Detailed calculation of interception efficiencies for air-termination systems using the dynamic electro-geometrical model — Practical applications

Interception efficiency (IE) is the most important parameter to show the effectiveness of air-termination systems. The dynamic electro-geometrical model (DEGM), a numerical method, is capable of calculating such interception efficiencies. This model is purely based on international accepted models, parameters, deviations and dependencies, which are also comprised in the IEC 62305. So far it has been used to calculate the interception efficiencies for rod-type air-terminations. This paper discusses applications using the DEGM. A detailed analysis shows that for a rod-based air-termination system the IE is much better than expected. This leads to the idea of a comparison analysis between an air-termination system purely planned according to the standardized “rolling-sphere” method and an “optimized” air-termination system based on the DEGM.