• Adventure
  • Auto
  • Culture
  • Entertainment
  • Home & Garden
  • Money
  • Science
  • Tech
  • Video
  • Shows
  • Blogs
  • Quizzes
  • Games
  • Random Article
  • Engineering
  • Environmental Science
  • Forces of Nature
  • Innovation
  • Military
  • Physical Science
  • Science Dictionary
  • Science Versus Myth
  • Space
  • Transportation
  • Home > 
  • Science > 
  • Environmental Science > 
  • Energy Production

by Marshall Brain

Print
Cite This!
Close 
Please copy/paste the following text to properly cite this HowStuffWorks article:

Brain, Marshall.  "How Power Grids Work"  01 April 2000.  HowStuffWorks.com. <http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/energy/power.htm>  11 February 2012.
Cite
Feedback

Stuff You Should Know

Josh &amp; Chuck explore zombies, mirror neurons and more »
Josh & Chuck explore zombies, mirror neurons and more »
Inside this Article
  1. Introduction to How Power Grids Work
  2. The Power Plant
  3. The Power Plant: Alternating Current
  1. The Power Plant: Three-phase Power
  2. Transmission Substation
  3. The Distribution Grid
  4. See more »
    1. Distribution Bus
    2. Regulator Bank
    3. Taps
    4. At the House
    5. Safety Devices: Fuses
    6. Safety Devices: Circuit Breakers
    7. Lots More Information
    8. See all Energy Production articles

Lots More Information

Related HowStuffWorks Articles

  • How Batteries Work
  • How Capacitors Work
  • How Circuit Breakers Work
  • How Emergency Power Systems Work
  • How Hydropower Plants Work
  • How Inductors Work
  • How Nuclear Power Works
  • How PC Power Supplies Work
  • How Power Paper Will Work
  • How Solar Cells Work
  • How Surge Protectors Work
  • Inside a Power-Cube Transformer
  • How does a GFCI outlet work?
  • How does a time-of-use program with the power company work?
  • How many solar cells would I need in order to provide all of the electricity that my house needs?
  • How much power does a small transformer consume if it is plugged in but not doing anything?
  • Is it possible to generate electricity directly from heat?
  • What are amps, watts, volts and ohms?
  • Why are my power bills so high? What appliances use the most power?
  • Why do I need an electrical adapter when I travel overseas?
  • Why do the plugs on some appliances have two prongs and others have three prongs?
  • Why do the two flat prongs on the plugs for electrical appliances have holes in them?
  • What is an oscilloscope used to measure?

More Great Links

  • 3 Phase Alternating Current
  • Electric Power Around The World
  • Mains connections: 3 phase distribution
  • Ground Resistance Principles, Testing, Techniques & Applications
  • U.S. Army: Grounding Systems - PDF
  • Electrical Wiring FAQ
  • Power Lines and Cancer FAQ
  • Inventory of Electric Utility Power Plants in the United States 1999
  • Nelson River DC Transmission System
VIDEO: Check out amazing videos of UFOs and the worst natural disasters. >>
Previous Page

All Things Science

10 Incredible Wind Power Facts
10 Incredible Wind Power Facts
10 Remarkable Exoplanets
10 Remarkable Exoplanets
Fact or Fiction: Earthquake Quiz
Fact or Fiction: Earthquake Quiz
Top 10 Things That Women Invented
Top 10 Things That Women Invented
Get in Touch With the Dark Arts
Get in Touch With the Dark Arts
Watch 100 Greatest Discoveries videos »

You Might Also Like

10 Amazing Green Cities

Sure, the Emerald City looked green, but you won't need green-tinted glasses to see how environmentally friendly the cities on this list are. What makes a city amazingly green?

Can the sun's energy be used to clean water?

As two of the most important elements to the sustenance of life on Earth, the sun and water are forever intertwined. Just to name one example, the sun's energy can be used to make water palatable to those who wouldn't be able to drink it otherwise.

Popular Articles

  • How Great White Sharks Work
  • How Gene Banks Work
  • What is an oscilloscope used to measure?
Inside this Article
  1. Introduction to How Power Grids Work
  2. The Power Plant
  3. The Power Plant: Alternating Current
  4. The Power Plant: Three-phase Power
  5. Transmission Substation
  6. The Distribution Grid
  7. Distribution Bus
  1. Regulator Bank
  2. Taps
  3. At the House
  4. Safety Devices: Fuses
  5. Safety Devices: Circuit Breakers
  6. Lots More Information
  7. See all Energy Production articles
Previous Page

Video Favorites

FPO
  • Robot Videos
  • Extreme Engineering Videos
  • 10 Ways The World Will End Videos
  • Space Station Videos

New HSW Games

FPO
  • Storm Tracker
  • Speed Match
  • Crab Fishing Game
  • Volcano Explorer
  • Lost in Migration
  • Word Bubbles

Related Content

Prices: Power Plant Books

  • Steam power plant piping system: their design, installation and maintenance
    Steam power plant piping system: their design, installation and maintenance

    This book was digitized and reprinted from the collections of the University of California Libraries. To enhance your reading experience, aging and scanning artifacts have been removed using patented page cleaning technology.

