What happens if neutral wire touches a earth wire
With normal AC power supply, nothing happens in industrial applications, i. H. When 3-phase current is used. In these cases, Neutral is used to balance the 3 phases. It is advisable to make sure that all phases are loaded equally. When all phases are balanced, ideally no current flows on the neutral conductor.
However, there are never ideal cases, and there is often a small degree of phase imbalance, resulting in a potential for the neutral conductor. Distribution lines providing three-phase current return this unbalanced current to the transformer stations, where it is connected to the mother earth and all potentials are discharged. Since the neutral conductor has little potential, the current flow is minimal when we connect the earth to the neutral conductor.
In abnormal cases where the phase inequality is strong, the neutral conductor causes a significant current flow (potential difference with respect to the ground). In such cases, the current finds the shortest path to the discharge potential when we connect the neutral conductor to the ground. In domestic applications, where the loads are normally single-phase, the neutral is the return path through which the current enters the distribution source.
In such applications, when we connect the ground to the neutral, most of the current flows through the ground wire (remember that grounding has the least resistance because it is grounded near our house, compared to the neutral wire that is grounded passes through the entire redistribution transformer). , Now there are 2 effects of this work. First, it can be dangerous if we come into contact with a defective device.
The ground wire is supposed to protect us from electric shock, but it is already carrying power and we will be creating a parallel path for the current. Believe me, any current over 30 milliamps can be severe for our limbs. And the second effect is that our energy meter shows less readings (unethical hack).
Not every stream we consume can be monitored, as part of the return flow flows directly to Mother Earth without passing through the energy meter.
In Short if neutral wire touches a earth wire,
Nothing happen in case of AC 2 phase, The neutral wire should provide a return path for load currents. The earth wire should provide a return path for fault currents and protect against electric shock. An earth wire carrying load current is a risk of electric shock because a person touching this earth may present an alternative path for the load current and thus the risk of electric shock.
