Earthing in Industrial

EARTHING IN INDUSTRIAL
AND PHARMACEUTICAL
PLANTS
Kieran Fallon, Chartered Engineer FIEI

Electrical & Instrumentation Manager,
DPS Engineering & Construction
WHY EARTH ELECTRICAL
SYSTEMS
• Low Impedance Return Path for Fault
Currents.
• Prevent Potential Differences
(electrocution hazards).
• Lightning Protection.
• Relax Static Charges.
• Minimise electrical interference to
instrument signals.
• Reference for Intrinsically Safe Systems.
REGULATIONS, STANDARDS AND
RULES
• Electro Technical Council of Ireland
• Euro-Norm Standards (IS-EN-0000 or BS-
EN-0000)
• British Standards
• Irish Standards (NSAI)
EARTH ELECTRODES
• Adequate Electrical Conductivity

• Mechanically Robust
• Protected Against Corrosion
• Clamp does not damage Earthing
Conductor
• Accessible for Inspection
• Label
EARTH ELECTRODES
• Quantity
• Location
• Co-ordination with Architect & Services
• Cable Routes
• Testing & Maintenance
EARTH BARS
• General Earthing
• Protective Conductors
• Main Equipotential Bonding Point
• High Integrity Earths (IS Systems)
• Bonding Conductors for Lightning
EARTH BARS
• Main site earth bar
• Individual building earth bars
• Plant area earth bars
• Robust
• Clearly Labelled
ELECTRICAL POWER SYSTEM
• Medium Voltage Earthing
• Neutral Earth link
• Earth distribution throughout the Site
• Generator Earthing
• Final Circuit Earthing
Medium Voltage
• Discharge of Cables
• Future Earthing of 20kV
Neutral - Earth Link
• Required for site generators and

transformers
• Size
• Usually in Main Distribution Board
Generator Earthing
• Earthing if Grid / Utility supply

disconnected
• Loop Impedance
• BS7430
Final Circuit Earthing
• RCD protection on all sockets (ETCI)

• Loop Impedance
• Fault Currents, Conductor & Temperature
(Hazardous Areas)
EQUIPOTENTIAL BONDING
• Safety requirement
• Protection against Indirect Contact
• Insulated copper
• Safety label
• Size – 50% largest CPC
• Need not exceed 25 mm Sq
• Robust
EQUIPOTENTIAL BONDING
• Supplementary bonding throughout plant
areas
• Small cable size requirement than main
bonding cables
• Specific Hazardous Area requirements
• Electrical Continuity of Piping Systems
LIGHTNING PROTECTION
• BS6651 Code of Practice for the
Protection of Structures against Lightning
• Risk Assessment
– Always required on buildings with Hazardous
Areas
– Always required where extending buildings
with existing protection
– Cost of loss of production
• Faraday Cage
– Conducting box
– No openings
– Current flows over the outside
– No effect on interior
• Structures in Pharmaceutical Plants
– Steel framed or RC Concrete
– Often insulated steel cladding
– Usually no requirement to ‘hide’ down
conductors
• Structures in Pharmaceutical Plants
– Usually contain Hazardous Areas
– Protrusions through building including vents,
ductwork, pipe systems, cable tray
• Down Conductors
– Steel Frame
– Cladding
– Copper Tape
– Bond all parallel paths
– No sharp bends
– 10m Grid
• Air Termination
– Cladding or lattice of copper conductors
– Cross bonding at roof level of all equipment
– 10m spacing for hazardous areas
• Earth Termination Network
– Overall network 10 Ohm
– Individual electrode resistance = 10x number
of electrodes
– As close as possible to building
– Ring electrodes should be considered
ANTI-STATIC EARTHING
• Contact electrification
– Materials brought together and separated
– Flow of fluids through pipes
– Mixing, agitation
– Movement on conveyer belts
– Walking, Moving equipment or drums
– Crystallization
– Dust collection & Pneumatic Conveying
• Potential Energy on Typical Plant Items (10kV)
– Road Tanker 250 mJ
– Person 10 mJ
– 100 mm Flange 0.5 mJ
• Minimum Ignition Energy (Vapours)
– Propanol 0.65 mJ
– Methane 0.28 mJ
– Methanol 0.14 mJ
Source - IChemE
• Relaxation of Charge
– Achieve 10 Ohm bonding to all items (106
Ohm Minimum)
– Same earthing system as used for
Equipotential Bonding
– Control measures to reduce generation of
static outside scope of this discussion
• Mobile Plant Items
• Removable parts on Equipment
• Road Tankers
• Personnel
• Drums
• Raw Materials & IBCs
• Earth Reels and Clamps
• Monitored and Interlocked bonding for
Tankers
• Sampling procedures and equipment
• Anti-static footwear and test stations
INTRINSICALLY SAFE SYSTEMS
• Safety Barrier without Galvanic Isolation
– Zener Diode & Fuse Circuit
– Requires Zero Volt reference
– Usually two earth cables from main earth bar
– Less than 1 Ohm
– Isolated such that earth fault currents cannot
invade circuit.
– Clearly labelled & identified
INSTRUMENTATION EARTHS
AND SHIELDING
• Shielding from capacitive and inductive
noise
– Bonding of shields at source only
– Bonding of armour, tray and parallel earth
paths at both source and destination
– IS Requirements reinforce this concept
EARTHING IN INDUSTRIAL
AND PHARMACEUTICAL
PLANTS
Kieran Fallon, Chartered Engineer FIEI

Electrical & Instrumentation Manager,
DPS Engineering & Construction

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EARTHING IN INDUSTRIAL

Kieran Fallon, Chartered Engineer FIEI

• Adequate Electrical Conductivity

• Required for site generators and

• Earthing if Grid / Utility supply

• RCD protection on all sockets (ETCI)

Kieran Fallon, Chartered Engineer FIEI

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