Equipotential Bonding of Ship to Shore

Vessels transferring flammable liquids at marine or inland terminals need to take precautions against potential sources of ignition while loading and unloading. Different materials (steel, sacrificial anodes, non-ferrous fittings, etc.) in an electrolyte (salt or brackish water) lead to a potential difference between ship and shore. Ship-water-pier can be regarded as a galvanic cell with low internal resistance and low voltage (of typical 200 – 700 mV).

The TIMM Marine Grounding System SEK-3 performs a safe and smart equipotential bonding line between ship and shore that prevents possible ignition sources by unintended short connections (e. g. by a metal rope or a metallic gangway) leading to balancing currents.

In addition to the recommended insulation between ship and shore an equipotential bonding line, that is only switched trough when a very low ohmic contacting is detected before, offers addition safety.