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dc.contributorDepartment of Building Environment and Energy Engineeringen_US
dc.contributor.advisorChen, Mingli (BEEE)en_US
dc.contributor.advisorDu, Yaping (BEEE)en_US
dc.creatorWang, Shaoyang-
dc.identifier.urihttps://theses.lib.polyu.edu.hk/handle/200/12749-
dc.languageEnglishen_US
dc.publisherHong Kong Polytechnic Universityen_US
dc.rightsAll rights reserveden_US
dc.titleDevelopment of a multi-range lightning current measurement system with a wide dynamic range from milli-amps to hundreds of kilo-ampsen_US
dcterms.abstractMeasuring the lightning current in a lightning rod with a wide dynamic range is a challenge. Currently, there is a lack of suitable equipment to study the current variation in the streamer process of lightning. The existing lightning current observation equipment is mainly designed to measure the peak current generated by the stroke, with a measurement range typically from tens of amperes to hundreds of kiloamperes. While a few devices can observe leader currents of a few amperes, they are incapable of measuring corona discharges and the streamer process ranging from a few milliamps to hundreds of milliamps. This lack of observational data severely hinders the understanding of lightning initiation processes. Herein, in this thesis, we have proposed and implemented a wide dynamic range lightning current measurement and acquisition system with multi-channel active preamplifiers, which has the ability to measure lightning channel current as low as 10mA with a shock tolerance capability of 400kA. The contents in this thesis include a thorough literature review of relevant works, the framework and design principle of each subsystem of the proposed wide range current measurement system, laboratory and field test results of the system, and preliminary analyses of the field observation results using this system.en_US
dcterms.abstractThe complete wide-range current measuring system we developed consists of two large parts: hardware and software. The hardware design mainly includes input signal attenuation and protection units, a four-channel preamplifier with different optimization directions, Analog-Digital-Converters (ADC), digital signal processing, optical communication, timing and isolated power supply. The software mainly includes the multi-channel data merging, signal triggering and buffering, Graphical-User-Interface (GUI) display, and data storage. The feasibility and successful implementation of this proposal are attributed to the commercialization of ultra-low noise op-amps and the increasing processing capability of computers. And the Shenzhen Meteorological Gradient Tower (SZMGT) also provided an excellent experimental platform for lightning currents observation. After installing this system on SZMGT, the background noise of current measurement is reduced to below 10 mA. We have successfully observed the corona discharge phenomenon with a current of several hundred milliamperes just before the occurrence of a lightning stroke, with the return stroke current exceeding 220 kA. This is the first time that lightning currents over seven orders of magnitude have been continuously observed and recorded, ranging from a few milliamperes to hundreds of kiloamperes. This observation will be beneficial in studying the physical processes in the initiation stage of lightning. Additionally, the system design has optimized its ability to resist electromagnetic interference, reduced installation space requirements, and simplified data path communication. These improvements make it more suitable for installation on SZMGT with complex electromagnetic environment.en_US
dcterms.extentxvii, 106 pages : color illustrationsen_US
dcterms.isPartOfPolyU Electronic Thesesen_US
dcterms.issued2023en_US
dcterms.educationalLevelPh.D.en_US
dcterms.educationalLevelAll Doctorateen_US
dcterms.LCSHLightningen_US
dcterms.LCSHAtmospheric electricityen_US
dcterms.LCSHElectric measurementsen_US
dcterms.LCSHHong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertationsen_US
dcterms.accessRightsopen accessen_US

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Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://theses.lib.polyu.edu.hk/handle/200/12749