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    Earth Leakage

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    Earth Leakage

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    co2maker88
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    Earth leakage

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    Earth Leakage

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    of 11

    Earth leakage

    By: Michael Peace CEng MIET

    How much is too much?

    One question being asked in the IET Engineering Communities


    Forum is ’Earth Leakage Current – How much is too much?
    This question is being asked more often due to the proliferation of
    electronic equipment.
    What is Earth leakage current?
    Earth leakage current is not specifically defined in BS
    7671:2018+A1:2020, it is referred to as protective conductor current.
    Protective conductor current is defined as an ‘electric current
    appearing in a protective conductor, such as leakage current or
    electric current resulting from an insulation fault.’
    Leakage current is also defined as ‘electric current in an unwanted
    conductive path under normal operating conditions.’
    Earth leakage current can exist through an insulation fault in cables
    or equipment, or it can occur under normal operating conditions in
    electronic equipment which use capacitors for filtering purposes in
    power supplies which can cause leakage to Earth when functioning.
    Hence this type of equipment requires a functional earth, which is
    different from a protective earth.
    What are the effects of leakage current?
    The extract in Figure 1 is taken from the First Edition of the IEE
    Wiring Regulations in 1882 and it can be seen that leakage current
    was a consideration even back then, although probably for different
    reasons. It could be said that the First Edition was more concerned
    with waste of energy and heat than electric shock.
    ‘The difficulties that beset the electrical engineer are chiefly internal
    and invisible, and they can only be effectually guarded against by
    “testing” or probing with electric currents. They depend chiefly on
    leakage, undue resistance in the conductor, and bad joints, which
    lead to waste of energy and the production of heat. These defects can
    only be detected by measuring, by means of special apparatus, the
    currents that are either ordinarily or for the purpose of testing,
    passed through the circuit.’
    In 1882 unwanted tripping of RCDs would not have been an issue,
    today with most circuits requiring RCD protection for one reason or
    another, and the proliferation of appliances containing electronic
    equipment, unwanted tripping is a real issue.

    How can Earth leakage/ protective conductor


    currents be measured?
    One way of measuring earth leakage is to use a leakage current clamp
    ammeter. Leakage current clamp meters are similar to those used for
    measuring load current, but are more sensitive and therefore more
    accurate at measuring currents below 5 mA.
    To determine the Earth leakage on the whole installation, place the
    clamp around the live conductors for the installation a shown in
    Figure 2 for single phase, or Figure 3 for three phase installations.
    Figure 2

    Figure 3
    In the case of an installation that does not have any leakage current,
    the reading should be zero as the currents should cancel each other
    out, if any current is leaking to earth, the value will be displayed on
    the instrument. If leakage current is identified in the installation, it
    will be necessary to isolate and test individual circuits in order to
    identify those that are affected.
    To determine if the Earth leakage current is within the installation or
    from the equipment, it is necessary to isolate current using equipment
    from the installation and use the clamp ammeter to test each
    individual item separately. Place the clamp around the live
    conductors for the installation a shown in Figure 2 for single phase,
    or Figure 3 for three phase installations
    It could be that the leakage current is returning to Earth directly and
    not returning via the earthing conductor. To determine if any leakage
    current is returning via fortuitous connections with Earth, the clamp
    ammeter can be placed around the line, neutral and protective
    conductors as shown in Figure 4.
    Figure 4
    Insulation resistance vs insulation impedance
    It is worth noting that taking a measurement of leakage current and
    using the value to carry out an ohms law calculation will provide the
    value of insulation impedance. The result will be different from the
    value of insulation resistance which is obtained from an isolated
    circuit using an insulation resistance tester. The reason being the
    insulation resistance tester applies a DC voltage test that does not
    take account of the capacitance of the circuit. It is the insulation
    impedance value which actually exists under operating conditions.

    What about DC leakage current?


    Measuring DC with a clamp meter is not as simple as measuring AC.
    At present, there are not any clamp ammeters which can measure DC
    leakage current to any degree of accuracy.
    Residual DC leakage current can cause blinding to AC type RCDs,
    see IET Wiring Matters article Which RCD type? for further
    information.

