Short Time Current Withstand Strength of Earth Electrodes-experiences With Testing

The earth electrode is the main component of the earthing system which is in direct contact with the ground and thus provides a means of releasing or collecting any earth leakage currents. The electrode shall have good electrical conductivity and shall not corrode in a wide range of soil conditions. The design of these electrodes shall be such that they have good current carrying capacity under the earth fault conditions. This paper describes current withstand capability of these Earth Electrodes during earth fault conditions. Recent developments in Electrodes and their performance for different fault currents are given. Failure cases are studied from the laboratory tested Electrodes and appropriate recommendations were proposed. This can give an insight for estimating fault current withstand capability of a given dia and material of Electrode. Also different filler materials used for earth electrodes have been discussed.