Why doesn't the US use 230V the way (almost) everyone does?
In addition, almost all buildings in the USA have a 240V AC power connection. 240V AC power is also available on selected sockets in the house. Sockets with available 240V AC supply supply energy to receivers that require more power (washing machines, ovens). Low-power receivers, such as lamps, laptops, chargers, do not need access to 240V sockets and use 120V AC power.
For those surprised by the fact that 240V is available in the 120V system - short explanation: the secondary side of the transformer feeding the building has a tap in the middle of the winding connected to the neutral wire. The neutral conductor is grounded in the fuse box, while the two extreme ends of the winding supply power to the two phase conductors (voltage phases displaced by 180 ° relative to each other). In most cases, one of the phase conductors and the neutral wire are used, supplying 120V AC voltage, which allows for 1800W power consumption (15A 120V). For devices with higher power, both phase wires are used, which allows you to work with a voltage of 240V and power consumption of 3600W (15A 240V). 240V can be supplied to specific sockets or led permanently to the device terminals.
The historical reason for the fact that the USA stayed on 120V is the carbon filament lighting system used in the past. Before the introduction of tungsten filament lighting, a large 120V power supply infrastructure had already been built. 120V AC power remained the standard.
The US has a very large power grid and nothing indicates changes to the current standards.
The UK is one example where the power grid has been rebuilt. Fuses are built into the plugs instead of connecting each socket separately to the switchgear and protection. This is the reason why the nests in the UK are different compared to the rest of Europe.
Do we need a uniform global standard for supplying end user loads?
It makes no sense to change everything just so that the same power standard is used everywhere. Such changes would be very costly. Many devices (especially with a switching power supply) accept a voltage range of 220-240V AC, sometimes even 90V-240V. In some devices, you can find switches that allow you to set a specific supply voltage. It makes sense to standardize the exchange of energy between the transmission systems of national energy networks, as well as transmission networks, so that foreign equipment used in the transmission network can be used more easily.
Source:
http://www.electronicproducts.com/Power_Produ...use_220V_like_everyone_else_in_the_world.aspx
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Ehhh, these Americans ... have to do everything their own way ;) [Read more]
In the USA, the distribution network also looks a bit different. In Poland, we are used to a transformer station to which 3f 15kV is connected and 3f 400V (phase-to-phase), 3x 230V (against the neutral... [Read more]
If it's such a ticking bomb on a pole, why won't they give it up? After all, it can set off the surrounding buildings with smoke, and when there is such a thing in the forest, I don't want... [Read more]
Great and factual article. By the way, I was curious why they have a different tension. Congratulations! [Read more]
Perhaps the point is that the network is easy to scale and change quickly. They run the 2-19kV network with an overhead cable, then, where necessary, they install a transformer on a pole and lead low... [Read more]
@ oskar777 That's the atmosphere. And more seriously, it is something for them that they have always dealt with, i.e. the existing state. Maybe they don't even see it in such terms. Because... [Read more]
And why the angola and a half of the world drive on the left side of the road, the track width varies in many countries, the inch and metric system, TV and video systems, etc. are still used. As you can... [Read more]
In the USA, 3-phase voltage is also available - e.g. for three-phase motors, but not used in households, only in factories and manufactories. [Read more]
We have adapted to the values of "European" With what tension? [Read more]
It should be mentioned that when using 230V voltage, we save on copper, the wire cross-sections are half smaller. [Read more]
The energy infrastructure in the US is old, neglected and backward. They have enormous losses in the transmission of electricity, however, changing the entire network is nowadays associated with too high... [Read more]
And which electric kick hurts more? [Read more]
Every 10-20 years they should increase the voltage by a few% so that it slowly reaches a reasonable value. Such periods allow old equipment to wear out, and new equipment can already be manufactured for... [Read more]
There is no shortage of stout heads like ours ;) but someone would have to turn these ideas into action, and that's a different story. [Read more]
My great-grandmother, who survived most of the wars of the twentieth century (almost all because when the Wright brothers flew and the Titanic sailed, she was already in the world) had such a rhyme I was... [Read more]
There is one more thing. As I remember from the electrical engineering lesson, the efficiency of electrical machines increases with their power. [Read more]
What do you think? :) The lower the voltage, the less dangerous the current and the less painful the sensation after close contact. At home, until 1960, I had a voltage of 120V and despite kicking several... [Read more]
As long as the US has the cheapest energy in the entire civilized world, no one will care if it is possible to cut off a few percent of efficiency in a few places. [Read more]
In my socket there is still 252V ;) [Read more]