Grounding Systems Design with 3D-software for Solar Chimney Power Plant

Abstract

Solar chimney power plants require grounding systems in order to prevent turbine components and living creatures from lightning and fault current. The main objective of this paper is to develop an effective solar chimney power plant grounding systems model to levels ensure that step and touch potentials are within the acceptable levels using effective design implementation steps based on the IEEE Std. 80-2000. The grounding systems consisting of conductors and electrodes with different and asymmetric depths of embedment as well as a non-homogenous two-layer soil model are analysed. A novel approach for grounding systems of solar chimney power plant is performed with 3D software. Three different types of grounding models are simulated for solar chimney power plant. The singular vertically turbine configuration of solar power plant is used in the first and second models. Touch voltage is reduced in first model than second model by new grounding configuration. Finally, it examines the grounding system of a solar chimney consisting of horizontally 32 turbines in the third model. The touch voltages below the maximum permissible values are achieved in the first and third models.