Arc-Flash Hazard Evaluation

Provides Safer and More

Arc Flash Efficient Workplace

Conrad St.Pierre

Dupont Nameplate
Requirements of 2003 NEC
• Article 110.16 states ‘Flash protection is required when
examining, adjusting, servicing, or maintaining
energized equipment. The equipment shall be field
marked to warn qualified persons of potential electric
arc flash hazards’ ‘Flash protection is required when
examining, adjusting, servicing, or maintaining
energized equipment. The equipment shall be field
marked to warn qualified persons of potential electric
arc flash hazards’
• NEC is generally not retro-active, but for safety
reasons should apply to all to all electrically equipment.

Minimum Thermal Recommended Protection

NFPA 70E (Based on proposed updates to NFPA 70E)

Flash Hazard Range of Calculated Min. PPE Clothing Required

“Flash hazard analysis shall be done before a Risk Category incident energy Rating
4.5-14.0 oz/yd2 untreated cotton
person approaches any exposed electrical 0 0 to 1.2 cal/cm2 N/A
FR shirt and pants
conductor or circuit part that has not been 1 1.2+ to 5 cal/cm2 5 cal/cm2
Cotton underclothing
placed in an electrically safe work condition. 2 5+ to 8 cal/cm2 8 cal/cm2
plus FR shirt and pants

The flash hazard analysis shall determine the 3 8+ to 25 cal/cm2 25 cal/cm2 Cotton underclothing plus
FR shirt, pants, overalls or equivalent
flash protection boundary and the personal
Cotton underclothing plus FR shirt, pants,
protective equipment that people within the arc 4 25+ to 40 cal/cm2 40 cal/cm2
plus double layer switching coat and pants
flash boundary must use.” Cotton underclothing plus FR shirt, pants,
5 40+ to 100 cal/cm2 100 cal/cm2
plus multi-layer switching suit or equivalent

1
 Reality of Arc Flash Hazard
An arc flash can be Expensive
Arc current creates:
Recovery and rehabilitation costs can be – A brilliant flash of light
staggering – A loud noise
– Intense heat
• Cost for an incident involving one fatality – Fast moving pressure wave
and two injured employees has exceeded
$12 million. Products of arcing fault are:
• Another company’s expenses for three – Ionized gases
– Metal vapors
serious incidents in a three year period
– Molten metal droplets
have exceeded $875,000.
– Shrapnel

Development of Arc Flash Calculations

One Line Diagram

• In 1982 Ralph Lee presented an IEEE paper Source

Arc Volts
on Arc Flash Hazard Vs
Zs Zcable
• NFPA 70E – 2000 Recommended Arc Flash Calcs
• IEEE-1584-2002 - Published Calc Methods
• IEEE 1584 Standard refers to Lee’s work as
Lee’s Method.
• Equation use VLL and Ibolted fault and gives
working distance

What is in IEEE 1584?

Video 1
• Results based on tests
• Arc Flash in Open Space, on Cables,
MV Swgr, LV Swgr, MCC, Dist. Panels
• Voltages 208 to 1000V, 1000 to 5000V
5000-15000-V, >15-kV
>15-kV uses Lee’s Method
• Grounded and Ungrounded Systems
• Faults cleared by CLF Equations

