How Energy Electricity Generation

Here's a question for you how many people does it take to turn on a light bulb the answer seems simple just walk into a dark room flip a switch, and instantly you can see right well the truth is there's a lot more to generating and delivering electrical power than you've probably imagined. This energy explains the system used to generate electricity, and it also explains what it really takes to turn on a light bulb in order to understand energy we first need to start at the source literally mother nature provides the natural resource we use to generate power from natural gas to coal ocean tides to mountain winds the energy we need to create electricity must first be mined harnessed or collected from the earth some of these resources are finite including fossil fuels like coal and oil, but others are unlimited like solar or wind power but a lump of coal or a strong breeze alone won't create the power that turns on your light for every energy source a chemical or mechanical process is required to turn it into usable electricity every day researchers work to find innovative ways to use our limited resources process raw materials harness renewables more efficiently and find entirely new energy sources today the majority of America's electricity comes from thermal power plants fuels like coal natural gas biomass and uranium are used to heat water until it produces steam which powers a turbine and generates electricity that steam turns propeller like blades around a rotor inside the turbine this turning rotor connects to a main shaft which spins magnets with a coil inside a generator it's the generator inside a turbine that converts mechanical energy into electric energy and creates electricity steam is an efficient method of producing electricity because the water can be recycled and reused as it changes back and forth between liquid and gaseous states transporting electricity from the power plant to your home is an entirely different process current technology cannot cost-effectively store large amounts of electricity so significant challenges exist when it comes to transferring that electricity across long distances just enough electricity has to be generated to meet demand at all times and be transmitted through power lines to reach your light switch too much or too little power can crash the transmission system and cause a blackout that's why a complex mix of logistics management and infrastructure is needed to transmit electricity from power generators to consumers enter the electricity grid also known as simply the grid the North American electricity grid is actually made of four large grid systems the Western grid the Eastern grid the Texas grid and a grid covering the Canadian province of Quebec these independent regional networks of power plants and transmission lines carry electric energy at high voltage within their area to local utilities there are very limited links between the four grids which means electricity generated from a wind turbine in West Texas cannot reach an apartment building in New York City for electricity to move through one of the four grids its voltage must first be increased by a device called a transformer then the electricity can travel long distances across high-voltage transmission lines these high voltage lines are generally strung between giant metal towers they stretch for miles from power plants to local substations in each neighborhood you've probably seen substations along the side of the road and wonder what they do well their job is stepping down electric voltages from levels as high as seven hundred and sixty-five thousand volts close to the hundred and ten volts you use in your home the electricity from the power line on your street passes through another transformer which steps down the voltage once more, and then it travels along the line into your house from there the electricity enters your breaker box, and it is then distributed to light sockets and outlets all you have to do is flip a switch so as you can see from the raw materials to the power lines on your street there's so much more to the electricity ecosystem than meets the eye you