What Does
Bonding Mean?
Bonding refers to firmly joining two or more elements. It connects elements to prevent potential dislocations and possible interference, making the elements firm and rigid. The term can also refer to the connectors and straps used to bond equipment.
Bonding is used extensively in automobiles and aircraft to prevent static buildup. It is also used in marine vessels to protect against seawater corrosion.
Bonding is also used in electrical grounding to keep all conductors at the same electrical potential.
Corrosionpedia Explains Bonding
Bonding is a technique by which two electrical conductors are joined together. This technique can be applied on two wires, a wire and a pipe or other pieces of equipment. In bonding, all the metal parts that are not supposed to be carrying current during normal operations are connected in a way such that they can be brought to an equal electrical potential. Therefore, no current can be exchanged among the two bonded bodies due to having the same potential. Bonding saves equipment and people by lowering current flow to a tolerable level. It helps to create a low-impedance path back to the source. Bonding also allows a breaker to trip when it exceeds the tolerable limit, which ultimately helps to terminate a fault and save assets.
The metals of a boat which resides in water are bonded together. This system reduces the effect of small amounts of current. Without bonding, all underwater metals would be affected by higher currents, which could result in severe damage. To perform bonding correctly, bonding wire must not suffer vibrations, and soldered or brazed connections are preferred.
Bonding systems are used for:
- Shock hazard protection
- Lightning protection
- Improved radio performance
- Protection from corrosion
Although a bonding system provides a very convenient path for stray currents originating outside of a boat, it provides corrosion protection of materials, such as underwater metals of boats and ships. When bonding wires corrode, electricity flows through the corroded metal, eventually causing the failure of the bonding system.