Neutral vs Bonding Conductor Study Guide

Neutral and bonding conductors do not perform the same job throughout an electrical system. Study normal load-current paths separately from the metallic path intended to carry fault current back toward the source.

Grounding and bonding study commonly begins in CEC Section 10, where the exact system arrangement and applicable requirement must be verified.

• The grounded circuit conductor can carry normal load current where the circuit design requires it.
• The bonding path is intended to provide a low-impedance metallic fault-current path.
• An unintended downstream connection can create parallel normal-current paths.
• Trace normal current and fault current separately before choosing an answer.