International Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology (IJEET)

Volume 12, Issue 4, April 2021, pp. 52-61, Article ID: IJEET_12_04_007
Available online at http://www.iaeme.com/ijeet/issues.asp?JType=IJEET&VType=12&IType=4
ISSN Print: 0976-6545 and ISSN Online: 0976-6553
DOI: 10.34218/IJEET.12.4.2021.007

© IAEME Publication Scopus Indexed

RISK MANAGEMENT IN DIRECT LIGHTNING

PROTECTION
Dr. Xhemali PEJTAMALLI
Department of Electrotechnical, Faculty of Electrical Engineering,
Polytechnic University of Tirana, Albania

Eda PEJTAMALLI
Engineer of Telecommunication in Hiberband Company, Albania

Eris PEJTAMALLI
Aircraft Engineer, International Airport, Tirana, Albania

Dr. Vladimir KASEMI

Professor, Department of Manufacturing and Management,
Faculty of Mechanical, Engineering, Polytechnic University of Tirana, Albania

ABSTRACT
The specifications of the lightning protection system require that their analysis and
design comply with the standard IEC 62305 series.[1] The International
Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is the unit responsible for implementing
international standards. Its technical committees are composed of representatives from
the standards of different states, where each state has the right to one vote during the
process of drafting the standard. [1] Standards usually have an IEC prefix for their
number. IEC standards are produced in English and French. For most states the
adoption of these standards is done voluntarily, and often a select portion of the content
of the standard is absorbed and presented as an improvement on the standard that that
state has. [8]
Keywords: Lightning protection system, IEC, Electrotechnical Standardization,
switching components
Cite this Article: Xhemali PEJTAMALLI, Eda PEJTAMALLI, Eris PEJTAMALLI
and Vladimir KASEMI, Risk Management in Direct Lightning Protection, International
Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology (IJEET), 12(4), 2021, pp.52-61.
http://www.iaeme.com/IJEET/issues.asp?JType=IJEET&VType=12&IType=4

1. INTRODUCTION
Within Europe there is the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization
(CENELEC). IEC and CENELEC that work in parallel and CENELEC members that vote to

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 Risk Management in Direct Lightning Protection

adopt new IEC standards as CENELEC standards. CENELEC committees may choose to make
changes to the IEC version. [3]
CENELEC produces its own standards which the IEC does not meet. CENELEC documents
are produced in English, French and German and all CENELEC approved standards will have
an abbreviation EN. An important fact with CENELEC standards is that member states should
regularly adopt CENELEC standards as national standards. In the process of adopting these
standards, minimal changes may be allowed. Changes can only be made under strict
circumstances. When such standards are adopted at the national level, any conflicting national
standards should be withdrawn. For the EN IEC 62350 series of lightning protection standards,
each Member State introduced them at national level by November 2006 and withdrew any
conflicting standards by February 2009. At each level, a convention is used. various naming
and abbreviation. [3]. For example:
• IEC 62305-1 (version IEC)
• EN 62305-1 (copy adopted from above CENELEC)
• BS EN 62305-1 (British national standards adopted above)
This document focuses on IEC / EN standards and a more specific design. Applicable
national standards require reference in order to make changes to them. Reference in this
document is given to standards being design standards or components. [2]. Design standards
are those used in the evaluation of the lightning rod system, to determine the type and placement
of the lightning protection system. Component standards are those used by the manufacturer of
lightning protection components to ensure that physical parts meet quality requirements and
specifications. The IEC 62305 standard series are standard for the main design, giving the user
a set of rules and options to provide lightning protection to a structure. The standards cover the
protection of structure and equipment including the effects of direct and indirect radiation on
lightning.
While the IEC 62305 standards introduce many new aspects, they are mainly a European
harmonization of the lightning protection standards of several different countries. [9].
• “IEC 62305 “Lightning protection” consisting offour documents:
• IEC 62305-1 The first part:General principles
• IEC 62305-2 Second part:Risk management
• IEC 62305-3 The third part:Physical damage to structures and risk to life
• IEC 62305-4 The fourth part:Electrical and electronic systems within structures.
Standards IEC 62305 expand, renew and replace the previous ones e.g.
• IEC 1024-1-1 (1993) & IEC 1024-1-2 (1998),
• IEC 61622 (1995 & 1996),
• IEC 61312-1 (1995),
• IEC 61312-2 (1998),
• IEC61312-3 (2000) & IEC 61312-4 (1998).

