Electrical Power Simplified

About the Book

The book provides a working knowledge of the electrical power field. Equations are avoided as far as possible. The electrical power industry is a massive one, which has enabled the current level of human civilization. But it retains its position as among the top polluters of earth. It is therefore imperative that as many people as possible understand it. The current trend is to move out of electrical power into the computer, telecommunication, and robotic space, so this book is one attempt to simplify it such that more will venture into it. It starts with the overall picture of electricity. Then safety concepts are discussed to enable the building of common-sense approach toward it. The history of electricity is the next topic because we need to know how it all started to understand the current system. Then new concepts to fight pollution are elaborated upon, including the electric cars and the decision-making process on which energy source to choose from. It is critical to understand that there is no one-size-fits-all solution and energy source depends on climatic conditions and logistics. The final portion dwells on the future developments in the electricity business. A general term, the Smart Grid describes the ever-growing use of the Internet (TCP/IP) protocol versus the current Ethernet (SCADA) and ever-expanding computer power to control the grid. Then there is the IoT and Digital Twin developed by GE. A caveat is made and explained how all these controls must be taken.

About the Author

Dr. Prashobh Karunakaran is a Senior Lecturer in Electrical Engineering at University College of Technology Sarawak (UCTS), Malaysia. He is a professional engineer and also runs an electrical consulting and contracting business together with his electrical technical training school. He did his Bachelors and Masters at South Dakota State University, SD, USA and his PhD at Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS). His wife, Sreeja is also an electrical engineer and they have three children, Prashanth, Shanthi and Arjun of whom Prashanth and Shanthi are currently pursuing their electrical engineering degrees.