Grounding Systems

In electricity supply systems, an earthing system or grounding system is circuitry which connects parts of the electric circuit with the ground, thus defining the electric potential of the conductors relative to the Earth's conductive surface. The choice of earthing system can affect the safety and electromagnetic compatibility of the power supply. In particular, it affects the magnitude and distribution of short circuit currents through the system, and the effects it creates on equipment and people in the proximity of the circuit. If a fault within an electrical device connects a live supply conductor to an exposed conductive surface, anyone touching it while electrically connected to the earth will complete a circuit back to the earthed supply conductor and receive an electric shock.

A protective earth (PE), known as an equipment grounding conductor in the US National Electrical Code, avoids this hazard by keeping the exposed conductive surfaces of a device at earth potential. To avoid possible voltage drop no current is allowed to flow in this conductor under normal circumstances. In the event of a fault, currents will flow that should trip or blow the fuse or circuit breaker protecting the circuit. A high impedance line-to-ground fault insufficient to trip the overcurrent protection may still trip a residual-current device (ground fault circuit interrupter or GFCI in North America) if one is present. This disconnection in the event of a dangerous condition before someone receives a shock, is a fundamental tenet of modern wiring practice and in many documents is referred to as automatic disconnection of supply (ADS). The alternative is defence in depth, where multiple independent failures must occur to expose a dangerous condition - reinforced or double insulation come into this latter category.

In contrast, a functional earth connection serves a purpose other than shock protection, and may normally carry current. The most important example of a functional earth is the neutral in an electrical supply system. It is a current-carrying conductor connected to earth, often, but not always, at only one point to avoid flow of currents through the earth. The NEC calls it a groundED supply conductor to distinguish it from the equipment groundING conductor. Other examples of devices that use functional earth connections include surge suppressors and electromagnetic interference filters, certain antennas and measurement instruments.