{"id":25,"date":"2015-09-14T12:09:18","date_gmt":"2015-09-14T16:09:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/?p=25"},"modified":"2015-12-03T08:43:35","modified_gmt":"2015-12-03T13:43:35","slug":"dissipative-vs-static-conductive-flooring-which-works-best","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/dissipative-vs-static-conductive-flooring-which-works-best\/","title":{"rendered":"Dissipative vs. Static Conductive Flooring: Which Works Best?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Previously, we talked in greater detail about how ESD flooring works<\/a>. But when it comes to choosing what type of static control flooring to use, the biggest question\u00a0you need to answer is this:<\/p>\n

Should I use static dissipative flooring or static conductive flooring?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Perhaps the most important\u00a0factor you’ll need to consider in making this decision is\u00a0safety<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Shouldn’t I Always Choose the Fastest Pathway to Ground?<\/h3>\n

At first glance, it might seem like a no-brainer: just put in the flooring that has the lowest resistance so that electrostatic discharge is carried most quickly and efficiency to ground. If that’s true, then static conductive flooring is an obvious choice.<\/p>\n

But if the floor is\u00a0too conductive<\/em>, then we introduce another set of risks to personal safety<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

This is where we start to get into safety standards developed by OSHA and the\u00a0National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), among others.<\/p>\n

Put simply, “static dissipative” flooring and “static conductive” flooring are two very specific classifications<\/strong> based upon levels of conductivity which is measured in terms of the materials’ resistance<\/em> to electricity.<\/p>\n

Resistance of ESD Flooring Options<\/h3>\n

Resistance, or impedance<\/em>,\u00a0is measurable, and is expressed in\u00a0ohms<\/em>. The\u00a0ohm<\/em> is a unit of measurement named after\u00a0Georg Ohm<\/a>, the German physicist who discovered Ohm’s law<\/a>. In specifications documents, schematics, and other materials, the\u00a0ohm<\/em> is represented by the symbol\u00a0\u03a9 (the Greek letter\u00a0omega<\/em>).<\/p>\n

Put simply,\u00a0higher resistance<\/strong> = lower conductivity<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

A substance with resistance measured at\u00a0zero\u00a0ohms\u00a0<\/em>(0 \u03a9) would\u00a0highly conductive<\/strong>\u00a0conductive (carbon, silver, and copper all have resistance measured in a fraction of an\u00a0ohm<\/em>). On the opposite end of the spectrum, a substance with 1 billion\u00a0ohms<\/em> (1 \u00d7 109<\/sup>\u00a0\u03a9) would have very low conductivity\u00a0<\/strong>(rubber, which is so resistive that it’s used as an insulator, has a resistance in the 1.00\u00d71013<\/sup> \u03a9 range, or 10,000,000,000,000 \u03a9, AKA ten trillion\u00a0ohms<\/em>).<\/p>\n

In general terms defined by the ESD Association, “conductive” is describes any flooring with a resistance of up to 1 million\u00a0ohms<\/em>. “Dissipative” is used for anything greater than 1 million\u00a0ohms<\/em> and up to 1 billion\u00a0ohms.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<\/colgroup>\n\n\n\n\n
ESD Flooring Type<\/td>\nResistance (\u03a9) Range (Low End)<\/td>\nResistance (\u03a9) Range (High End)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Static Conductive<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n1 \u00d7 106<\/sup><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Static Dissipative<\/td>\n1 \u00d7 106<\/sup><\/td>\n1 \u00d7 109<\/sup><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Unfortunately, these categories are so broad that they aren’t entirely useful.<\/p>\n

Thankfully,\u00a0the ANSI 20.20 specification helps clarify things for us. It indicates that the maximum resistance of the\u00a0flooring and the person\u00a0<\/em>(measured together) should be\u00a0less than 3.5 \u00d7 109\u00a0<\/sup>ohms.<\/em><\/p>\n

The NPFA has also specified that flooring should have no less than 25,000\u00a0ohms\u00a0<\/em>resistance. Below this number, the conductivity of the floor is considered to be too high and therefore unsafe due to risk of electric shock and other hazards.<\/p>\n

As you can see, neither the minimum resistance specified by the NFPA nor the maximum specified by ANSI 20.20 lines up perfectly with our terms for “static conductive” or “static dissipative” flooring.<\/p>\n

So… we’re left with making a selection based upon the specific needs of your industry<\/strong>. What is the application of the flooring? Will it be used in a clean room? Will it be used in electronics manufacturing? What are the considerations around flammable materials?<\/p>\n

Other factors will affect the decision as well. Will the humidity and temperature of the environment be maintained within specific parameters? Both will affect conductivity, not just in the floor, but in the environment as a whole. What other building materials will be used?<\/p>\n

Additionally, when specifying the levels of conductivity in flooring, there is a diversity in testing and measurement that exists which will cause test results to vary widely depending upon the methodologies used. It’s important to understand how these measurements will affect the final outcome where conductivity is concerned.<\/p>\n

The Bottom Line?<\/h3>\n

There are a number of factors involved<\/strong> in the decision when you’re selecting between static conductive or static dissipative flooring. Our ESD control experts will be more than happy to help walk you through the decision-making process and the range of options available to you\u00a0\u2014 both from a performance standpoint and from an aesthetic one. Contact us today<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Previously, we talked in greater detail about how ESD flooring works. But when it comes to choosing what type of static control flooring to use, the biggest question\u00a0you need to answer is this: Should I use static dissipative flooring or static conductive flooring? Perhaps the most important\u00a0factor you’ll need to consider in making this decision […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":299,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,31,1,10,22,23,25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2020-compliance","category-carpet","category-electrostatic-discharge","category-flooring","category-surfaces","category-technical","category-tile"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/299"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gndzero.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}