Electricity generation

Electricity generation is the process of generating electric power from sources of primary energy. For electric utilities in the electric power industry, it is the first stage in the delivery of electricity to end users, the other stages being transmission, distribution, energy storage and recovery, using the pumped-storage method.2016 World power generation by source (Percentages of 24.973 TWh) Electricity generation is the process of generating electric power from sources of primary energy. For electric utilities in the electric power industry, it is the first stage in the delivery of electricity to end users, the other stages being transmission, distribution, energy storage and recovery, using the pumped-storage method. A characteristic of electricity is that it is not primary energy freely present in nature in remarkable amounts and it must be produced. Production is carried out in power stations (also called 'power plants'). Electricity is most often generated at a power plant by electromechanical generators, primarily driven by heat engines fueled by combustion or nuclear fission but also by other means such as the kinetic energy of flowing water and wind. Other energy sources include solar photovoltaics and geothermal power. The fundamental principles of electricity generation were discovered in the 1820s and early 1830s by British scientist Michael Faraday. His method, still used today, is for electricity to be generated by the movement of a loop of wire, or disc of copper between the poles of a magnet. Central power stations became economically practical with the development of alternating current (AC) power transmission, using power transformers to transmit power at high voltage and with low loss. In 1870, commercial electricity production started with the coupling of the dynamo to the hydraulic turbine. In 1870, the mechanical production of electric power began the Second Industrial Revolution and created inventions using the energy, whose major contributors were Thomas Alva Edison and Nikola Tesla. Previously the only way to produce electricity was by chemical reactions or using battery cells, and the only practical use of electricity was for the telegraph. Electricity generation at central power stations started in 1882, when a steam engine driving a dynamo at Pearl Street Station produced a DC current that powered public lighting on Pearl Street, New York. The new technology was quickly adopted by many cities around the world, which adapted their gas-fueled street lights to electric power, and soon after electric lights would be used in public buildings, in businesses, and to power public transport, such as trams and trains. The first power plants used water power or coal; and today a variety of energy sources are used, such as coal, nuclear, natural gas, hydroelectric, wind, and oil, as well as solar energy, tidal power, and geothermal sources. The use of power-lines and power-poles has been significantly important in the distribution of electricity. Several fundamental methods exist to convert other forms of energy into electrical energy. The triboelectric effect, piezoelectric effect, and even direct capture of the energy of nuclear decay Betavoltaics are used in niche applications, as is a direct conversion of heat to electric power in the thermoelectric effect. Utility-scale generation is done by rotating electric generators, or by photovoltaic systems. A very small proportion of electric power distributed by utilities is provided by batteries. Electric generators transform kinetic energy into electricity. This is the most used form for generating electricity and is based on Faraday's law. It can be seen experimentally by rotating a magnet within closed loops of conducting material (e.g. copper wire). Almost all commercial electrical generation is done using electromagnetic induction, in which mechanical energy forces a generator to rotate: Electrochemistry is the direct transformation of chemical energy into electricity, as in a battery. Electrochemical electricity generation is important in portable and mobile applications. Currently, most electrochemical power comes from batteries. Primary cells, such as the common zinc–carbon batteries, act as power sources directly, but secondary cells (i.e. rechargeable batteries) are used for storage systems rather than primary generation systems. Open electrochemical systems, known as fuel cells, can be used to extract power either from natural fuels or from synthesized fuels. Osmotic power is a possibility at places where salt and fresh water merge.