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WHAT'S YOUR ENGINEERING QUOTIENT?

Problem 1—In power wiring, what is the difference between the "grounded conductor" and the "grounding conductor"?

The grounded conductor carries the return current from the load, and is bonded to ground at the distribution center. It is often called the "neutral" conductor.

The grounding conductor carries only fault currents, and is usually bonded to any exposed metal components on the load equipment for safety, to keep fault currents from flowing through a person to some other ground. This conductor is often called simply "ground".

Color-coding of these conductors can be confusing, especially if you work with equipment for international markets:

Conductor	U.S. National Electric Code (NEC)	International Electric Code (IEC)
grounding	green or bare	green with yellow stripe
grounded (neutral)	white	blue
hot (first)	black	black or brown

Contributor: Dave Tweed

11-01 — NEXT Q&A