Research and applications of ground enhancing compounds in grounding systems

摘要

The operation and the behaviour of grounding systems are defined by some fundamental parameters: the rate of change in soil resistivity, the type and the size of grounding systems. The continuous improvement in designing these systems guarantees the maximum safety of people and electrical facilities. In the last decades, the usage of ground enhancing compounds (GECs) for soil alleviation and decreasing the ground resistance value becomes more and more popular in engineering field, particularly in electric power systems (transmission and distribution facilities) and in electric railway. This study provides an overview of the past and recent research, carried out on GECs, based on published scientific work during several decades. It includes computational and experimental work on these materials, both at steady-state operation and under impulse conditions, from all over the world, and cites the most distinguish applications on grounding systems. It also refers to international standards that specify the requirements and tests for GECs producing low resistance of a ground termination system. This work aspires to be a useful guide to engineers and researchers who study, design and construct grounding systems using such materials for the optimisation of their operational performance.