    What does BS 7671:2018+A1:2020 say about


    unwanted tripping?
    Regulation 314.1 of BS 7671:2018+A1:2020 requires an installation
    to be divided into circuits, as necessary to, ‘reduce the possibility of
    unwanted tripping of RCDs due to excessive protective conductor
    (PE) currents not due to a fault’.
    Regulation 531.3 of BS 7671:2018+A1:2020 provides the
    requirements for Residual current devices (RCDs). Regulation
    531.3.2 states that residual current protective devices shall be
    selected and erected such as to limit the risk of unwanted tripping.
    Indent (ii) states that the accumulation of such currents downstream
    of the RCD shall be not more than 30 % of the rated residual
    operating current. So, assuming we are using an RCD with a rated
    operating current of 30 mA, the maximum leakage current is 9 mA.
    Note 2 of Regulation 531.3.2 states that RCDs may operate at any
    value of residual current in excess of 50 % of the rated residual
    current. If unwanted tripping of an RCD protecting several circuits is
    experienced, it could be a cumulative effect of the leakage current of
    the protected circuits.
    Regulation 543.7 recognizes earth leakage currents in excess of 3.5
    mA as high protective conductor currents. Specific additional
    protective measures are required for circuits considered to have high
    protective conductor currents.

    Other causes of unwanted tripping


    In some cases, unwanted tripping could be caused by RCDs or
    RCBOs which are too sensitive, this can be determined with an RCD
    ramp test. An RCD with a residual operating current of 30 mA could
    trip anywhere between 15 mA and 30 mA, typically it will operate at
    75 % of IΔn.

    How does current leakage occur within electronic


    equipment?
    Leakage current in electronic circuits is typically from power
    supplies. This is due to the use of capacitors used to filter transients
    from the supply. Electrical transients are short bursts of energy with
    potential to damage electronic circuits. Figure 5 illustrates the filter
    capacitors connection to earth, which is the route for the leakage
    current.
    Figure 5

    What are typical equipment maximum earth


    leakage values?
    BS EN 60335-1 provides the general safety requirements for
    household and similar electrical appliances. Maximum values of
    earth leakage for appliances are identified below, it is important to
    remember these are maximum values:
     For class II appliances and for parts of class II construction - 0.25

    mA.

     For class 0, 0I and III appliances: 0.5 mA b for class I portable

    appliances -, 0.75 mA.

     For class I fixed motor-operated appliances - 3.5 mA.

     For class I fixed heating appliances - 0.75 mA or 0.75 mA/kW of

    rated power, with a maximum of 5 mA, whichever is the higher.


    The amount of leakage current will vary according to the type of
    equipment. The IEC 60335 series of Standards provides requirements
    for different types of products:
     Fixed PC workstation - 2 mA

     Printer - 1 mA

     Photocopier - 1.5 mA

     Laptop - 0.5 mA (with EMC filter)

     Grills, toasters/portable cooking appliances - 0.75 mA (earthed

    metal)

     Fridges - 1.5 mA (class I)

     Dishwasher - 5 mA

     Hobs, ovens - 1 mA or 1 mA/kW of rated power

     Washing machine - 5 mA

     Tumble dryer – 5 mA

     Electric heat pumps - 10 mA (accessible to public)

     Floor heating - 0.75 mA or 0.75 mA/kW of rated power

    Luminaires can also be a source of leakage current, BS EN 60598-1


    provides the leakage current requirements for Luminaires:
     Continuous interference - 0.5 mA

     Class 0 and Class II -1 mA

     Portable, Class I - 1 mA
     Fixed, Class I up to 1 kVA of rated power, Increasing in steps of 1

    mA/kVA up to a maximum of 5 mA

    How much leakage current is too much?


    To answer the question from the IET Engineering Communities
    forum, the amount of leakage current will depend on the arrangement
    of the electrical installation and the installed equipment. An
    acceptable level of leakage current can be determined by information
    from manufacturers of the equipment and protective devices. This
    information will allow final circuits to be arranged accordingly.
    In order to prevent unwanted operation of earth leakage protective
    devices, the installation will need to be designed to take account of
    leakage currents. See this Schneider earth fault protection
    article for further information.
    Summary
    Installations incorporating electronic equipment are likely to have
    some level of leakage current. A leakage current clamp ammeter is a
    useful tool for identifying the source of protective conductor current
    within an electrical installation.
    Different types of equipment have different levels of permissible
    leakage current according to the relevant standards. Manufacturers
    information should be used to determine an acceptable level of earth
    leakage current for the current using equipment. The installation
    should be designed to prevent unwanted operation of earth leakage
    protective devices due to the cumulative effects of leakage currents.
    It is particularly important to maintain continuity of circuit protective
    conductors for circuits with protective conductor currents.

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