Flashover characteristics of air gaps under partly chopped waves

Voltage has been applied to two gaps with series resistances. When flashover occurs at one of the gaps, the applied voltage decreases stepwise but not to zero, because of the series resistance. Flashover characteristics with this gap system have been investigated under various conditions. Experimental results are compared with calculated values obtained with a leader development model. Agreement is good, and it is confirmed that the model is applicable to nonstandard lightning discharges. Two-phase flashover voltage for a short-tail wave is also calculated. The calculated voltage is higher than that obtained by the usual method.<>