Electric Power
Power is defined as the energy that is consumed or converted in a certain amount of time. In a simple electrical circuit, the power is found by multiplying the voltage and current. An electric current is the movement of charged particles measured in amperes and the voltage of the force driving them. Current that flows in one direction only, such as the current in a battery-powered flashlight, is called direct current. Current that flows back and forth, reversing direction again and again, such as household current, is called alternating current. Household electricity bills are computed on the basis of how many thousand-watt hours (kWh) of energy are consumed over a certain period of time. Today's home consumes, on average, between twelve hundred and two thousand kWh per month.
Most of the world's electric power is generated in steam plants. In a steam turbine generator, fossil fuel, such as coal, oil, natural or synthetic gasare the most common fuels used. Coal-based generation produces about 45 percent of all electricity generated in the United States, and natural or synthetic gas about 35 percent. The remaining, approximately 20 percent of generated electricity derives mostly from nuclear power plants, but includes wind, solar, biomass, diesel, geothermal, hydro, and other sources.
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