Fault Current means the electrical current that flows through a circuit during an electrical fault condition. A fault condition occurs when one or more electrical conductors contact ground and/or each other. Types of faults include phase to ground, double-phase to ground, three-phase to ground, phase-to-phase, and three-phase. A Fault Current is several times larger in magnitude than the current that normally flows through a circuit.
Electrical systems require the over current device to have an interrupting rating not less than the maximum available fault current to protect the system.
