Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Earthing Systems Design Steps - Pt.2
Earthing Systems Design Steps - Pt.2
Earthing Systems Design Steps - Pt.2
Search
In Article " Earthing Systems Design steps – Part One ", I indicated the following points:
1. Data Collection,
2. Data Analysis, Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
And I explained the first step: Data Collection which includes the following points:
Once a need for grounding system design is established, data collection must begin.
These needed data provide the basis for all grounding design and will be obtained
from:
Also, in that Article, I explained all the above points except How to perform Soil Resistivity Survey.
Resistivity Definition
1 of 8 16/11/2021, 14:23
Earthing Systems Design steps – Part Two ~ Electrical Knowhow http://www.electrical-knowhow.com/2013/06/How-to-perform-Soil-Resis...
There are many factors that affect on the value of the soil resistivity and the earth
resistivity depends significantly on these factors which are:
1. Physical Composition,
2. Moisture,
3. Chemical Composition,
4. Temperature.
In Earthing System Design, the Soil resistivity Value must be known by one of the
two following methods:
In case that soil resistivity will be estimated from tables there is no need to perform
the Geological Surveys.
First Method: Estimation From Soil Resistivity Tables According To The Soil
Nature
Table 1
Effect of soil type on resistivity
Typical resistivity
Soil type
ohm-m
Marshy Ground 2 - 2.7
Loam and clay 4 - 150
Chalk 600 - 400
Sand 90 - 8000
Peat 200 upwards
Sandy Gravel 300 - 500
Rock 1000 upwards
Note:
2 of 8 16/11/2021, 14:23
Earthing Systems Design steps – Part Two ~ Electrical Knowhow http://www.electrical-knowhow.com/2013/06/How-to-perform-Soil-Resis...
Note:
it is not acceptable to make soil resistivity test for disturbed (backfilled) land sites.
There are mony methods used for soil resistivity testing which are:
The Wenner 4-point Method is by far the most used test method to
measure the resistivity of soil. Other methods such as the General and
Schlumberger methods which are infrequently used for grounding design
applications and vary only slightly in how the probes are spaced when
compared to the Wenner Method.
Proper soil resistivity testing using the Wenner 4-point method is
recommended because of its accuracy.
Criteria For Soil Resistivity Test By Using Four (4) Probes Method
The soil resistivity test spaces four (4) probes out at equal distances to approximate the
depth of the soil to be tested. This means that if the probes spaced at 5’ distance
across the earth, they will read 5’ in depth. The same is true if you space the probes
40’ across the earth, you get a weighted average soil resistance from 0’ down to 40’ in
depth, and all points in between.
Typical spacings will be 1’, 1.5’, 2’, 3’, 4.5’, 7’, 10’, etc., with each spacing increasing
3 of 8 16/11/2021, 14:23
Earthing Systems Design steps – Part Two ~ Electrical Knowhow http://www.electrical-knowhow.com/2013/06/How-to-perform-Soil-Resis...
from the preceding one by a factor of approximately 1.5 up to the maximum spacing
vale.
The maximum spacing Value equal to (1 to 3) times the maximum diagonal dimension of
the grounding system being designed, resulting in a maximum distance between the
outer current electrodes of (3 to 9) times the maximum diagonal dimension of the
future grounding system.
A current is passed through the outer two probes, and the potential voltage is then
measured between the two inner probes. A simple Ohm’s Law equation determines the
resistance.
This set of measurements is typically repeated, albeit with shorter maximum spacings,
several times around the location at right angles and diagonally to each other to ensure
accurate readings.
These readings are usually processed with computer software to determine the actual
resistivity of the soil as a function of depth.
The following describes how to take one “traverse” or set of measurements. As the “4-point”
indicates, the test consists of 4 pins that must be inserted into the earth.
1. The outer two pins are called the Current probes, C1 and C2. These are the probes that
inject current into the earth. The inner two probes are the Potential probes, P1 and P2.
These are the probes that take the actual soil resistance measurement.
2. In the following Wenner 4-Point Test Setup diagram, a probe C1 is driven into the earth at
the corner of the area to be measured. Probes P1, P2, & C2 are driven at 5’, 10’ & 15’
respectively from rod C1 in a straight line to measure the soil resistivity from 0’ to 5’ in
depth. C1 & C2 are the outer probes and P1 & P2 are the inner probes. At this point, a
known current is applied across probes C1 & C2, while the resulting voltage is measured
across P1 & P2. Ohm’s law can then be applied to calculate the measured apparent
resistance.
3. Probes C2, P1 & P2 can then be moved out to 10’, 20’ & 30’ spacing to measure the
resistance of the earth from 0’ to 10’ in depth.
4. Continue moving the three probes (C2, P1 & P2) away from C1 at equal intervals to
approximate the depth of the soil to be measured.
