Electronic – How is electricity typically generated

electromagnetismgenerator

I am a pure physics guy, so I understand the fundamental processes behind the generation of electricity, but I'd like to know how to apply it. I was wondering what kind of methods were used in the industry in terms of the generation of electricity.

Is DC generated using a sort of faraday disk generator? How is AC generated? Are there any good books on the subject?

I am capable of handling technical writing and math doesn't scare me.

Best Answer

Electricity is made using a variety of processes:

Electro-magnetic: This is something that takes mechanical motion and converts it to electricity. The common way this is done is with a generator that is turned using a steam turbine from a coal or nuclear power plant. But it could also be a hand-cranked generator, a car alternator, or even one of those "shake to charge" flashlights.

Electro-Chemical: This is a basic battery-- both rechargable or normal batteries. The electrical energy is released from a chemical process.

Thermo-electric: When you get two dissimilar metals and you heat up one side and cool another an electrical current is generated. I can't possibly explain this one very well so here is the Wikipedia link.

Photovoltaic: A solar cell. Converts photons directly into electricity.

Electrostatic: Basically, using static electricity to do something. Normally this would be a van de graaff generator. It is hard, but not impossible, to make something useful with this as an energy source.

Piezoelectric: Some materials are piezoelectric. If you strike/hit/vibrate the material it will generate a small electrical current. This technique is mainly used as a sensor rather than a power source, but there are some places where using it as a power source is becoming practical.

That's all I can think of. I'm sure there are more, but these are the main ways that electricity is generated.