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AC Power Fundamentals
Thomas Edison’s Pearl Street low-voltage dc generating station opened in 1882 to
serve the New York City market. Its low-voltage power had to be consumed close
to the generating station to keep conductor I
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R loss to an economically viable level.
Many neighborhood power stations closed to the users were built by Edison and
his competitors. Then came Westinghouse’s ac power systems, with large steam
and hydro power plants built where it was economical to do so, such as on the
Niagara Falls. The high-voltage ac power was brought to the load centers, which
was stepped down by transformers before feeding to the end users. ...