Software tool calculates arc flash risks
An
Arcad product story
Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team
May 19, 2008
The calculator predicts arcing fault current for a given configuration and bolted fault short circuit current.
Arc-Flash-Analytic V 2.0 software tool has been developed based on IEEE1584 Guide for Performing Arc-Flash Hazard Calculations.
It is designed for calculating arc incident energy, flash protection boundary and risk category required by N.E.C and OSHA when work is to be performed on or near the energised equipment.
The IEEE1584 empirically derived model was chosen for analysing arc flash faults.
The model is capable to accurately account for variety of setup parameters, including open and box equipment configurations, grounding of all types, gaps between conductors of 3 to 152mm, bolted fault currents in the range of 700A to 106kA and system voltages from 208V to 15kV.
Reference data listing most typical configurations and detailed procedure for IEEE1584 based arc flash calculations has been included in the calculator.
The calculator takes into account the equipment configuration, the gap between electrodes, the grounding type, the short circuit fault current value and system voltage on input , and then determines arcing fault current at the potential point of fault.
Next, the incident energy, flash protection boundary and level of personnel protective equipment are determined based on equipment configuration, arc duration and working distance.
For protective devices operating in the steep portion of their time-current curves, a small change in current causes a big change in operating time.
Incident energy is linear with time, so arc current variation may have a big effect on incident energy.
The IEEE1584 solution is to make two arc current and energy calculations: one using the calculated expected arc current and one using a reduced arc current that is 15% lower.
The calculator allows both calculations to be performed for each case considered.
The IEEE1584 procedure requires that an operating time be determined for both the expected arc current and the reduced arc current.
Incident energy is calculated for both sets of arc currents and operating times and the larger incident energy is taken as the model result.
This solution was developed by comparing the results of arc current calculations using the best available arc current equation with actual measured arc current in the test database.
The calculator predicts arcing fault current for a given configuration and bolted fault short circuit current.
It also predicts the bolted fault current required to cause 15% reduction of the predicted arcing current for the given configuration.
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