6/21/2017 AlternatingCurrent(AC)vs.DirectCurrent(DC)learn.sparkfun.

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AlternatingCurrent(AC)vs.DirectCurrent(DC)
CONTRIBUTORS: SHAWNHYMEL

FAVORITE 22

Thunderstruck!

WheredidtheAustralianrockbandAC/DCgettheirnamefrom?Why,AlternatingCurrentandDirectCurrent,ofcourse!BothACandDCdescribetypesofcurrentflowin
acircuit.Indirectcurrent(DC),theelectriccharge(current)onlyflowsinonedirection.Electricchargeinalternatingcurrent(AC),ontheotherhand,changesdirection
periodically.ThevoltageinACcircuitsalsoperiodicallyreversesbecausethecurrentchangesdirection.

MostofthedigitalelectronicsthatyoubuildwilluseDC.However,itisimportanttounderstandsomeACconcepts.MosthomesarewiredforAC,soifyouplantoconnect
yourTardismusicboxprojecttoanoutlet,youwillneedtoconvertACtoDC.ACalsohassomeusefulproperties,suchasbeingabletoconvertvoltagelevelswitha
singlecomponent(atransformer),whichiswhyACwaschosenastheprimarymeanstotransmitelectricityoverlongdistances.

WhatYouWillLearn
ThehistorybehindACandDC
DifferentwaystogenerateACandDC
SomeexamplesofACandDCapplications

RecommendedReading
WhatisElectricity
WhatisaCircuit?
Voltage,Current,Resistance,andOhmsLaw
ElectricPower

AlternatingCurrent(AC)
Alternatingcurrentdescribestheflowofchargethatchangesdirectionperiodically.Asaresult,thevoltagelevelalsoreversesalongwiththecurrent.ACisusedtodeliver
powertohouses,officebuildings,etc.

GeneratingAC
ACcanbeproducedusingadevicecalledanalternator.Thisdeviceisaspecialtypeofelectricalgeneratordesignedtoproducealternatingcurrent.

Aloopofwireisspuninsideofamagneticfield,whichinducesacurrentalongthewire.Therotationofthewirecancomefromanynumberofmeans:awindturbine,a
steamturbine,flowingwater,andsoon.Becausethewirespinsandentersadifferentmagneticpolarityperiodically,thevoltageandcurrentalternatesonthewire.Hereis
ashortanimationshowingthisprinciple:

How generator works by Khurram Tanvir

(Videocredit:KhurramTanvir)

GeneratingACcanbecomparedtoourpreviouswateranalogy:

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TogenerateACinasetofwaterpipes,weconnectamechanicalcranktoapistonthatmoveswaterinthepipesbackandforth(ouralternatingcurrent).Noticethatthe
pinchedsectionofpipestillprovidesresistancetotheflowofwaterregardlessofthedirectionofflow.

Waveforms
ACcancomeinanumberofforms,aslongasthevoltageandcurrentarealternating.IfwehookupanoscilloscopetoacircuitwithACandplotitsvoltageovertime,we
mightseeanumberofdifferentwaveforms.ThemostcommontypeofACisthesinewave.TheACinmosthomesandofficeshaveanoscillatingvoltagethatproducesa
sinewave.

OthercommonformsofACincludethesquarewaveandthetrianglewave:

Squarewavesareoftenusedindigitalandswitchingelectronicstotesttheiroperation.

Trianglewavesarefoundinsoundsynthesisandareusefulfortestinglinearelectronicslikeamplifiers.

DescribingaSineWave
WeoftenwanttodescribeanACwaveforminmathematicalterms.Forthisexample,wewillusethecommonsinewave.Therearethreepartstoasinewave:amplitude,
frequency,andphase.

Lookingatjustvoltage,wecandescribeasinewaveasthemathematicalfunction:

V(t)isourvoltageasafunctionoftime,whichmeansthatourvoltagechangesastimechanges.Theequationtotherightoftheequalssigndescribeshowthevoltage
changesovertime.

VPistheamplitude.Thisdescribesthemaximumvoltagethatoursinewavecanreachineitherdirection,meaningthatourvoltagecanbe+VPvolts,VPvolts,or
somewhereinbetween.

Thesin()functionindicatesthatourvoltagewillbeintheformofaperiodicsinewave,whichisasmoothoscillationaround0V.

2isaconstantthatconvertsthefreqencyfromcycles(inhertz)toangularfrequnecy(radianspersecond).

fdescribesthefrequencyofthesinewave.Thisisgivenintheformofhertzorunitspersecond.Thefrequencytellshowmanytimesaparticularwaveform(inthiscase,
onecycleofoursinewaveariseandafall)occurswithinonesecond.

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tisourdependentvariable:time(measuredinseconds).Astimevaries,ourwaveformvaries.

describesthephaseofthesinewave.Phaseisameasureofhowshiftedthewaveformiswithrespecttotime.Itisoftengivenasanumberbetween0and360and
measuredindegrees.Becauseoftheperiodicnatureofthesinewave,ifthewaveformisshiftedby360itbecomesthesamewaveformagain,asifitwasshiftedby0.
Forsimplicity,wesillassumethatphaseis0fortherestofthistutorial.

