4 ms·
Lightning protection systems are very sensitive to resistance in the chain, as any localized bit of it will cause a huge amount of heat there, and non-localized
by lazide 2y ago
Lightning protection systems are very sensitive to resistance in the chain, as any localized bit of it will cause a huge amount of heat there, and non-localized will cause current to branch out to other paths, also causing damage/heat. A typical lightning strike can be from 10,000-30,000 amps at millions of volts.
The damage from lightning doesn’t happen due to the current (as a first approximation), but rather resistance to the current causing heating/damage where the current ends up going - very rapidly, in a way the heat doesn’t have time to dissipate.
Having a working low resistance path to ground means heating (and hence damage!) is reduced or even eliminated.
For an example, see the steam explosion inside the tree here [https://youtu.be/3U8aoiEtVSg https://youtu.be/3U8aoiEtVSg], compared to striking a grounded tower 6 times (no damage) [https://youtu.be/ScNzI76ZsiY https://youtu.be/ScNzI76ZsiY]
The towers lights didn’t even flicker!
Unless carefully specified and properly maintained, the odds that a random cable or chain (especially when exposed to seawater) will maintain a low impedance path to ground is not good.
- dnel 2y agoI wonder if anyone has tried feeding a skyscraper's lighting rod into a sand battery and let it charge up from lightning alone, so much potential for free energy there.
- dmitrygr 2y agoI am aware of no energy storage system capable of absorbing 250000 Wh in under a second
- murderfs 2y agoYou just need to use a sufficiently large storage system. One of the proposals of Project Plowshare was to use underground detonation of thermonuclear weapons as a geothermal energy sources.
- lazide 2y agoThere is a huge difference between electrical energy trying to find its way to ground the easiest way possible (lightning), and a nuke. For one, lighting can almost certainly find an easier path than into the battery. For a nuke, the easiest path (once triggered) is to explode.
- withinboredom 2y agoIt would never strike the lightning rod. The entire reason lightning strikes is due to a circuit between the clouds and ground. If you were to put a "battery" like this somewhere, then the resistance would cause the lightning to go where you don't want it.