Lightning Protection
Lightning is a major cause of damage to inverters
and sometimes other equipment in RAPS installations
and the results are usually catastrophic. Seldom is the
damage caused by a direct strike, rather it is due to the
surge, lasting only a few microseconds, induced in electrical
cabling in the vicinity of the strike.
It is possible to protect against lightning damage
by using suitably rated and installed surge diverters.
Planetary Power has now provided this protection at nearly
all of its system installed since 2001, including its own
micro-hydro powered facility at Walsh River. Since
surge diverters have been installed there has not been a
single reported case of lightning damage at any of these
protected sites.
The most common cause of failure of installed inverters
is due to surges caused directly or indirectly by lightning
strike. Experience has shown that the inverter is really
the only piece of equipment susceptible this way. Lightning
protection is covered by Australian Standard AS1768.
Lightning protection equipment is offered as standard with
our diesel/battery hybrid systems
It comprises:
(a) installation of bonded earthing
(b) installation of Novaris SD1-40DIN lightning surge
diverter on DC side of the inverter
Additionally lightning protection will be required for the
AC input and AC output circuits.The usual method is to install
lightning surge diverters in the adjacent AC distribution
board.
