Simulation of arcing fault in aircraft wiring system

Arcing faults have been recognized as a potential hazard in aircraft wiring system. Degradation and damage of the wire insulation is the main cause of generating arcing faults. Mechanical damage during installation and maintenance or long time electrical and chemical overstress may decrease the insulation capability of the wires and lead to a fault arc burning between the damaged wires. For better understanding of arcing faults in aircraft wiring system, an arc model for a resistive-inductive system has been applied. The equation of this arc model is applied to simulate the fault arc signals in aircraft wiring system by means of the MATLAB. It provides a tool for analyzing arcing faults in electrical wiring systems. Based on this arc model, fault arc current and voltage signals have been simulated. The computational results have been compared with the measured waveforms. The simulation results show that arcing-fault characters is affected by many factors.