EVs and the DC Hazard: NSA Enespro® 40 cal Suit in a DC Arc
With the rapid growth of electric vehicles (EVs), and the infrastructure needed to support them, so too grows the importance of understanding the direct current (DC) arc hazard. That’s where Tyndale comes in! This series lays out the differences between the alternating current (AC) arc hazard and its lesser-known DC counterpart and demonstrates – through first-of-its-kind real-world video footage – the power of DC arcs. Follow along to learn more and witness firsthand the life-saving difference the right arc-rated (AR) clothing makes in the face of a DC arc.
What happens in a DC arc when the potential incident energy is high enough to require an arc suit instead of dailywear? We set out to find out. In today’s leading-edge demonstration, we subject an NSA Enespro® 40 cal arc suit to a DC arc with high incident energy. Join our host Scott Margolin, Vice President of Technical as we explore this scenario:
The garment does its job and protects the worker, with no body burn predicted through the garment.
Molten copper and bits of fabric are thrown at the beginning of the arc – showing just how powerful this arc is.
The arc lasts longer because we’ve cranked the incident energy, but despite that duration you can clearly see that it does not cycle like its AC counterpart would.
When the arc is over, you can see a brief afterflame, which self-extinguishes quickly. This is not surprising given the incident energy level, and this multi-layer garment is constructed to withstand the impact.
- The outer layer is designed to be sacrificial, absorbing the energy and insulating the worker from the hazard.
- In fact, at the end of the test we can clearly see that the layers beneath the outer layer are intact; the arc did not breach the underlayers – or the worker underneath them.
Whether you’re wearing this CAT 4 arc suit in an AC arc or a DC arc with high incident energy, it will have your back.
This video shows why it’s so important to wear AR clothing and appropriate PPE when there is an arc hazard in your job environment. In fact, in most of the injuries and fatalities we see, the outcomes were preventable – caused by people wearing fuel. This video shows that the DC arc hazard is no exception. Don’t leave home without your last line of defense.
Next up, in the last test of our series, we subject a popular Tyndale 88/12 jacket to a 14 cal DC arc. How does it perform in this real-world test? Plug in to find out.
