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A History of Electricity Innovation
Although the modern electric utility industry has not begun before the late 1800s, we have been fascinated by electricity since our ancestors first witnessed lightning. The ancient Greeks discovered that rubbing amber produced an electric charge. Electricity is a fundamental part of nature and it is one of our most frequently used forms of energy. It is a secondary source of energy that we receive from the conversion of primary sources such as natural gas, oil, coal and nuclear. Many towns were built alongside waterfalls that turned water wheels to perform work. Before the start of production of electricity, kerosene lamps lit houses, coolers were used to keep food cold, and the rooms were heated by stoves. The "necessities" of today such as bulbs, fans, air conditioners and refrigerators stem from the ideas of inventors who have lived 100 years ago. Many of us are familiar with famous kite experiment Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Edison's light bulb, but there were many other inventors who have contributed greatly to our modern uses of electricity. Some of these inventors simply sought to improve on old ideas and others saw a need and give free rein to their wild curiosity with each experiment until they have discovered something new. Each invention paved the way for another.
In the mid-1600s, Otto von Guericke, a German physicist, began experimenting with the production of electricity. In 1670, he invented the first machine to generate electricity in large quantities with a ball of sulfur which turns and he held his hand against the ball, accusing him of electricity. Others, like Isaac Newton, later used this machine using a glass ball instead of sulfur, and later a cylinder, then a glass plate.
In 1747, Benjamin Franklin began to experiment with electricity, and proposed the concept of negative and positive charge. He performed his famous kite experiment to prove that lightning was a form of electrical discharge in 1752. During a storm, he flew a kite with a stiff wire pointing up attached to the top wing and a key tied to the other end of the chain, and let it hang next to a jar. The chain was wet by rain and causing sparks to jump from the key in the pot until the pot could not handle larger loads. This experience has proved that electricity and lightning are one and the same was done and stems to conduct electricity better than bullets, leading to the invention Franklin's lightning rod. Start with this experience, the principles of electricity gradually became understood.
In 1800, an Italian professor, Alessandro Volta, inventor of the voltaic battery which is now called an electric cell or battery. He has a stack of discs of zinc, acid or paper impregnated with salt and copper, and when he hit both ends, he received a shock. The tension is named after Volta. Another, in the first half of 1800 has greatly contributed to our modern use of electricity was Michael Faraday. He made experiments on electricity and magnetism that led to modern inventions such as the engine, generator, telegraph and telephone. In 1831, he experimented with the induction and found a way to generate much power at once. We use the principle of induction Electromagnetic production of electricity in today's electricity plants.
In the mid-1800s, the invention of the light bulb has changed the lives of everyone. The invention of the electricity used to provide interior lighting our homes. Thomas Edison, American inventor, did not invent the light bulb, but improved on an idea 50 years and has invented an incandescent bulb. Many people before him, had developed forms of electric lighting, but none of these practices were household. In 1879, after trying for a year and a half, he used less electricity, a filament of carbonized sewing son, and an improved vacuum inside the earth to produce a practical electric light bulb. Edison has demonstrated its lighting system filament to the public as electrically lit complex Menlo Park lab. He understood the need for an electrical distribution system to provide energy for lighting and in 1882 the first commercial incandescent electric generating station capable of supplying light and electricity to users in one square mile area in New York. This was the beginning of the age of the electricity industry has been the evolution of gas and electric carbon arc lighting systems and Commercial Street. In the late 1880s to the demand for electric motors brought the industry to serve 24 hours of and demand for electricity needed for transportation and industry has been considerably increased. Many cities in the United States now has small power stations, but each was limited to an area a few blocks houses because of the inefficiency of current transmission (DC). Like electricity around the world, various utilities Edison continued to expand until their accession to form Edison General Electric in 1889. Three years later, Edison General Electric merged with its nearest competitor Thompson-Houston and the company became simply General Electric.
One of the main competitors was George Thomas Edison Westinghouse Jr., a pioneer in electricity industry. In 1886, he founded and Westinghouse Electric Manufacturing Company to continue the current technology (AC). A system of alternating current supply voltage allowed to "step up" by a distribution transformer, which reduced power loss, then "resigned" by a transformer for use by consumers. He thought the Edison system of electric bass voltage direct current was too inefficient to be expanded to a large size. In 1885, Westinghouse purchased power transformer developed by Lucien Gaulard and John Dixon Gibbs. Transformers are not a new invention, however, this concept has been one of the first who was able to handle large amounts of energy, but was still easy to manufacture. The use of these transformers and a Siemens AC generator, He began experimenting with alternating current networks. Westinghouse worked to refine the design of the transformer and build a network AC power current practices with the help of William Stanley and Franklin Leonard Pope. In 1886, Westinghouse and Stanley installed the first multi-AC system current power. The network was driven by a hydropower generator that produces more than 500 volts. Tension escalated up to 3,000 volts for distribution, then stepped back up to 100 volts to power electric lights. This device has helped to spread the electrical service over a wide area and has enabled the availability of alternating current at different voltages, forming the basis of modern electrical power distribution. In During the following year 30 more alternating current lighting systems were installed, but the method has been limited because they did not have a system of effective measure and alternating current electric motor. In 1888, Westinghouse and his engineer Oliver Shallenberger created a power meter that is more effective and even counter technology base remains in use today.
Nikola Tesla is one of largest contributors to the birth of commercial electricity. It has been an employee of Thomas Edison and he invented a system that transmits AC, as opposed to Edison's DC system. Tesla Edison opposed idea, so Tesla set up his own lab and announced his invention the first polyphase AC induction motor current practices and the power transmission system in 1888. The system would allow the transmission polyphase of alternating electrical current over long distances. Westinghouse Nikola Tesla was asked to join Tesla's electric company which has continued its Work on the AC induction motor and Westinghouse acquired the exclusive rights to Tesla's polyphase system patents. All our electric motors operate on principles of Tesla as the engine that produces high-frequency signals that are used in radios and televisions. He also set the standard for the frequency of the current transmission, 60 Hz, we still operate today.
Edison and Westinghouse vied distribution an alternating current power and direct current power. Edison used only running because he thought that AC was dangerous, Westinghouse but thought the risks could be controlled and have been offset by the benefits. Even General Electric finally passed current alternative. In 1893, the Westinghouse Corporation won the contract to build a network of alternating current to light the World's Columbian Exposition Chicago, then to implement the first feature-grid with three giants AC generators to harness energy Niagara Falls into electrical energy for distribution to 25 miles.
Now, more than 100 years later, think about how we use and rely on electricity every day to respond to what we consider as our "basic needs" such as clocks, traffic lights, computers and televisions. When we walk in a dark room and press the light switch, we expect the flash light. There is interesting to think that this was once a dream and it took many inventors to make it a reality.
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Bounce Energy is a Texas Electric Company based in Houston. Bounce Energy’s goal is provide more than low Texas Electric Rates to our customers. With innovative and flexible plans, excellent customer service, and superior customer rewards, Bounce Energy offers a unique approach to Texas electricity.
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