The flashcards below were created by user
andrew_johnstone
on FreezingBlue Flashcards.
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Direct current (DC)
- standard current
- - pole to + pole
- used in batteries
- flow of electrons
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Alternating Current (AC)
- home electricity
- no net flow of electrons
- wiggly electrons
- used b/c can travel long distances without loss of power
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transformer
- a device used to ramp up or drop down the current in a line
- only works on AC
- step-down and step-up
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circuit breaker
- a device used to destroy a circuit when current gets too high
- useful in power surges
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fuse
- old-fashioned circuit breaker
- needs to be replaced when its work is done
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electrical power
- the amount of energy a device needs to work
- measured in Watts (W) or KiloWatts (kW)
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watt (W)
- 1 joule per second
- used to measure electrical power
- very small for most appliances
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kilowatt (kW)
- 1000 Watts
- read Watt (W)
- good for most appliances
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electrical energy
- the amount of energy carried by an electrical circuit
- usually used to describe usage by appliances
- kW⋅h
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Kilowatt-hour (kW⋅h)
a measurement for electrical energy worth one kilowatt of power for an hour
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energuide label
- label on electronics used to describe their energy usage
- mandatory in Ontario
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smart meter
- a meter that calculates your bill based on when you use your energy
- on-peak, mid-peak, off-peak
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time of use pricing
- pricing system used by smart meters
- see smart meter
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phantom load
- useless energy usage
- usually happens to electronics when they are turned on and plugged in
- very costly
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efficiency
- a ratio of the amount of energy consumed to the amount of usable energy outputted
- output/input=efficiency
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base load
- base amount of energy produced by electrical plants to keep up with basic demand
- commonly refers to the demand itself
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hydroelectric power generation
- you know this already, Andrew
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intermediate load
- base load + some activity
- usually around morning and evening
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renewable energy source
- energy source replenishing itself faster than we could ever use it
- eg. wind, sun, hydro, biomass
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non-renewable energy source
- source of energy that replenishes itself slowly or not at all
- eg. fossil fuels, uranium
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solar energy
- renewable energy source
- using the sun to power things
- solar heat or photovoltaic
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photovoltaic effect
- basically, when light hits silicon, energy is produced in the form of DC
- must be converted for use in energy lines
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biomass energy
- animal poop=renewable carbon source
- also includes ethanol and biodiesel
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