2

Video 2
Getting from Incident Energy to PPE
• Utilizing PPE with Cal/cm2 values of
1.2, 4, 8, 25, 40 the IEEE Equations
resulted in adequate levels of PPE in
95% of the arc-flash tests
• In 5% of the tests, the PPE chosen was
one level too low
LV Equation - Incident Energy Normalized
En =10 K1 + K2 + 1.081 log(Ia) + 0.0011 G
where
where
En = incident energy normalized to
0.2 seconds and 610 mm distance
K1 = -0.792 for open configurations
or -0.555 for box configurations
K2 = 0 for ungrounded and high resistance
grounded systems,
or -0.113 for grounded systems
G = bus bar spacing or gap (mm)
Results of Experiments
• Best fit for arcing current: equations with terms of
• bolted fault current
• voltage
• gap between conductors
• open air or box
• Best fit for incident energy: equations with terms
• arcing current
• gap between conductors
• open air or box
• grounded or ungrounded
Arc Current
LV Ia = 10 [K + 0.662 log(Ib) + 0.0966 V
+ 0.000526 G + 0.5588 log(Ib) V
– 0.00304 log(Ib) G]
MV Ia = 10 [0.00402 +0.983 log (Ibf)]
where:
Ia = arcing current (kA)
K = – 0.153 for open configuration
or – 0.097 for box configuration
log(Ib) = log10 of sym RMS bolted fault current (kA)
Voltage = system voltage (kV)
G = distance between buses (mm)
Incident Energy
E = Cf 10 log(En)(t /0.2)( 610X / DX)
E is incident energy in cal/cm2
Cf is calculation factor of 1.0 for Voltage > 1kV,
or 1.5 for Voltage < 1kV
t is time in seconds
D is working distance in mm
X is the distance exponent from table based on
enclosure size and voltage
3
 Human
Man Conductor
without Causing
PPE Arc
Protection

Racking Out Breaker Questionable Items

• Grounded Definition
• Incident Energy verses Voltage and Test Data
0 – 1000V have voltage term in equation
1000+ to 15000 V do not have voltage term
in equation. Two grouping 1-5-kV, 5-15-kV
15000 V+ has voltage in equation

Grounded Definition Incident Energy verses Bolted Fault Current

Standard
K2 = 0 for ungnded and hi-resistance gnded systems from IEEE 1584 Equation
K2 = –0.113 for grounded systems 14.0 200

12.0 175

Spreadsheet
Incident Energy (Cal/cm^2)

13.8-kV
150
Incident Energy (Cal/cm^2)

10.0
Ungded, Res Gnding, Other Imp gnded K2 = 0 4.16-kV
2.4-kV 125
34.5-kV

Solid Grounded K2 = -0.113 8.0

100
6.0
*
75
Grounding Standard Spreadsheet 4.0
600-V
50
UnGnd 0.0 0.0 2.0
480-V
25
13.8-kV
Hi-Imp 0.0 0.0 0.0 0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 0 10 20 30 40 50 60

Low Imp -0.113 0.0 Bolt Fault Current in kA Bolted Fault Current in kA

Solid -0.113 -0.113 Time = 0.1 sec, Working distance = 24 inches, Arc gap per IEEE 1584 for switchgea, Grounded

4
 Incident Energy verses Voltage and Test Data Incident Energy verses Voltage and Test Data
60 300

50 250
IEEE Lee's Method
IEEE Lee's Method
40 200

Cal/cm2
Cal/cm 2

IEEE 1584 Equations

30 150

Test Data Points IEEE 1584 Equations

20 100

Test Data Points

10 50

0 0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Bolted kA Bolted kA
Comparison of IEEE Equations to 600 Volt Open Air Arc Test Data Comparison of IEEE Equations to 4160 Volt Open Air Arc Test Data
IEEE 1584 Eq, based on 24 inch to subject, 1.25 Inch Arc Gap, 1.0 sec IEEE 1584 Eq, based on 24 inch to subject, 4.0 Inch Arc Gap, 1.0 sec

Incident Energy verses Voltage and Test Data

500
Test Cubicles (Box)
IEEE Lee's Method LARGE BOX
400
SMALL BOX
Cal/cm2

300

200
IEEE 1584 Equations

Test Data Points

100

0 BOX APPLICATION DEEP OPENING ELECTRODE

0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Bolted kA SMALL MCC or PANELBOARD 191 cm 165x165 cm 38 cm