2. IEC AND CENELEC VERSION

Since the series IEC 62305 were adopted in parallel as a standard of CENELEC, version EN is
identical to that IEC. As a standard CENELEC this means that the standards EN 62305 have
replaced the standards of different countries, as well BS 6651, NFC 17-100 and DIN VDE 0185.
Within Europe, CENELEC has introduced series of standards EN 50164. Series EN 50164 are

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 Xhemali PEJTAMALLI, Eda PEJTAMALLI, Eris PEJTAMALLI and Vladimir KASEMI

component standards by which manufacturers and retailers of lightning protection components

must test their products to verify design and quality. Series EN 50164 consist of [1]
• EN 50164-1: Lightning protection components– The first part: Terms for connection
components
• EN 50164-2: Lightning protection components–second part: Conditions for
conductors and earthing electrodes
• EN 50164-3: Lightning protection components– the third part: Conditions for spark
isolation
• EN 50164-4: Lightning protection components – the fourth part: Conditions for
conductor clamps
• EN 50164-5: Lightning protection components –the fifth part: Conditions for
inspection of earthing electrode immersion and earthing electrode seals
• EN 50164-6: Lightning protection components – part six: Conditions for lightning
counters
• EN 50164-7: Lightning protection components – part seven: Conditions for earthing
growth components.
These series of standards are currently published at the level IEC named series IEC 62561.
Series EN 50164 are component standards by which manufacturers and retailers of lightning
protection components must test their products to verify design and quality. ERICO has
completed an extensive testing regime with these standards and details can be provided upon
request.
Field of EN 50164-1 covers connection components such as connectors, transfer and
switching components and expansion parts and test joints. The purpose of this standard is to
test any mechanical connection between the tip of the air terminal and the end of the earthing
electrode. This covers the most visible conductors and the most visible ground connections,
up to the air terminal, its base and the grounding electrode connection. Testing EN 50164-1
classifies products according to their ability to resist current and lightning by means of an
electrical test:
• Class H – Hard work (tested with 100 kA 10/350 µs), or
• Class N – Normal work (tested with 50 kA 10/350 µs)
• According to the place of installation, by means of an environmental test:
• Above ground (salt density & area sulfur tests), and
• Inside the soil (sulfate and chlorine test)
The purpose of EN 50164-2, is to show the way the metal conductor, bottom conductors
and earthing electrodes are covered. It should be noted that the conditions for the metal
conductor also cover air terminals.
Tests include measurements to confirm compliance with minimum requirements, specific
resistance and environmental tests. [5].
Earthing electrodes have undergone several tests including refraction tests, adhesion tests
and environmental tests. The pairs of earthing electrodes and the pairing device are also
subjected to the shock test (hammer) and the conditions of IEC 62305-1.
EN 50164-3 covers spark gap insulation in lightning protection systems, such as those used to
connect metal to a lightning protection system, where direct connection is impossible for functional
reasons. EN 50164-4 covers test procedures and conditions for metal and non-metal clamps used on

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 Risk Management in Direct Lightning Protection

most roofs and walls to provide air removal system and bottom conductors. Clamps used in explosive
atmospheres must be subject to certain other conditions not specified in these standards.
EN 50164-5 covers conditions and tests for earth holes and earth seals made of steel,
plastic, concrete and many more. Bond load capacity and seal quality tests are the main tests
covered by this standard. In the table 1, are given the maximum current levels for the protection
levels, by levelI to the level IV and probability in % for these levels [9].