    $34.99

  • Clean Coal Engineering Technology
    Clean Coal Engineering Technology

    Concern over the effects of airborne pollution, green house gases, and the impact of global warming has become a worldwide issue that transcends international boundaries, politics, and social responsibility. The 2nd Edition of Coal Energy Systems: Clean Coal Technology describes a new generation of energy processes that sharply reduce air emissions and other pollutants from coal-burning power plants.Coal is the dirtiest of all fossil fuels. When burned, it produces emissions that contribute to global warming, create acid rain, and pollute water. With all of the interest and research surrounding nuclear energy, hydropower, and biofuels, many think that coal is finally on its way out. However, coal generates half of the electricity in the United States and throughout the world today. It will likely continue to do so as long as it's cheap and plentiful [Source: Energy Information Administration]. Coal provides stability in price and availability, will continue to be a major source of electricity generation, will be the major source of hydrogen for the coming hydrogen economy, and has the potential to become an important source of liquid fuels. Conservation and renewable/sustainable energy are important in the overall energy picture, but will play a lesser role in helping us satisfy our energy demands today. Dramatically updated to meet the needs of an ever changing energy market, Coal Energy Systems, 2nd Edition is a single source covering policy and the engineering involved in implementing that policy. The book addresses many coal-related subjects of interest ranging from the chemistry of coal and the future engineering anatomy of a coal fired plant to the cutting edge clean coal technologies being researched and utilized today. A 50% update over the first edition, this new book contains new chapters on processes such as CO2 capture and sequestration, Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) systems, Pulverized-Coal Power Plants and Carbon Emission Trading. Existing materials on worldwide coal distribution and quantities, technical and policy issues regarding the use of coal, technologies used and under development for utilizing coal to produce heat, electricity, and chemicals with low environmental impact, vision for utilizing coal well into the 21st century, and the security coal presents. Clean Liquids and Gaseous Fuels from Coal for Electric PowerIntegrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) systemsPulverized-Coal Power PlantsAdvanced Coal-Based Power PlantsFluidized-Bed Combustion TechnologyCO2 capture and sequestration

    $126.74

  • Power Plant Characteristics and Costs (Energy Policies, Politics and Prices Series)
    Power Plant Characteristics and Costs (Energy Policies, Politics and Prices Series)

    This book analyses the factors that determine the cost of electricity from new power plants. These factors, including construction costs, fuel expense, environmental regulations, and financing costs can all be affected by government energy, environmental, and economic policies. Government decisions to influence or not influence these factors can largely determine the kind of power plants that are built in the future. This book provides projections of the possible cost of power from new fossil, nuclear, and renewable plants built in 2015, illustrating how different assumptions, such as the availability of federal incentives, change the cost rankings of technologies. None of the projections are intended to be a 'most likely' case. Future uncertainties preclude firm forecasts. The rankings of the technologies by cost are therefore also an approximation and should not be viewed as definitive estimates of the relative cost-competitiveness of each option. The value of this book is not as a source of point estimates of future power costs, but as a source of insight into the factors that can determine future outcomes, including factors that can be influenced by Congress.

    $69.00

HOWSTUFFWORKS
  • Adventure
  • Auto
  • Culture
  • Entertainment
  • Health
  • Home & Garden
  • Lifestyle
  • Money
  • Science
  • Tech
MORE STUFF
  • Blogs
  • Games
  • HSW Tools
  • RSS
  • Maps
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Newsletters
  • Video
OUR WEBSITES
  • Animal Planet
  • Consumer Guide Auto
  • Consumer Guide Products
  • Discovery Channel
  • Discovery Fit & Health
  • HSW Brazil
  • HSW China HowStuffWorks China
  • Investigation Discovery
  • Oprah Winfrey Network
  • Planet Green
  • Science Channel
  • TLC
  • Discovery Education
  • Store
CUSTOMER SERVICE
  • Advertising
  • Contact Us
  • Help
CORPORATE
  • About Us
  • Careers @ Discovery
  • Privacy Policy
  • Visitor Agreement
TAKE US WITH YOU
FOLLOW US
© 1998-2012 HowStuffWorks, Inc