WecanturntoourtrustyoutletforagoodexampleofhowanACwaveformworks.IntheUnitedStates,thepowerprovidedtoourhomesisACwithabout170Vzeroto
peak(amplitude)and60Hz(frequency).Wecanplugthesenumbersintoourformulatogettheequation(rememberthatweareassumingourphaseis0):

Wecanuseourhandygraphingcalculatortographthisequation.IfnographingcalculatorisavailablewecanuseafreeonlinegraphingprogramlikeDesmos(Notethat
youmighthavetouseyinsteadofvintheequationtoseethegraph).

Noticethat,aswepredicted,thevoltageriseupto170Vanddownto170Vperiodically.Additionally,60cyclesofthesinewaveoccurseverysecond.Ifwewereto
measurethevoltageinouroutletswithanoscilloscope,thisiswhatwewouldsee(WARNING:donotattempttomeasurethevoltageinanoutletwithanoscilloscope!
Thiswilllikelydamagetheequipment).

NOTE:YoumighthaveheardthatACvoltageintheUSis120V.Thisisalsocorrect.How?WhentalkingaboutAC(sincethevoltagechangesconstantly),itisofteneasier
touseanaverageormean.Toaccomplishthat,weuseamethodcalledRootmeansquared.(RMS).ItisoftenhelpfultousetheRMSvalueforACwhenyouwantto
calculateelectricalpower.Eventhough,inourexample,wehadthevoltagevaryingfrom170Vto170V,therootmeansquareis120VRMS.

Applications
HomeandofficeoutletsarealmostalwaysAC.ThisisbecausegeneratingandtransportingACacrosslongdistancesisrelativelyeasy.Athighvoltages(over110kV),less
energyislostinelectricalpowertransmission.Highervoltagesmeanlowercurrents,andlowercurrentsmeanlessheatgeneratedinthepowerlineduetoresistance.AC
canbeconvertedtoandfromhighvoltageseasilyusingtransformers.

ACisalsocapableofpoweringelectricmotors.Motorsandgeneratorsaretheexactsamedevice,butmotorsconvertelectricalenergyintomechanicalenergy(iftheshaft
onamotorisspun,avoltageisgeneratedattheterminals!).Thisisusefulformanylargeapplianceslikedishwashers,refrigerators,andsoon,whichrunonAC.

DirectCurrent(DC)
Directcurrentisabiteasiertounderstandthanalternatingcurrent.Ratherthanoscillatingbackandforth,DCprovidesaconstantvoltageorcurrent.

GeneratingDC
DCcanbegeneratedinanumberofways:

AnACgeneratorequippedwithadevicecalledacommutatorcanproducedirectcurrent
UseofadevicecalledarectifierthatconvertsACtoDC
BatteriesprovideDC,whichisgeneratedfromachemicalreactioninsideofthebattery

Usingourwateranalogyagain,DCissimilartoatankofwaterwithahoseattheend.

Thetankcanonlypushwateroneway:outthehose.SimilartoourDCproducingbattery,oncethetankisempty,waternolongerflowsthroughthepipes.

DescribingDC
DCisdefinedastheunidirectionalflowofcurrentcurrentonlyflowsinonedirection.Voltageandcurrentcanvaryovertimesolongasthedirectionofflowdoesnot
change.Tosimplifythings,wewillassumethatvoltageisaconstant.Forexample,weassumethataAAbatteryprovides1.5V,whichcanbedescribedinmathematical
termsas:

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Ifweplotthisovertime,weseeaconstantvoltage:

Whatdoesthismean?ItmeansthatwecancountonmostDCsourcestoprovideaconstantvoltageovertime.Inreality,abatterywillslowlyloseitscharge,meaningthat
thevoltagewilldropasthebatteryisused.Formostpurposes,wecanassumethatthevoltageisconstant.

Applications
AlmostallelectronicsprojectsandpartsforsaleonSparkFunrunonDC.Everythingthatrunsoffofabattery,plugsintothewallwithanACadapter,orusesaUSBcable
forpowerreliesonDC.ExamplesofDCelectronicsinclude:

Cellphones
TheLilyPadbasedD&DDiceGauntlet
FlatscreenTVs(ACgoesintotheTV,whichisconvertedtoDC)
Flashlights
Hybridandelectricvehicles

BattleoftheCurrents
AlmosteveryhomeandbusinessiswiredforAC.However,thiswasnotanovernightdecision.Inthelate1880s,avarietyofinventionsacrosstheUnitedStatesand
Europeledtoafullscalebattlebetweenalternatingcurrentanddirectcurrentdistribution.

In1886,GanzWorks,anelectriccompanylocatedinBudapest,electrifiedallofRomewithAC.ThomasEdison,ontheotherhand,hadconstructed121DCpower
stationsintheUnitedStatesby1887.AturningpointinthebattlecamewhenGeorgeWestinghouse,afamousindustrialistfromPittsburgh,purchasedNikolaTeslas
patentsforACmotorsandtransmissionthenextyear.

