Power generation

Today we can not imagine our life without electricity. Virtually all devices operate with power supply, and even those that produce it.

There are several types of power plants - TPPs, HPPs, nuclear power plants, BES, PES, etc., and sources from which we have learned to obtain the energy we need so much. At the beginning of the development of energy, the main raw material for production was coal. Now, a century later, we have learned to produce electricity using other resources.

Electricity production in the world

The leading country for electricity generation in the world is the United States. China is in second place. Then the European Union, Russia, Japan. In our time, the production of electricity by thermal power plants mainly occurs with the use of oil, more precisely, its fraction, referred to as fuel oil. But its use is gradually decreasing. Since we live in an environmentally uneasy time for the whole world, cleaner production of electricity is replacing it.

One of the first was mastered wind energy. On the earth, winds are everywhere and everywhere. So, the conditions for the development of wind energy are more than favorable. It is environmentally friendly and easily available.

Another alternative is the production of electricity by the sun. Interest in this issue has grown significantly in recent years and continues to grow. Many minds are working to make electricity with solar cells more profitable. Of course, in different countries, electricity production is different. And if solar power plants for processing solar energy in Russia are suitable only for some southern regions, then, for example, South America can use this production at full power. The same applies to the use of wind power. In some countries, while at the initial stage of development there are geothermal stations that use energy released from the earth in volcanic zones. In the maintenance of such power plants are quite economical, but the very construction of such facilities is expensive.

Transmission of electricity

One of the most important tasks of the power industry is the production and transmission of electricity to the consumer. And consumers are everywhere. Since electricity is generated only in certain places, the need arises to transfer it over long distances. For the transmission of electricity mainly used transmission lines - overhead power lines. It is known that when electricity is transmitted over long distances, its losses are noticeable. With a significant distance to the consumer, transmission can become generally unprofitable. In order to maintain the transmitted power, it is necessary to increase the voltage in the transmission line. At the same time, the longer the distance, the higher the voltage. It is for this purpose that power transformers are mounted on power stations.

There is also a "closed" power transmission. It is a closed structure filled with electrically insulating gas. Inside there are wires with high voltage.

But even such a transfer of electricity is not always profitable. In some cases, namely, at very long distances, it is more expedient to transport fuel for production by rail: coal - in capacious cars, and fuel oil - in tanks.

If we talk about the future, since oil is quite unstable with respect to prices, and stocks are becoming fewer times, we will soon return to the primary use of coal for power generation.