Table 1 Maximum current levels for protection levels, by levelI to the level IV and probability in %
for these levels
Maximum peak current (kA wave 200 150 100 100
10/350 [μs])
The probability that the parameters of
the lightning current values are less than 99 % 97 % 97 % 97 %
the maximum (peak) values of the
lightning
While in table 2 minimum current levels are given for level protection from level I to the
level IV and probability in % for these levels

Table 2 Minimum current levels for level protection level I to the level IV and probability in % for
these levels [9].
Minimum peak current (kA) 3 5 10 16
The probability that the parameters of the
lightning current values are greater than the 99 % 97 % 91 % 84 %
maximum values of the lightning.

The radius of the rotating sphere, at (m) 20 30 45 60

3. RISK MANAGEMENT
IEC 62305-2 enables a risk management procedure that enables a tolerable risk limit, methods
to calculate actual risk, and then evaluates the hedging methods needed to reduce the actual risk
to be equal to or less than the tolerable risk. The main purpose of this risk management is to
determine if lightning protection is required, and if so, to choose the level of lightning protection
necessary. The level of lightning protection determines the minimum level of lightning
protection (LPS) used for defense design. [7].
Protection can also be installed when the risk management process may indicate that
protection is not necessary or is not necessary. A higher level of protection than necessary
should be chosen.
It must be said that the document of IEC 62305-2 is more than 100 pages and very concise
and complex. A comprehensive manual analysis of all risks can take tens of hours to complete.
Therefore, in most cases a reduced analysis is performed, preferably with an electronic
device. For this purpose, the standard of IEC, comes with a program and an additional program
that is also ready. For complex or high-risk structures, a more detailed analysis should be
performed using the entire standard.

4. GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR RISK ANALYSIS

The description of complete risk management is beyond the scope of this document.
Conceptually, the risk analysis follows the procedure as follows:
• Identification of the structure to be protected and its environment.

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 Xhemali PEJTAMALLI, Eda PEJTAMALLI, Eris PEJTAMALLI and Vladimir KASEMI

• Valuation of any risk-related loss (R1 to R3).

• Comparison of risks R1 with R3 with risk allowed, or tolerated: RT, to determine whether
protection is needed or not.
• Evaluation of protection options: criterion: the calculated risks must be smaller
than the tolerable one, ie R1 to R3 < RT;
Lightning protection is analyzed so that R1, R2 and R3 are all equal to or less than the
allowable risk RT. Lightning protection can be justified on the economic risk R4 and the
corresponding economic benefit. For this analysis, a separate procedure is followed in IEC
62305-2. All these risks are divided into individual risk components, which are then assessed
considering the effects of direct and indirect lightning on the structure or service. This requires
calculating the number of hazardous events, which is related to the size of the structure and the
density of lightning strikes. [13].
The simplified analysis program considers:
• Structure dimensions
• Properties of the structure.
• Environmental impact.
• Effects or services that enter the building.
• Existing protection measures.
The simplified program complies with IEC 62305-2, In situations where identical structures
will be constructed, it may be appropriate to conduct a thorough risk analysis; in this case a
small economic saving can be obtained and can be applied in many structures. Table 3 gives
the types of losses as well as the risk (risk), structure and service assessment [13].

Table 3 Losses and risk assessment (risk)

L1–Loss of human lives R1 –Risk of loss of lives
L2 –Loss of key services R2 - Risk of loss of key R’2 - Risk of loss of key
services services
L3 –Loss of cultural R3 - Risk of cultural
heritage heritage losses
L4 - Economic loss R4 - Risk of economic R’4 - Risk of economic
losses losses

5. SOURCES OF DAMAGE, TYPE OF DAMAGE, TYPE OF LOSSES

AND RISK OF LOSSES
For those who are interested in a better understanding of the risk management process, or want
to manually calculate the risk of a structure, they should also be familiar with some of the details
below.
It is important to understand the source of the damage, the type of damage and the type of
losses with which the risk management procedure evaluates several combinations considering
the structure, content, services and environment with the source and type of damage. [8].
IEC 62305-1 introduces the concepts of the source of the damage, where:
• S1 – Lightning strikes on structures
• S2 – Lightning strikes near the structure
• S3 – Lightning strikes on utilities
• S4 – Lightning strikes near utilities.

