preview

Electricity Is A Natural Phenomenon

Better Essays

Electricity is the directional flow of electrons between atoms. Electricity is a natural phenomenon and is one of the most commonly utilized forms of energy. Electricity is used in order to do work, such as generating heat and light. Electricity is measured in watts. Watts are the measurement of power (current * voltage). Current is the flow of electrons measured in amperes (Amps). One ampere is the amount of current when one coulomb (6.25 x 10^18 electrons) of charge moves past a point over one second. Voltage is the force that causes electrons to move in a circuit. A volt is defined as “the electrostatic difference between two points when one joule of energy is used to move one coulomb of charge from one point to the other.” (NDT Resource Center, 2013) A joule is the measurement of energy that is used when one watt of power does work for one second (also known as watt-seconds). When measuring electricity in large numbers, the standard unit of measurement is kilowatt-hour. This determines the rate at which energy is being used, and how energy is quantified in the United States. One kilowatt hour is equivalent to 3,412.14163 British Thermal Units (BTU’s). One BTU is the amount of energy required to heat one pound of water by 1°F (Princeton, 2013).
The current method of energy generation is from burning fossil fuels to generate electricity. However, this method is inefficient because most of the energy invested in burning fossil fuels is converted into heat instead of

Get Access