Note:
the performance of the electrode can be influenced by soil resistivities at depths that are
considerably deeper than the depth of the electrode, particularly for extensive horizontal
electrodes, such as water pipes, building foundations or grounding grids.
4 of 8 16/11/2021, 14:23
Earthing Systems Design steps – Part Two ~ Electrical Knowhow http://www.electrical-knowhow.com/2013/06/How-to-perform-Soil-Resis...
1. Low-Frequency models,
2. High-Frequency models.
Both meter types can be used for 4-point & 3-point testing, and can even be used as
standard (2-point) volt meter for measuring common soil resistivity.
Care should always be given when selecting a soil resistance meter, as the electronics
involved in signal filtering are highly specialized. Electrically speaking, the earth can be
a noisy place. Overhead power lines, electric substations, railroad tracks, various signal
transmitters and many other sources contribute to signal noise found in any given
location. Harmonics, 60 Hz background noise, and magnetic field coupling can distort
the measurement signal, resulting in apparent soil resistivity readings that are larger by
an order of magnitude, particularly with large spacings. Selecting equipment with
electronic packages capable of discriminating between these signals is critical.
1- High-Frequency Meters
2- Low-Frequency Meters
Low-Frequency meters actually generate low frequency pulses (on the order
of 0.5 to 2.0 seconds per pulse), are the preferred equipment for soil
resistivity testing, as they do away with the induction problem from which
the High-Frequency meters suffer. However they can be very expensive to
purchase.
Depending upon the equipment’s maximum voltage, Low-Frequency meters
can take readings with extremely large probe spacings and often many
thousands of feet in distance.
Typically, the electronics filtering packages offered in Low-Frequency meters
are superior to those found in High-Frequency meters.
5 of 8 16/11/2021, 14:23
Earthing Systems Design steps – Part Two ~ Electrical Knowhow http://www.electrical-knowhow.com/2013/06/How-to-perform-Soil-Resis...
For taking more accurate readings in the soil resistivity testing, the following points must be
considered:
Take the seasonal variation in soil and its electrical characteristics and therefore in
ground resistance into consideration.
Define the climatic condition (temperature, humidity, etc.) and soil condition
(moisture, temperature and chemical content) during the test.
Refer to long term studies that have been done on soil resistivity variations in the area
of concern for adjustment of the measurement results.
The Variations of measured resistivity when plotted versus probe spacing indicate that
the earth is non-uniform, and a two-layer soil model must be used. Using a single-layer
model in such a situation cause significant errors in resistivity.
Calculations based on two-layer soil model usually give correct values for the ground
resistance and for the step and touch potentials on the surface of the ground. However,
when the soil has a multilayer structure and certain combination of different layers
resistivity exist the two-layer model of the soil may give unreasonable results.
The two layers required for the soil modeling are called:
Shallow depth readings, as little as 6” in depth, are exceedingly important for most, if
not all, grounding designs. As described above, the deeper soil resistivity readings are
actually weighted averages of the soil resistivity from the earth surface down to depth,
and include all the shallow resistance readings above it. The trick in developing the
final soil model is to pull out the actual resistance of the soil at depth, and that
requires “subtracting” the top layers from the deep readings. The following figure
demonstrates how the shallowest readings impact deeper ones below it.
As you can see in the following diagram, if you have a 5’ reading of 50 ohm-meters and
a 10’ reading of 75-ohmmeter soil, the actual soil resistivity from 5’ to 10’ might be 100
ohm-meters (the point here is to illustrate a concept: pre-computed curves or computer
software are needed to properly interpret the data). The same follows true for larger
pin spacings.
The shallowest readings are used over and over again in determining the actual
resistivity at depth.
Shallow depth readings of 6-inches, 1-foot, 1.5-feet, 2-feet and 2.5-feet are important
for grounding design, because grounding conductors are typically buried at 1.5 to 2.5-
feet below the surface of the earth. To accurately calculate how those conductors will
perform at these depths shallow soil readings must be taken.
These shallow readings become even more important when engineers calculate Ground
Potential Rise, Touch Voltages and Step Voltages.
It is critical that the measurement probes and current probes be inserted into the earth
to the proper depth for shallow soil resistivity readings. If the probes are driven too
deep, then it can be difficult to resolve the resistivity of the shallow soil.
A rule of thumb is that the penetration depth of the potential probes should be no more
than 10% of the pin spacing, whereas the current probes must not be driven more than
30% of the pin spacing.
2- Deep Readings
Often, the type of meter used determines the maximum depth or spacing that can be
6 of 8 16/11/2021, 14:23
Earthing Systems Design steps – Part Two ~ Electrical Knowhow http://www.electrical-knowhow.com/2013/06/How-to-perform-Soil-Resis...
8 of 8 16/11/2021, 14:23