Experiment On: Measurement of soil resistivity by Wenner four-pin method

Theory: Soil used as grounding

Soil is used as means of grounding in substations, domestic dwellings, etc. The

moisture content, temperature (below the freezing point of 0°C) and composition
of chemicals (soluble salts, acids and alkali present in the soil) affects the
resistivity of soil. The determination of soil resistivity is essential to estimate how
far below the surface, a substantially low resistance path can be found for earthing
purposes. Soil resistivity measurements are necessary for safe grounding design
having two objectives in mind:

1. Providing means to carry electric currents under normal and fault conditions
without exceeding operating and equipment limits

2. Assuring that a person may not be exposed to electric shock near grounded
facilities

Currents in the range of 9 – 25 mA may be painful and make it difficult or

impossible to release energized circuits. However, currents in the range of 60 – 100
mA can cause ventricular fibrillation, stoppage of heart or inhibition of respiration
or in fatal cases death.

The electrical conduction in soil is essentially electrolytic. DC is not used for

testing
since it creates the possibility of electrolysis. For high frequency AC, the charging
current is negligible compared to the leakage current and the earth can be
represented
by a pure resistance. Soil resistivity should be determined to check for variations of
resistivity with depth.

Theory for soil resistivity measurement

When current flows from a low resistance conducting electrode to a high resistance
soil, the soil surface is considered to be a homogeneous isotropic medium. The soil
adjacent to the point electrode is modelled as semi-circular arcs of higher
resistance material having equipotential distribution. As the current passes through
the soil, it has a larger area of semi-circular arcs to dissipate through.
Figure 1. Distribution of current flow in a homogeneous soil

The alternative expression for Ohm’s law using resistivity if given in Eq.1 where J,
σ and E are current density (Am-2 ),conductivity (Sm-1) and electric field (Vm-).
J = σE − − − (1)

Ε =1/σ J = ρJ (Vm−1) − − − (2

J =I/A=I/2πr2(Am−2) − − − (3)

Ε =V/r(Vm−1) − − − (4)

Resistivity (ρ) is inverse of σ, r is the radius of the semicircle and V is the voltage
along the
semicircle surfaces. From Eq. 2 and Eq. 4, we can write Eq. 5 below:

V/r = ρ I/2πr2 − − − (5)

ρ = 2πrR − − − (6)

1.3 Wenner four-pin method

Four probes are driven to the ground along a straight line at equal distances of a
meters and depth of b meters. The voltage difference between the inner electrodes
is measured and divided by the current between the two outer electrodes. The ac
signal generator is applied between the outer electrodes.
Figure 2. Wenner four-pin method

With this method, the measured resistance gives R value up to “a” meters
(separationbetween electrodes) below the surface. Thus with Wenner four—pin
method the resistivity measured has a depth equal to the separation of electrodes.

ρ = 4πaR/(1 +2a/√(a2 + 4b2)−a/√(a2 + b2))− − − (7)

ρ = apparent resistivity of the soil in Ω-m

R = measured resistance in Ω
a = distance between the electrodes in m
b = depth of electrodes in m
If the electrode separation (a) is sufficiently larger than the depth of electrodes (b),
the equation reduces to Eq. 8.

ρ = 2πaR − − − (8)

Apparatus:
Mastech MS2306 Advance Earth Resistance Tester
4 probes
Crocodile Clamps
Connecting Wire
Figure 3. MS2306 connection for soil resistivity test

Experimental setup and testing

1. We had been turn on the Mastech MS2306 Advanced Earth Resistance Tester
and turn the rotary switch to ρ (resistivity).
2. Next we had been connected the Mastech MS2306 Advanced Earth Resistance
Tester terminals (H, S, ES,E) to the four electrodes with appropriate wires (Fig. 3).
H, S, ES and E terminals are connected to red, yellow, blue and green terminal,
respectively.
3.We had pressing V/Hz/LENGTH and then the UP/DOWN buttons to set the
voltage, frequency, length. Press ENTER to return. We seed length value between
2 – 30 m.
4. Press MEASURE>1s to test. Resistance value is shown. If unstable, press the
AVGbutton to get the average value on display.
5. Press MEASURE to stop or wait for 20s for auto-stop and read result.
6. Increase the separation between the conductors (a) and make sure that they are
all atequal separations from each other. Measure the resistivity for different
“electrode separation” values. Take at least 5 different sets of data.
7. Repeat steps 3 – 6 for a new frequency but the same voltage.
Practical Work: Soil resistivity test
Index
Table 1: Typical soil resistivity valuesfor different kinds of soil/materials

Typeof soil/materials / Typical ρ(Ω-m)

Sea water / 2
Ice / 100000
Wet soil /30

Clay / 40
Ground well, spring water / 50

Clay and sand mixture, sticky soil /100

Shale, slates, sandstones / 120

Peat, loam and mud / 150

Sandy soil / 150

Lake and brook water / 250

Wet sand layer / 500

Dry sand layer / 1000

Sand / 2000

Solid granite / 25000

Discussion: All the data we worked on is taken from another group. The day when
we experiment this lab was raining all day. The field where we performed this
experiment was not suitable to work on. It will be more effective if we can work on
the field in physically.