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Electric Circuits are Closed Circulating Loops |
| Q.
What is it with voltage and how does electricity operate? |
| A.
Voltage is just a state indicating the concentration of electrical charge on a conductor, much like the pressure in a balloon or a tire. Electricity works by using voltages to push these electric charges along conducting wires in a circulating loop. The moving charges form an electric current. Electric currents have to circulate in closed loops.
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Electric circuits work much like bicycle chains transferring power from the pedals (front sprocket) to the back wheel (rear sprocket). If the chain does not travel in a loop, power cannot be transferred to the wheel. Similarly, closed loop circuits move electric energy. Current forced by a source (generator or transformer) travels around a closed supply circuit; it goes through the electrical appliance to perform the desired function, and then returns to the source. If the circuit is broken at any point, the current circulation stops and the electric energy flow also ends. This is how a light switch turns a light on and off.
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The return portion of the loop (the white wire in residential circuits) is not always obvious. In motor vehicles, for example, the return circuit is the body of the car itself, which is invariably metallic. This would be equivalent to power utilities utilizing the earth as a return path for current. While such systems do exist, they are rare and not used for standard power applications in the United States.
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