METHOD OF TESTING FACILITIES FOR LIGHTNING PROTECTION AND APPARATUS FOR REALISING SAID METHOD Russian patent published in 2013 - IPC H05F3/02 

FIELD: physics.

SUBSTANCE: method involves forming a stream of charged aerosol, accumulating electric charge in a retarded flow in form of a charged cloud to a value when magnetic field strength in the "cloud-facility model" space is sufficient to generate leader discharge, recording the number of discharges falling on the facility and the lightning rod and making a decision on lightning protection of the facility. A three-field cell of a thunder cloud is formed by feeding a positive charge, then a negative charge and then a positive charge again. The apparatus has a location imitator (1), a model (2) of the facility, a model (3) of the lightning rod, a thunder cloud imitator in form of a generator (4) of a charged aerosol jet, which is connected to an alternating-sign power supply (5), which is able to control amplitude and duration of output current, a photographic camera (6) connected to a computer or current shunt (7), through which the model (3) of the lightning rod is connected to the location imitator (1). The ratio T₊/T of the duration of the positive and negative polarities and the ratio I₊/I of the amplitude of the positive and negative polarities of the alternating-sign power supply (5) can vary from 0.1 to 2; the sum T₊+T can vary from 0.1 to 10 s and the interval between series of pulses is not shorter than 1 s.

EFFECT: artificial cells of a cloud thunder approaching natural thunder clouds and high accuracy of creating conditions for lightning.

2 cl, 2 dwg