Lightning protection analysis of light rail transit dc overhead contact system

At present there are no industry standards or recommended guidelines for the light rail transit DC overhead contact system (OCS) design that deal with lightning protection. Derivations of lightning intensity and lightning stroke surge energy are provided. Discussion of lightning stroke to OCS components and consequently flashing over to ground is included in this paper. Analysis of surge overvoltage at the junction of OCS to underground positive supplementary cable is established. Lightning protection analysis presented in this paper clarifies design myths and guesswork of applying surge arresters due to over concerns of lightning protection. Recommendation to apply DC surge arresters to protect OCS from lightning stroke is included