Reduction of the step voltages of MV/LV substation grounding system based on shaping electric field

The article presents the analysis results of the effectiveness limitation of the step voltage by forming an electric field on the ground surface. For shaping the electric field, a method consisting of screens placed around the point of the earth current flow was used. The analysis was performed using an example of an MV/LV substation grounding system. This research was conducted applying a mathematical model of the grounding system and screens by means of the finite element method. The influence of metal, insulating screens and surface material on the step/touch voltage values for the considered grounding system was estimated. Most of the methods described can be applied in practice. In the opinion of the authors, the method of using screens made of insulating and conductive materials has not been sufficiently described in the literature. Moreover, in the available literature there is no in-depth analysis of the described electric field shaping methods.