of the mountainous terrain on the propagation of electromagnetic fields associated with the M-component charge transfer mode (including classical M-component pulses and M-component-type pulses superimposed on the initial continuous current) is analyzed, and compared with its effect on the fields associated with the return-stroke (occurring after the extinction of the ICC) and mixed charge transfer modes. For the analysis, we use a 2D FDTD (2-Dimentional Finite-Difference Time-Domain) method, in which the M-component is modeled by the superposition of a downward current wave and an upward current wave resulting from the reflection at the bottom of the lightning channel (Rakov et al. 1995 model) and the return stroke and mixed mode are modeled adopting the MTLE (Modified Transmission Line with Exponential Current Decay with Height) model. The finite ground conductivity and the mountainous propagation terrain between the Säntis Tower and the field sensor located 15 km away at Herisau are taken into account. The effects of the mountainous path on the electromagnetic fields are examined for ‘classical’ M-component and M-component-type ICC pulses. Use is made of the propagation factors defined as the ratio of the electric or magnetic field peak evaluated along the mountainous terrain to the field peak evaluated for a flat terrain. The velocity of the M-component pulse is found to have a significant effect on the risetime of the electromagnetic fields. A faster travelling wave speed results in larger peaks for the magnetic field. However, the peak of the electric field appears to be insensitive to the M-component wave speed. This can be explained by the fact that at 15 km, the electric field is still dominated by the static component which mainly depends on the overall transferred charge. The contribution of the radiation component to the M-component fields at 100 km accounts for about 77% of the peak electric field and 81% of the peak magnetic field, considerably lower compared to the contribution of the radiation component to the return stroke fields at the same distance. The simulation results show that neither the electric nor the magnetic field propagation factors are very sensitive to the risetimes of the current pulses. However, the results indicate a high variability of the propagation factors as a function of the branch-to-channel junction point height. For junction point heights of about 1 km, the propagation factors reach a value of about 1.6 for the E-field and 1.9 for the H-field. For a junction height greater than 6 km, the E-field factor becomes slightly lower than 1. The obtained results are consistent with the findings of Li et al. (2016b) in which an electric field propagation factor of 1.8 was inferred for return strokes and mixed mode pulses, considering that junction points lower than 1 km or so would result in a mixed-mode of charge transfer, in which a downward leader/return-stroke like process is believed to take place. It is also found that the field enhancement (propagation factor) for return stroke mode is higher for larger ground conductivities. Furthermore, the enhancement effect tends to decrease with increasing current risetime, except for very short risetimes (less than 2.5 s or so) for which the tendency reverses. Finally, model-predicted fields associated with different charge transfer modes, namely return stroke, mixed mode, classical M-component, and M-component-type ICC pulse are compared with experimental observations at the Säntis tower. It is found that the vertical electric field waveforms computed considering the mountainous terrain are in very good agreement with the observed data. The adopted parameters of the models that provide the best match with the measured field waveforms were consistent with observations. The values for the current decay height constant adopted in the return stroke and mixed mode models (1.0 km for the return stroke and 0.8 km for the mixed-mode pulse) are lower than the value of 2.0 km typically used in the literature.

2019

A Comparison of Frequency-Dependent Soil Models: Application to the Analysis of Grounding Systems

Damir Cavka, Nicolas Mora Parra

We present a review and comparison of different models representing the frequency dependence of the soil electrical parameters (conductivity and permittivity). These models are expressed in terms of curve-fit expressions for the soil conductivity and relative permittivity, which are based on experimental data. Six availablemodels/expressions are discussed and compared-making reference to two sets of experimental data. It is shown that the soil models by Scott, Smith-Longmire, Messier, and Visacro-Alipio predict overall similar results, which are in reasonable agreement with both sets of experimental data. Differences between the soil models are found to be more significant at high frequencies and for low-resistivity soils. The causality of the considered models is tested using the Kramers-Kronig relationships. It is shown that the models/expressions of Smith-Longmire, Messier, and Portela satisfy the Kramers-Kronig relationships and thus provide causal results. The soil models are applied to the analysis of grounding systems subject to a lightning current. A full-wave computational model is adopted for the analysis. The analysis is performed considering two cases: 1) a simple horizontal grounding electrode, and 2) a realistic grounding system of a wind turbine. Two current waveforms associated with typical first and subsequent return strokes are adopted for the representation of the incident lightning current. In agreement with recent studies, simulations show that the frequency dependence of the soil parameters results in a decrease of the potential of the grounding electrode, with respect to the case where the parameters are assumed to be constant. It is found that the models/expressions by Scott, Smith-Longmire, Messier, and Visacro-Alipio predict similar levels of decrease, which vary from about 2% (rho(LF) = 20 Omega.m and first stroke) up to 45% (rho(LF) = 10 000 Omega.m and subsequent stroke). On the other hand, the models of Portela and Visacro-Portela predict significantly larger levels of the decrease, especially for very high resistivity soils. Furthermore, in the case of a high resistivity soil (10 000 Omega.m), the Visacro-Alipio expression predicts a longer risetime for the grounding potential rise, compared to the predictions of Scott, Smith-Longmire, and Messier models.

Ieee-Inst Electrical Electronics Engineers Inc2014

On Lightning Electromagnetic Field Propagation Along an Irregular Terrain

Mohammad Azadifar, Dongshuai Li, Stefan Metz, Mario Paolone, Davide Pavanello, Marcos Rubinstein, Zhaoyang Wang, Qilin Zhang

In this paper, we present a theoretical analysis of the propagation effects of lightning electromagnetic fields over a mountainous terrain. The analysis is supported by experimental observations consisting of simultaneous records of lightning currents and electric fields associated with upward negative lightning flashes to the instrumented Santis tower in Switzerland. The propagation of lightning electromagnetic fields along the mountainous region around the Santis tower is simulated using a full-wave approach based on the finite-difference time-domain method and using the two-dimensional topographic map along the direct path between the tower and the field measurement station located at about 15 km from the tower. We show that, considering the real irregular terrain between the Santis tower and the field measurement station, both the waveshape and amplitude of the simulated electric fields associated with return strokes and fast initial continuous current pulses are in excellent agreement with the measured waveforms. On the other hand, the assumption of a flat ground results in a significant underestimation of the peak electric field. Finally, we discuss the sensitivity of the obtained results to the assumed values for the return stroke speed and the ground conductivity, the adopted return stroke model, as well as the presence of the building on which the sensors were located.