Modeling Techniques of Electrical Surge Arrestors for EMP Simulations

Gas filled Electrical Surge Arrestors (ESA´s) are used for protection and hardening of systems against such effects as EMP (Electro-Magnetic Pulse from nuclear detonations). In order to effectively utilize ESA´s in a sensitive system, the design engineer must have a good understanding of the dynamic capabilities of the device. Unfortunately, existing ESA models, from which such understanding usually is acquired, are either too simple (a switch) or too complex, making their utility slight. The purpose of this paper is to develop ESA models representing a more reasonable compromise between computational simplicity and reality. This is achieved by developing a standard set of experiments for obtaining modeling data with particular relevance to EMP. Model credibility is subsequently assured through verification tests performed in EMP simulated environments.1