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AC
AC stands for alternating current. This is the kind of
electrical power that is generally supplied in a house or building wall
socket, and is very different from the power - voltage and current that
one gets from a battery.
| Alternating Current means that the voltage does vary between the two
points, from one being much higher in voltage than the other, to them
being the same, and then the first voltage in fact even going negative
in value compared to the other. One complete variation of
from positive to negative voltage and then back to positive is called a
"cycle". How many cycles a second that alternating current varies
is referred to as frequency. The
frequency of normal AC current used for power in the US is usually 60
cycles per second or 60 Hertz as it is now called. Elsewhere in
the world, 50 cycles per second is more commonly used. |
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Voltage changes during alternating current |
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Frequency
at one time was referred to in terms or cycles per second, taking the
origin of its name into account. However, more recently each cycle
per second has been called a "Hertz" named for Heinrich Rudolf Hertz
(1847-1894). Hertz meaning cycles per second is abbreviated "Hz"
or "hz".
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