LARGE LV SWITCHGEAR 508 cm 254x254 cm 10 cm

Comparison of IEEE Equations to 13,800 Volt Open Air Arc Test

IEEE 1584 Eq, based on 24 inch to subject, 6.0 Inch Arc Gap, 1.0 sec

Arc Pressure
Video 3
• In 1987 Ralph Lee presented an IEEE paper
on Arc Pressure

• Arc Pressure = 11.5*kA lbs/ft2

(Distance. from arc in feet)0.9

• for 50-kA fault at 2 feet = 308 lb/ft2

5
 Limiting Flash Hazard Limiting Flash Hazard
1. Low voltage remote trip and close 5. On double ended load centers with normally
2. Use a remote or longer operating arms when closed tie, open an incoming breaker or th
racking in or opening/closing breakers tie breaker

3. Place a shield between the technician and the
device being placed in service or racked in
4. Review protective devices to see if they can
be lowered in time and pick-up.
6. Determine if smaller fuses can be used
7. Change relay settings when working on
equipment

Protective Shield Circuit to Reduce Arc Fault Time

CT O/C Relay without

Inst. Set Main Breaker Control Circuit + DC Bus
Switchgear
Cubicle Hi-impact plastic Main
Safety On/Off
Switch
shield with arm Breaker Time Overcurrent
holds Relay Trip Contact
Lt
Inst. Overcurrent
Switchgear Bus Trip Contact

Breaker Feeder Feeder

Breaker Breaker
To Main Breaker To - DC bus
Trip Circuit
CT O/C CT O/C

Relay with Relay with

Inst. Set Inst. Set

CURRENT IN AMPS X 100 @ 480 VOLTS

1 3 5 10 3 5 100 3 5 1000 3 5
1000 1000
4160V

500 250E
500 100% Fault
300 1000 kVA 300
Location kA Time Cal/
1600A
Arc Heat 100
480V
100 (sec) Cm^2
600A

50 50 Main 17.3 0.21 4.4

30 30
1000 kVA
S&C
SMU-40 4.8 KV
Feeder 23.2 0.05 1.4
Std Speed
10 Main
General Electric RMS-9
250E SF= 1
10
Low Voltage Power
Sensor = 1600 Plug = 1600
Curr Set = 1.0 Trip = 1600
Fuse 17.3 0.42 8.8
S 5 LTBand = 1 Inst = None
STpu = 2.0 I^2t = IN Bd = Min
5 S
E 85% Transf Amps
E
C 3 3
C 85% fault
O ARC-1 FDR O
N General Electric RMS-9
Low Voltage Power N
D Sensor = 800 Plug = 600 Transf Amps
D Main 14.3 0.30 5.3
S 1 1
Curr Set = 1.0 Trip = 600
LTBand = 1 Inst = 10.0
STpu = 4.0 I^2t = IN Bd = Min S
.5 .5 19.7 0.05 1.2
Feeder
.3 .3
Fuse 14.3 1.0 17.6
.1 .1

.05 .05
.03 .03

.01 .01
1 3 5 10 3 5 100 3 5 1000 3 5

6
Slide the tab to
run Short
Circuit.

Warning Label Plot of Incident Energy

W A R N IN G
B u s E le c tr ic a l S h o c k a n d F la s h H a z a rd
A p p r o p r ia t e P P E R e q u ir e d
W h e n L iv e P a r t s a r e E x p o s e d (R e s t r ic te d S h o c k H a z a r d D i s t a n c e = 2 6 i n c h )

V o lt s 480 0 M a x S h o rt C i r c u it k A 5 .0
P P E B a s e d o n 1 7 .9 in c h W o r k in g D i s t a n c e
A r c F la s h b o u n d a r y , P P E re q u i re d w i th in 1 3 . 2 i n c h e s )

C lo t h in g F ace
Level
0 X
S h ie ld
G lo v e Eye
C la s s
0 X
P r o te c ti o n
In s u l a te d H a ir /B e a rd N e t
T o o ls X N o t A llo w e d X
R eq u ire d X A r c F la s h b o u n d a r y a t e n e r g y < 1 . 2 c a l/ c m ^ 2
N o t R e q u ir e d

P r o je c t: T 1 2 3 E q u ip m e n t N a m e : 0 1