Arc Damage Analysis
Summary of Electrical Arc Damage Analysis
- Electrical wire failure can impact aircraft airworthiness. Lectromec can help you define your separation requirements with lab data matching your system configuration
- Data generated can be used for EWIS certification to requirements such as 25.1707
- Lectromec has the knowledge, equipment, and capabilities to performed electrical arc damage analysis of nearly any system configuration
Introduction to the Lectromec Arc Damage Analysis
As power density increases, so does the physical and functional severity of EWIS failure. While circuit breakers will protect from a hard short, they will do a poor job in the case of electrical arcing. The arcing can not only damage the wire itself, but can also damage other objects in the area of the arcing. Wires, cables, equipment, structure, and fuel lines are all potential targets of the arcing.
Lectromec has performed thousands of arc damage assessment tests over the last 30 years. These tests have been performed with a variety of electrical, physical, mechanical, thermal, and environmental configurations. In this area, our knowledge is unmatched.
Electrical Arc Damage Process
The electrical arc damage assessment process starts with a discussion between your organization and Lectromec. During this meeting, we cover the project objectives, any technical limitations, and the system(s) to be represented with the testing. After all of the technical details are covered, we work to define a project timeline with regular updates and periodic reports that can be used to incrementally update system design.
At the completion of the effort, a single document with result summaries is delivered to our clients.
Case Study
In April 2004, the NASA sought to gather data and render a technical opinion on the probability of a catastrophic failure: in a worst-case scenario, would it be possible for an electrical arcing failure to cause enough electrical current and power as to cause uncommanded activation of a system?
Lectromec worked with NASA to generate a viable test scenario, but also potential protection solutions in case that the worst case scenario would occur. With the technical exchange and testing, NASA was able to make an informed data-backed decision based on the failure scenario risk.
Additional Reading
The following information may of use to those looking to find out more about electrical arcing and the potential impact of such failures: