Review Of Analytical Methods For Calculating The Performance Of Large Grounding Electrodes PART 1: Theoretical Considerations

The equations on the computation of grounding system performance presented in most of the papers are based on two basic concepts: the calculation of the leakage current in different linear segments of a grounding electrode, and the use of these leakage current values to find the potential at any desired point around the ground electrode layout. Generally most of the papers published have not been easy to understand. They are based on the fundamental electromagnetic concepts and some additional assumptions. This paper summarizes the analytical review of the different methods and identifies the differences among them. The question of applicability and accuracy is discussed in a companion paper [1].