IEEE Standards for SPDs

Addressing the surge environment.

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is producing a trilogy of standards to address the surge environment, characterize surges, and define surge testing in low-voltage AC power circuits. 

At a Glance: Covers:  the surge environment, surges, and  surge testing in low-voltage AC power circuits Pages: not yet available Price: not yet available For: end-users (consumers), manufacturers, & specifiers Next revision: December 2005 How to buy

• IEEE C 62.41.1, "Guide on the Surge Environment in Low-Voltage (1000 V and less) AC Power Circuits"
• IEEE C 62.41.2, "Recommended Practice on characterization of Surges in Low-Voltage (1000 V and less) AC Power Circuits"
• IEEE C 62.45, "Recommended Practice on Surge Testing for Equipment Connected to Low-Voltage (1000 V and Less) AC Power Circuits"

These standards have been developed from many years of scientific research and are recognized by American National Standards Institute (ANSI). They are intended for use primarily by surge equipment manufacturers and provide valuable reference for consulting engineers that specify surge protection devices (SPDs).

IEEE C 62.41.1

Guide on the Surge Environment in Low-Voltage (1000 V and less) AC Power Circuits.  This guide, the first in the trilogy, provides readers with a comprehensive information on surges, the environment in which they occur and is a reference for the second document of the trilogy. The surge environment is described using:

• Three location categories (C, B or A) according to their position from the building service entrance. 
• Level of exposure to major sources of surges: lightning and load switching.
• Representative waveforms of surge voltages and surge currents are described for each category. 

This guide should not be used as a testing document to define performance, survivability or any other related test criteria. Any statement that a SPD "meets the requirement of" or "is certified to", this document is inappropriate and misleading.

IEEE C 62.41.2

Recommended Practice on characterization of Surges in Low-Voltage (1000 V and less) AC Power Circuits. This guide, the second in the trilogy, presents recommendations on the selection of surge waveforms, amplitudes of surge voltages and currents used to evaluate equipment immunity and performance of SPDs. Two recommended "standard” waveforms are used as a simplified representation of the surge environment: 

• 0.5µs/100kHZ ringwave
• 1.2/50/8-20µs combination wave

IEEE C 62.45

Recommended Practice on Surge Testing for Equipment Connected to Low-Voltage (1000 V and Less) AC Power Circuits. This guide, the third in the trilogy, focuses on surge testing procedures (using the simplified waveform representations) for obtaining reliable measurements and enhancing operator safety. The intent is to provide background that can help determine whether equipment or a circuit has adequate ‘withstand’ capability.

• Signal and data lines are not addressed in this document.
• The document does not indicate withstand levels that might be assigned to specific equipment. 
• An important objective of the document is to call attention to the safety aspects of surge testing. 
• Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. uses these guidelines as a reference in their performance and safety testing (UL 1449 2nd Edition) of SPDs.

IEEE standards can be obtained online in the IEEE Standards Store.

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