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US power distribution is way more distributed than in Europe, in which everything is planned and centralized. In the US there are transformers everywhere, you
by hevi_jos 8y ago
US power distribution is way more distributed than in Europe, in which everything is planned and centralized.
In the US there are transformers everywhere, you can see a house and a small transformer nearby.
In Europe they have this big monsters that cost several million dollars and require a train to move.
In Europe transformers in the city use to be underground and you won't see anything but a blackout of power.
It happened in Madrid some years ago.
Old transformers are very toxic as mineral oil with aromatic rings is burned,which is carcinogenic. New transformers use Hexafluoride SHF6 that are smaller, innocuous and easier to control.
But it cost a lot of money to update your infrastructure.
New York also has experimental superconductor lines.
- mannykannot 8y agoThe fluids were often polychlorinated biphenyls, which are nasty in their own right, and produce even worse things when thermally degraded, such as dioxins.
- theandrewbailey 8y ago> Old transformers are very toxic as mineral oil with aromatic rings is burned,which is carcinogenic. PCBs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polychlorinated_biphenyl https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polychlorinated_biphenyl
- Faaak 8y ago> In Europe they have this big monsters that cost several million dollars and require a train to move. Europe is just denser. But frankly, you don't seem to know what you're talking about. 1.2-5MW transformers are really everywhere in France/Switzerland. Sometimes many per villages. It makes sense: You prefer to have two transformers far apart than a big one and 2kms of 230/380V wiring.