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 Risk Management in Direct Lightning Protection

At the possible sources of lightning damage, three possible types of damage have been
identified.
• D1 – Injury to human beings due to the tension of touch
• D2 – Physical damage (fire, explosion, chemical attack)
• D3 – Damage to the internal electrical or electronic system, due to the electromagnetic
pulse of lightning.
With each type of damage, 4 types of losses are identified:
• L1 – Loss of human life
• L2 – Loss of a vital service to the public
• L3 – Loss of cultural heritage
• L4 – Economic losses (buildings, materials inside, various services)
Care is required with the term "services" because it is dependent on its context within the
standard. This can refer to physical services related to the building (water, electricity, gas,
communications, data, etc.), or publicly available services (information services). The purpose
of the services for the public, includes any type of supplier who due to lightning damage, cannot
offer his goods or "serve" the public. For example: a supermarket closed due to damage to the
cash register or an insurance company that is unable to do work due to damage to the telephone
or internet.
Table 4 summarizes the types of damage and the types of losses for each source of damage
[from IEC 62305-1 Table 3]. For each of the first three types of losses (L1, L2 & L3), procedure
of IEC 62305-2 assesses the risk of relevant losses (R1, R2 & R3) and compares them with the
allowed levels. For L4 loss, the economic cost of loss with or without lightning protection is
compared to the cost of protection measures.

Table 4 Damages and losses in a different source structure.

D1 – injury L1 – Loss of human life
L4 – Economic loss
D2–Physical damage L1 – Loss of human life
L2 – Loss of service
S1 Lightning strike on the
L3 – Inheritance loss
structure
L4 – Economic loss
D3–Damage to systems L1 – Loss of human life
L2 – Loss of service
L4 - Economic loss
D3 - Damage to systems L1 – Loss of human life
S2 Lightning strike near the
L2 – Loss of service
structure
L4 - Economic loss
D1 – injury L1 – Loss of human life
L2 - Loss of service
D2–Physical damage L1 – Loss of human life
L2 – Loss of service
S3 Lightning strike to utilities L3 – Inheritance loss
L4 - Economic loss
D3 - Damage to systems L1 – Loss of human life
L2 – Loss of service
L4 - Economic loss
S4 Lightning strike near utilities D3 - Damage to systems L1 – Loss of human life
L2 – Loss of service
L4 - Economic loss

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 Xhemali PEJTAMALLI, Eda PEJTAMALLI, Eris PEJTAMALLI and Vladimir KASEMI

Table 5 provides in detail the types of damage and losses associated with a service. Since
the loss and the calculation of the loss risk are different from that of the structure, the symbols
L’2 & L’4 used to differentiate these losses. [4].

Table 5 Damages and losses in a structure for differentsources

S1 Lightning strike on the structure D2 – Physical damage
D3 - Damage to systems
S3 Lightning strike to utilities D2 – Physical damage L’2 – Loss of service
D3 - Damage to systems
L’4 –Economic loss
S4 Lightning strike near utilities D3 - Damage to systems

6. RISK MANAGEMENT PROCEDURE AND PERMITTED RISK.

For each of the losses L1 until L3, the risk of each loss is given by R1 to R3. The risk of each
loss is then compared to the allowable risk:
If the calculated risk is equal to or less than the corresponding permissible risk RT, then
lightning protection is not required. If the calculated risk is higher than the allowed risk then
protection is required. Safeguards should be evaluated to reduce the calculated risk and make it
equal to or less than the permissible risk.
The graph in figure 1 shows the general procedure, while table 6 shows the permitted risks
according to the standards. ICE and BS. Permitted risk is expressed in the form of event
numbers per year and is given in engineering units (for example. 10-x). Table 7 expresses the
risk assessment of losses.

