Tesla and a Hindu monk
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Came across this very interesting link between the scientist Nikola Tesla and the monk Swami Vivekananda. [^] It's a long read but full of nice historical snippets. Enjoy reading!
Regards, Jwalant Natvarlal Soneji http://jwalantsoneji.com[^]
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Came across this very interesting link between the scientist Nikola Tesla and the monk Swami Vivekananda. [^] It's a long read but full of nice historical snippets. Enjoy reading!
Regards, Jwalant Natvarlal Soneji http://jwalantsoneji.com[^]
It is said that Tesla batted for DC supply. However, his gentle ways could not beat Edison, who lobbied strongly to get AC as the de-facto standard for commercial power supply. Now, more than 120 years after this, electrical engineers are beginning to realize the true 'power' of DC; and we see research projects towards creating DC spaces. Tesla is being fondly remembered nowadays.
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It is said that Tesla batted for DC supply. However, his gentle ways could not beat Edison, who lobbied strongly to get AC as the de-facto standard for commercial power supply. Now, more than 120 years after this, electrical engineers are beginning to realize the true 'power' of DC; and we see research projects towards creating DC spaces. Tesla is being fondly remembered nowadays.
It was the other way around - Edison advocated DC supply, Tesla AC :)
Avijnata wrote:
electrical engineers are beginning to realize the true 'power' of DC
What do you mean? :confused:
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It was the other way around - Edison advocated DC supply, Tesla AC :)
Avijnata wrote:
electrical engineers are beginning to realize the true 'power' of DC
What do you mean? :confused:
Yes - my mistake. Tesla AC; Edison DC. Goof up - sorry. Regarding DC, I've heard that some research labs are actively advocating it, since the losses are said to be low. Hope this is not another goof up :-)
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Yes - my mistake. Tesla AC; Edison DC. Goof up - sorry. Regarding DC, I've heard that some research labs are actively advocating it, since the losses are said to be low. Hope this is not another goof up :-)
Avijnata wrote:
Regarding DC, I've heard that some research labs are actively advocating it, since the losses are said to be low. Hope this is not another goof up
If that's the case (researchers advocating it) I guess there's some constraint to it that you didn't mention. In general AC is the better form of current to transfer electrical power: AC is required to transform voltage up or down. Electrical Power P = U (Voltage) * I (Current) => Higher voltage allows lower current for the same power. Loss occurs due to resistance (which every conductor (=power line) has) and increases with higher current. That's why landlines have high voltage and before reaching your house it's transformed into lower voltage. Mr. Tesla apparently realized that better than the honorable Mr. Edison ;)
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Avijnata wrote:
Regarding DC, I've heard that some research labs are actively advocating it, since the losses are said to be low. Hope this is not another goof up
If that's the case (researchers advocating it) I guess there's some constraint to it that you didn't mention. In general AC is the better form of current to transfer electrical power: AC is required to transform voltage up or down. Electrical Power P = U (Voltage) * I (Current) => Higher voltage allows lower current for the same power. Loss occurs due to resistance (which every conductor (=power line) has) and increases with higher current. That's why landlines have high voltage and before reaching your house it's transformed into lower voltage. Mr. Tesla apparently realized that better than the honorable Mr. Edison ;)
DC transmission makes sense for transmitting over very long distances at extremely high voltages - like 750,000 Volts. DC transmission has far less corona on the wires at these voltages - and hence lower interference with radio signals. For very long distances there is another factor: If the transmission line length starts to approach one quarter wave length of the AC frequency (somewhere over 1,000 KM for 60Hz), weird things start to happen: An open circuit at the far end appears to be a dead short at the generator end - not good. So DC transmission over long distances offer these advantages: (a) Higher possible voltages - lower currents - less copper losses. (b) Lower interference transmission due to corona. (c) No constraint on the maximum length of a transmission line. High voltage DC power transmission is nothing new, but I haven't seen it yet in the USA.
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DC transmission makes sense for transmitting over very long distances at extremely high voltages - like 750,000 Volts. DC transmission has far less corona on the wires at these voltages - and hence lower interference with radio signals. For very long distances there is another factor: If the transmission line length starts to approach one quarter wave length of the AC frequency (somewhere over 1,000 KM for 60Hz), weird things start to happen: An open circuit at the far end appears to be a dead short at the generator end - not good. So DC transmission over long distances offer these advantages: (a) Higher possible voltages - lower currents - less copper losses. (b) Lower interference transmission due to corona. (c) No constraint on the maximum length of a transmission line. High voltage DC power transmission is nothing new, but I haven't seen it yet in the USA.
Thank you for educating me :) So I guess these benefits make up for the need for DC-AC-inversion?
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Thank you for educating me :) So I guess these benefits make up for the need for DC-AC-inversion?