Banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO: LUAN GARCIA COSTA DE OLIVEIRA

Uma banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO de MESTRADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : LUAN GARCIA COSTA DE OLIVEIRA
DATE: 02/06/2026
TIME: 19:00
LOCAL: on line
TITLE:

Incident Energy Study for Determination of Personal Protective Equipment Category in the Maintenance of a 2,000 kVA Enclosed Substation — Case Study at the New Headquarters of the Court of Justice of Rio Grande do Norte.

KEY WORDS:

incident energy; electric arc flash; NBR 17277:2025; IEEE 1584; personal protective equipment; enclosed substation; ATPV; electrical safety.

PAGES: 159
BIG AREA: Engenharias
AREA: Engenharia Elétrica
SUBÁREA: Sistemas Elétricos de Potência
SPECIALTY: Instalações Elétricas e Industriais
SUMMARY:

The performance of maintenance activities in energized electrical installations periodically exposes workers to the risk of electric arc flash, a phenomenon characterized by the intense release of thermal energy capable of causing severe burns within fractions of a second. Routine interventions such as thermographic inspections, electrical measurements and switching operations in low-voltage panels, carried out at monthly, semi-annual or annual intervals, place maintenance professionals in direct exposure to this hazard, making the correct specification of personal protective equipment essential. PPE designed for arc flash protection is classified into protection categories according to the ATPV (Arc Thermal Performance Value) parameter, which expresses the protective capacity of the garment in cal/cm², ranging from Category 1 (ATPV 4 cal/cm²) to Category4 (ATPV 40 cal/cm²), in addition to insulating gloves, face shields, dielectric helmets and safety footwear compatible with the identified risk level.

Historically, the quantification of this risk in Brazil was carried out based on international technical standards, particularly IEEE 1584:2018 IEEE 1584:2018 - IEEE Std 1584 - Guide for Performing Arc-Flash Hazard Calculations - and NFPA 70E:2021 - NFPA 70E:2021 - Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace -, in the absence of specific national regulation. IEEE 1584:2018 establishes the empirical model for calculating incident energy, based on more than 1,800 laboratory tests, and is the technical reference for determining arc current, incident energy and the Arc Flash Boundary. NFPA 70E:2021, in turn, specifically addresses safe work practices and the specification of PPE by category. In 2025, the publication of ABNT NBR 17277:2025 - the first Brazilian standard specifically dedicated to the calculation and management of arc flash risk, based on IEEE 1584:2018 - filled the national normative gap, articulating the calculation method with the requirements of NR-10, NR-6 and the Risk Management Program established by NR-1.

The present work applies the NBR 17277:2025 methodology to the case study of the 2,000 kVA enclosed substation, at 13.8 kV, of the New Headquarters of the Court of Justice of Rio Grande do Norte, with the objective of developing the calculation sequence required to determine the minimum ATPV protection category for the safe performance of maintenance activities on the low-voltage busbars of the installation. Technical data were obtained through field surveys conducted on-site in March 2026. Short-circuit currents were calculated using the analytical Thévenin equivalent impedance method and validated by computational simulation in the MATLAB/Simulink environment. Based on the arc currents determined by the NBR 17277:2025 equations, incident energy values and the Arc Flash Boundary are calculated for each analysis point, resulting in the classification of the protection category and the complete technical specification of the required PPE. The results are integrated into the facility's Risk Management Program, as required by NR-1, providing the Court of Justice of Rio Grande do Norte with an objective technical basis for managing arc flash risk in substation maintenance activities.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Interno - 1637588 - ARRHENIUS VINICIUS DA COSTA OLIVEIRA
Externo à Instituição - HUMBERTO DIONISIO DE ANDRADE - UFERSA
Presidente - 1045672 - MAX CHIANCA PIMENTEL FILHO