Application guide for surge arresters and field research of lightning effects on distribution systems

The authors present a general overview of a recently completed and published Canadian Application Guide for Surge Arresters on Distribution Systems. The Guide was prepared by Ontario Hydro and sponsored by the Canadian Electrical Association. The authors outline the general structure of the Guide and illustrate some new methods and application strategies in the use of surge arresters, focusing especially on the novel metal oxide arresters. The authors also describe an on-going research study of cause-and-effect relationships between lightning ground flashes and the corresponding events on the nearby distribution system, such as permanent and transient system outages, nuisance fuse blowing, equipment failures, etc. A correlation between recorded lightning discharges and events on the distribution system permits a quantitative assessment of such factors, such as line designs, arrester locations, estimated stroke parameters, fuse coordination practices, etc