National Grid/ Static electricity

Question 1

What is the national grid?

Answer 1

a giant system of cables and transformers linking power stations to homes and businesses

Question 2

What do the Power stations in the National Grid do?

Answer 2

throughout the day, electricity usage (demand) changes. Power stations have to produce enough electricity for everyone to have when they need it

They transfer the energy supply into electrical energy

Question 3

Explain why a smaller number of large power station is more efficient than building many small local power stations.

Answer 3

because large stations can be more efficient.

this is because most power plants use steam turbines which are more efficient at high steam temperatures and the bigger the plant, the bigger the boils, so the higher the steam temperature.

Question 4

What do step-up transformers do?

Answer 4

transformers that increase the potential difference from the power station to the transmission cables

This reduces the amount of current and therefore also reduces the heating effect caused by current flowing in the transmission cables

Question 5

Reducing the heating effect …

(how does it affect the transmission)

Answer 5

reduces energy loss so makes the transmission more efficient.

Question 6

What do transmission cables do?

Answer 6

they transfer the electricity

Question 7

What do Step down transformers do?

Answer 7

reduce the potential difference from the transmission cables to a much lower value of domestic use