ACvs.DC

ThomasEdison(Imagecourtesyofbiography.com)

Inthelate1800s,DCcouldnotbeeasilyconvertedtohighvoltages.Asaresult,Edisonproposedasystemofsmall,localpowerplantsthatwouldpowerindividual
neighborhoodsorcitysections.Powerwasdistributedusingthreewiresfromthepowerplant:+110volts,0volts,and110volts.Lightsandmotorscouldbeconnected
betweeneitherthe+110Vor110Vsocketand0V(neutral).110Vallowedforsomevoltagedropbetweentheplantandtheload(home,office,etc.).

Eventhoughthevoltagedropacrossthepowerlineswasaccountedfor,powerplantsneededtobelocatedwithin1mileoftheenduser.Thislimitationmadepower
distributioninruralareasextremelydifficult,ifnotimpossible.

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NikolaTesla(Imagecourtesyofwikipedia.org) GeorgeWestinghouse(Imagecourtesyofpbs.org)

WithTeslaspatents,WestinghouseworkedtoperfecttheACdistributionsystem.TransformersprovidedaninexpensivemethodtostepupthevoltageofACtoseveral
thousandvoltsandbackdowntousablelevels.Athighervoltages,thesamepowercouldbetransmittedatmuchlowercurrent,whichmeantlesspowerlostdueto
resistanceinthewires.Asaresult,largepowerplantscouldbelocatedmanymilesawayandserviceagreaternumberofpeopleandbuildings.

EdisonsSmearCampaign
Overthenextfewyears,EdisonranacampaigntohighlydiscouragetheuseofACintheUnitedStates,whichincludedlobbyingstatelegislaturesandspreading
disinformationaboutAC.EdisonalsodirectedseveraltechnicianstopubliclyelectrocuteanimalswithACinanattempttoshowthatACwasmoredangerousthanDC.In
attempttodisplaythesedangers,HaroldP.BrownandArthurKennelly,employeesofEdison,designedthefirstelectricchairforthestateofNewYorkusingAC.

TheRiseofAC
In1891,theInternationalElectroTechnicalExhibitionwasheldinFrankfurt,GermanyanddisplayedthefirstlongdistancetransmissionofthreephaseAC,which
poweredlightsandmotorsattheexhibition.SeveralrepresentativesfromwhatwouldbecomeGeneralElectricwerepresentandweresubsequentlyimpressedbythe
display.Thefollowingyear,GeneralElectricformedandbegantoinvestinACtechnology.

EdwardDeanAdamsPowerPlantatNiagaraFalls,1896(Imagecourtesyofteslasociety.com)

Westinghousewonacontractin1893tobuildahydroelectricdamtoharnessthepowerofNiagarafallsandtransmitACtoBuffalo,NY.Theprojectwascompletedon
November16,1896andACpowerbegantopowerindustriesinBuffalo.ThismilestonemarkedthedeclineofDCintheUnitedStates.WhileEuropewouldadoptanAC
standardof220240voltsat50Hz,thestandardinNorthAmericawouldbecome120voltsat60Hz.

HighVoltageDirectCurrent(HVDC)
SwissengineerRenThuryusedaseriesofmotorgeneratorstocreateahighvoltageDCsysteminthe1880s,whichcouldbeusedtotransmitDCpoweroverlong
distances.However,duetothehighcostandmaintenanceoftheThurysystems,HVDCwasneveradoptedforalmostacentury.

Withtheinventionofsemiconductorelectronicsinthe1970s,economicallytransformingbetweenACandDCbecamepossible.Specializedequipmentcouldbeusedto
generatehighvoltageDCpower(somereaching800kV).PartsofEuropehavebeguntoemployHVDClinestoelectricallyconnectvariouscountries.

HVDClinesexperiencelesslossthanequivalentAClinesoverextremelylongdistances.Additionally,HVDCallowsdifferentACsystems(e.g.50Hzand60Hz)tobe
connected.Despiteitsadvantages,HVDCsystemsaremorecostlyandlessreliablethanthecommonACsystems.

Intheend,Edison,Tesla,andWestinghousemayhavetheirwishescometrue.ACandDCcancoexistandeachserveapurpose.

GoingFurther
YoushouldnowhaveagoodunderstandingofthedifferencesbetweenACandDC.ACiseasiertotransformbetweenvoltagelevels,whichmakeshighvoltage
transmissionmorefeasible.DC,ontheotherhand,isfoundinalmostallelectronics.Youshouldknowthatthetwodonotmixverywell,andyouwillneedtotransformAC
toDCifyouwishtopluginmostelectronicsintoawalloutlet.Withthisunderstanding,youshouldbereadytotacklesomemorecomplexcircuitryandconcepts,evenif
theycontainAC.

Takealookatthefollowingtutorialswhenyouarereadytodivedeeperintotheworldofelectronics:

SeriesandParallelCircuits
LogicLevels
HowtoUseaMultimeter
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HowtoPoweraProject

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