How Do Portable Generators Make AC Power?
Portable generators are widely used to provide electric power in remote locations and during emergencies when the power supplied by utility companies is not available. Technically, portable generators are actually engine-generator sets, or gensets. The term "generator" has become the commonly used name, even though it names only one part of the engine/generator combination.
These devices work by creating mechanical energy with a fuel-driven engine, then converting this mechanical energy into electrical energy. Most small generators use gasoline for fuel.
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History
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Portable generators make use of a principle discovered in 1831 by a scientist named Michael Faraday. This principle is called "electromagnetic induction." Faraday found that an electric current is created when a copper wire is moved through a stationary magnetic field.
The reverse is also true; a moving magnetic field causes electric current to flow in a stationary copper wire. This is how a portable generator works; it rotates a pair of magnets within a stationary copper coil.
Providing the Mechanical Power
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When you start a gasoline-powered portable generator a gasoline engine within provides mechanical power in the form of a rotating shaft.
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Converting to Electrical Power
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The engine motor shaft of a portable generator turns a rotor that has two magnets. The rotor turns within a coil of wires called a stator. This causes an alternating electric current to flow in the coiled wires.
AC power is delivered to the electrical service receptacle panel on the exterior of the generator by wiring connected to the stator coils.
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