How Is Electricity Created?


When electrons move from one atom to another (voltage) creating unbalance
or flow, you have electrical current.

There are two kinds of electricity...

  1. Static Electricity -- A condition that exists when electrons are
    displaced and remain so. Static electricity is usually the result of
    friction. Lightning is an example of static electricity. Static elec-
    tricity makes your hair stand
    on end. If you take an inflated balloon and rub it on your head, it will cling to your clothes. Or try turning on the faucet a bit and hold a comb close to -- but not in -- the water. Notice how the water is "pulled" toward the comb. This is because the static electrical charge in the comb is attracting electrons
    in the water.
  2. Current Electricity -- A constant flow of electrons.
    Direct current (DC) means the electrons move in one direction.
    Alternating current (AC) means the electrons flow in both directions.

Did you know that electricity...

  • Can't generally be stored (by definition)
  • Has no weight, size, color or odor
  • Travels at the speed of light (i.e., 186,000 miles per second)

There are two ways to produce electricity...

  1. Batteries
    Chemical reactions (two dissimilar metals in acid) force electrons to move. This creates direct current electricity.
     
  2. Generators
    This machine converts the mechanical energy of a rotating turbine shaft into electrical energy through use of magnetic fields.

How electricity is generated...

Three basic elements are required to produce electricity:

  1. Motion (required to rotate a turbine)
  2. Magnetic Field
  3. Conductors

A form of energy is required to rotate a turbine which is attached to the shaft of the generator rotor. The rotor spins through the stator producing electricity.

There are several ways to turn the turbine. Some of the most common ways include burning fossil fuels to produce steam. Some of the fossil fuels might be coal, gas or oil. Nuclear energy is used to produce steam by the splitting of atoms (nuclear fission) which turns the turbine. Hydropower turns the turbine when water falls through it. Other less common sources used to produce electricity include: solar power, wind power, biomass (using organic material to produce steam), geothermal power, ocean or tidal power and fuel cells.

Check out Energy Quest for more about how electricity is created!