Household voltage has strict parameters that do not cross the 230 V mark, but few know only why scientists, designers and inventors of the past centuries have chosen this value. There are two answers, and they are, as always, obvious and simple: economy and safety.
A brief excursion into the history of electrical engineering
Thomas Alva Edison was undeniably a great inventor, but he was also a talented entrepreneur of his day. So skillfully selling what was found long before him could only be a very persistent person with an inner willpower.
Edison firmly believed that direct current, due to its safety for human life, is the most relevant type of electricity. Applying direct current almost everywhere and gradually electrifying entire countries, he faced one important problem - the inability to transmit energy over long distances.
A serious question arose: what to do, to increase the cross-section of the wires, or to use a not so safe alternating current, the forefather of which Nikola Tesla is rightfully considered. The modern world is a successful solution of that time - alternating voltage is used for almost all household areas.
Why 220 V?
Through experimental research, Tesla came to the conclusion that it is best to use three-wire networks, the voltage between the phases of which will be 220 V. In this case, the potential difference between the phase conductor and zero neutral was 127 V.
Such a voltage showed a good result and a relatively high efficiency - a loss of no more than 3% of the potential difference with a line length of more than 2 km. From the end of the 19th century to the 60s of the 20th century, such voltage remained in all industrial and household networks.
After 1960, the population of many countries grew so much that the electrical networks of the times simply could not cope with the load - it would have been necessary to either increase the cross-section of the conductors, or increase the voltage. The latter option was less expensive and since then the voltage in the outlet is 220 between the phase wire and the working zero.
Advantages of 220V
The potential difference of 220 V has many advantages:
- 220 V is still dangerous for humans, but the number of deaths after contact with such a voltage is quite minimal.
- This potential difference can be easily obtained from 380 V networks by installing a neutral wire.
- 220V is the recognized European voltage.
- Such household networks, thanks to the use of transformers, allow electrifying the most distant corners of different countries, significantly reducing the cost of laying cable lines, or rather, on the cross-section conductors.
The voltage of 220 V is firmly rooted in the daily life of a modern person, with the exception of three-phase 380 V. Still, you should remember about safety and proper handling of any electrical appliances.