Table 6 Risk tolerances RT

Loss type RT (year) -1
IEC 62305 - 2 BS EN62305 - 2
Loss of human life 10 -5 (Risk1 in 100 000) 10 -5 (Risk1 in 100 000)
Loss of public services 10 -3 (Risk1 in 1 000) 10 -4 (Risk1 in 10 000)
Loss of cultural heritage 10 -3 (Risk1 in 1 000) 10 -4 (Risk1 in 10 000)

Table 7 Loss risk assessment.

RA S1 D1 RA = NDx PA x LA
RB S1 D2 RB = NDx PB x LB
RC S1 D3 RC = NCx PC x LC
RM S2 D3 RM = NMx PM x LM
RU S3 D1 RU = (NL+ NDA) x PU x LU
RV S3 D2 RV = (NL+ NDA) x PV x LV
RË S3 D3 RË = (NL+ NDA) x PË x LË
RZ S4 D3 RZ = (NI+ NL) x PZ x LZ

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 Risk Management in Direct Lightning Protection

Figure 1 provides a block diagram for the analysis of risks from direct impacts on a given
object
Identification of the Defense Structure

Identification of the type of loss related to the protected structure Rn

R1 Risk of loss of human lives
R2 Risk of loss of services to the population
R3 Risk of loss of cultural heritage

Identify the tolerable level of risk for each RT loss

For each loss identification and

calculation of Risk R1 2 3

NO
Further protective measures are installed
R 1,2,3, < RT
in order to reduce R1,2,3

YES

The structure is adequately protected

against this type of loss

Figure 1 Block diagram for the analysis of risks from direct impacts on a given object.

7. RISK COMPONENTES
Risks from R1 to R4, calculated from the sum of there levantrisk components:
Risk of losing human life:
R1 = RA + RB + RC(1) + RM(1) + RU + RV + RË(1) + RZ(1) (1)
Applicable on lytostructures at risk of explosion and to hospital soro ther structures where
internal system failure endangers human life.
Risk of loss of services to the public:
R2 = RB + RC + RM + RV + RË + RZ (2)
Risk of losing cultural heritage:
R3 = RB RV (3)
Risk of economic losses:
R4 = RA(2) + RB + RC + RM + RU(2) + RV + RË + RZ (4)
Only for structures where animal lives may be endangered.
Each component isobtain edusing further calculations and using reference tables base don
the general equation:
RX = N X  PX  LX (5)
where:
NX = number of dangerous events per year

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 Xhemali PEJTAMALLI, Eda PEJTAMALLI, Eris PEJTAMALLI and Vladimir KASEMI

PX = probability of structure damage.

LX = the amount of losses
The number of hazardous events per year is taken either from maps or from expert data and
is used in the dimensions of the structure, the length and types of services as well as the lightning
density in the field. The physical dimensións of the structure and utilities are used to calcúlate
the active lightning capture area, and the lightning density on the ground is used to determine
the potential number of events in a year. By the standard, a large number of graphical and
computational methods are provided. The probability of damage is taken from the tables given
in the standards, with some simple calculations. The amount of losses is also taken from the
tables given in the standards by means of some calculations.

8. CONCLUSIONS
• European standards should be used for the analysis of the protection of objects on the
ground from direct lightning strikes. IEC62 305-1, up to the series IEC-62 305-4. This
is due to the lack of approved standards in our country.
• Before starting the design of the system of protection against direct lightning strikes,
the analysis of the risks from direct impacts must be done first. After that, the level of
protection of the object is determined, if the calculated risks are smaller than the
tolerable risks.
• Software is used for risk analysis Dehn Toolbox Support, with a module of which data
from the planimetry of the building are entered,

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