Importance of grounding for ships and offshore platforms to prevent corrosion and electrostatic discharge hazards; Overview of different types of marine grounding systems and their components; Application examples and success stories.
Grounding for nonconductive vessels. The goal of ground system design is to make conflicting requirements for each type of system connected to ground compatible. As with all electrical signals, lightning current will flow through the path of least impedance.
How is grounding on marine vessels organized When a lightning strike hits the mast, the current will tend to flow into the water through the hull of the vessel. On ships with a metal body, grounding is not required. The hull of steel and aluminum yachts serves as a "Faraday shield", protecting the ship's crew from the impact of an electric field.
As long as the conditions do not ensure safe loading, the signal LEDs of the ship's grounding system show the status “red”. Before and during the contacting of the grounding clamp, the internal equipotential bonding connection within the control unit is interrupted.
What is a bonding & grounding system?
The goal of bonding and grounding systems are to dissipate developing static charges, or the potential charge between two objects, so energy does not build-up to create an ESD spark (the fire/explosion ignition source).
Why is a static grounding electrode less rigorous than a high current grounding network?
A “static” grounding electrode is less rigorous than a high current grounding network because the discharge current is less than 1mA. It is then unnecessary to build an additional grounding system for static protection, and the connection to earth may employ the system, equipment, or lightning protection grounding electrodes.
Do fuel bulk storage facilities need a static bonding & grounding system?
In fuel bulk storage facilities, where the amount of product being transferred is great, concerns for appropriate levels of protection from static electricity are amplified. Static bonding and grounding systems and equipment are manufactured specifically for providing this type of protection.