IET Volume 58 Lightning Protection

Lightning Protection
Edited by Vernon Cooray

Lightning protection relies upon the application of some of the principles of electricity and the physics of electrical discharges to mitigate the effects of direct currents and electromagnetic fields generated by lightning discharges. Structures, storage facilities for flammable and explosive materials, power distribution and transmission systems, telecommunication systems and electrical and electronic equipment all require such protection. Since the initial launch of the concept of lightning protection by Benjamin Franklin in 1753, the subject of lightning protection has made significant progress, especially in the last century, thanks to experimental observations of the mechanism and properties of lightning flashes. This book summarises the state of the art of lightning protection as it stands today. The information provided in this book should be of value to professionals who are engaged in the engineering practice of lightning protection as a source of reference and to engineering students as a textbook.