3. General grounding network

3.1 The role of grounding

Earthing an electrical installation consists of connecting the grounds or neutral conductor of the installation to an earth via one or more earth conductors. In RTE (Réseau de Transport d'Électricité) substations, this grounding of earth and neutral is common. The earthing system, known as the grounding network for large installations such as substations, is made up of a set of underground conductors in direct contact with the ground and electrically interconnected. Its role is to allow fault currents from any source to flow into the ground. When such currents flow through the ground network, potential differences may arise between certain points, for example between two metallic masses, between a metallic mass and the ground, or between two points in the...