EMC Zero Grounding Method (ZM) Introduction

Before equipment electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) became an issue with equipment malfunctions all electricians had reason to be satisfied when the light came on when the light switch was thrown and no one got a shock.

Today buildings of any kind are largely equipped with susceptible electronic systems with their own environment requirements. Many of these systems require that voltages and other environmental issues must be "sterilized" electromagnetically. The environment for these systems can be harmed by the interferences caused by manipulation of the electric currents and the effects of atmospheric static charges and lightning.

It is always desirable to make it less likely that susceptible equipment have its environment reduced from high generation levels of disruptive signals within the facilities. The function of EMC products and services is to bring the disruptive signals to a voltage level as close as possible to zero under all types of power disturbances including lightning.

Unfortunately for the facility systems is that normal electrician equipment and methods does not and will not provide EMC protection.

Zero Ground Method (ZM)

ZM was developed by Daniel Soleil in the 1990s. During this era the reliability of the electrical signals, Aeronautics Research (low levels of physical measurements on engines of several MW variable speed) and medical (EEG recording electrodes in hospital) became highly susceptible to failures. Many of these failures were from from lightning, Electromagnetic Interference, Radio Frequency Interference and other types of power disturbances that caused EMC issues.

It took time and many other studies in a variety of fields (Pipelines and refineries, hydroelectric plants EDF, GDF Post, Data Centers, robotic factories searches electrophysiology etc.) to get to understand it is simply based on the generalized Ohm's law where bonding v = 0 is obtained only when i = 0. It is public domain.

ZM shows that, surprisingly, this bonding typically obtained with z = 0 is limited to the safety of persons and property in low frequencies.

It is well known that adding copper still does not alter the inductive end of a link traveled by the RF currents, and it will always be an RF voltage between its terminals => v HF = Lw i HF.

This original criterion of ZM questioned many of the standards or recommended by the rules of the art in force that do not meet this simple equation.

• Grounding – Grounding
• Grounding – Earthing
• Interconnections - Bonding (do not use the Grounding Earthing to go to !!)
• The connection and bonding of shielded cables does not automatically mean that EMC issues disappear
• The length of cable connections of surge arresters is a mistake in many applications
• Electric power converters (UPS, inverters, dimmers etc.) are not connected as mere passive consumers of energy
• An isolation transformer does not have all the virtues for complete EMC protection
• RFI filters are useful components but sometimes have prohibitive side effects
• It's the same for arresters in many applications
• Cathode Protection Systems under are particularly complex to protect because of the multitude of "earthing" and de facto independence
• Energy sources Cc and / or Ca nodes distributions will be very low impedance across all frequencies. This concerns both the Common Mode Differential Mode that, which is rarely the case.
• The Common mode of a source must be set at a reference potential (Ufer Grounding HF) and not simply connected to a PE passage, so big it may be.
• Etc.,

From experience, this thirteen "EMC faults" can be just the tip of the iceberg that hides other issues, to the surprise of Electrical specialists at all levels who had the opportunity to participate in remedial work or Engineering organized with the ZM

In the end, ZM has its own simple, fast and efficient methodology, understood by all stakeholders: The measurement is good when there is nothing to measure! It allows to verify the absence of incoming disturbances in susceptible systems, validating or invalidating constructive decisions were taken without compromises. It complements EMC Products by the EMC system and recognition grew with the release of numerous scientific papers made with prestigious clients such as EDF, Thales etc.

The ZM guarantees results is reflected in the insurance of the design of, lack of trial and error to focus while ZM remains very low cost with volume protection components from specialized patented Industrial Products.