Analysis of the lightning transient response of the grounding system of large wind farms

Abstract

Reducing carbon dioxide emissions and air pollution resulting from the extensive use of electric power generated by fossil fuel is becoming the priority of most governments. Investing in wind energy is increasing exponentially in some countries targeting an acceptable level of air pollution. Studies of the effect of lightning strokes on wind power generators and the behavior of their grounding systems are constantly growing. It is becoming a necessity to develop faster and more accurate simulation tools and to use more sophisticated models. Despite the existence of a number of analytical models for transient studies, they are limited by a quasi-static approach. The main objective of this paper is to study the theoretical aspects related to the calculation of the physical quantities of wind turbines grounding systems and to simulate their performance based on the electromagnetic model.