This Video Has Everything You Need to Know to Understand How a Power Grid Works
Almost every minute you are inside a building you are making use of something that you rarely see evidence of: we are talking about the power grid.
In this educational video from Practical Engineering, an engineer explains what the power grid is and how it works. Electricity is a crucial resource that makes everything from your lights to national security possible.
There is almost nothing that occurs in urban areas without it. But unlike water or money, electricity is nearly impossible to store and keep for later use.
That's is where the complexity of the power grid comes in. The ‘grid’ as its most often referred, is pretty much overlooked. But there is so much of the grid that is out on display that allows us to get a good understanding of what this engineering infrastructure is.
The grid's primary function is to generate and deliver electricity where it is needed. It's a simple idea that gets very complicated.
The grid has three key sections, generation, transmission, and distribution. Generating electricity can be done in many ways from coal, to hydro to nuclear.
Each method has its own set of pros and cons that relate a lot to where and how much power is being produced. They all have one thing in common, though - they take one form of energy and transform it into electrical energy.
Watch the whole video to get a thorough understanding of the process from the power plant to light switch!