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Which is better, alternating current or direct current? Back in the 1880s, that question generated an all-out current war between two geniuses. On the one side, Thomas Edison pushed that direct current was safer and would cause less hazard of electrocution. However, it proved to be cheaper and easier to transmit the power of alternating current over long distances. This was the stance of Edison's competitor, Nikola Tesla.
More Power
Probably the biggest advantage of AC over DC is that you can generate much more power from AC than DC. Alternating current is generated by large turbines. Direct current normally comes from batteries or sometimes from solar panels. Solar panels large enough to power entire cities would take huge amounts of land. Batteries use chemical reactions to produce electricity. Producing a huge battery would be expensive and impractical. Large turbines can be easily built and powered using steam, nuclear or hydraulic power.
Conversion
In some operations, direct current may be preferred. However, it is easy to convert AC to DC by using simple transformers. It is much more difficult and costly to convert DC to AC.
Commercial Advantages
Another advantage of the use of alternating current lies in manufacturing and other production facilities that drive the economy. Electric motors are used to drive conveyors and other equipment. The advantages of the AC motor are that they can yield a higher output of horsepower than DC motors and they are simpler in function than a DC motor. Also, transformers allow AC to be stepped up or down where it is needed to drive different sized motors.
Reactance
When electricity flows down a cable, it generates an electro-magnetic field. When the current changes, as it does with AC current, a counter electro-magnetic field is produced that acts as a resistance to the power being transmitted. These means that AC transmission of electricity loses power due to both resistance and to reactance. Because DC power transmission never changes direction, it is not susceptible to power loss as a result of reactance.