Doubts on Skin effect & Electricity

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the skin effect in conductors and its implications for long-distance electricity transmission. It is established that high-voltage transmission lines, such as those operating at over 700,000 volts in the U.S., effectively minimize skin losses due to their small conductor diameters relative to skin depth at 60 Hz. The energy is transmitted as an electromagnetic wave, with the Poynting vector representing the energy flow between conductors. This understanding clarifies that while skin effect limits current flow in conductors, it does not significantly hinder the transmission of electricity over long distances.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of skin effect in conductors
  • Knowledge of electromagnetic waves and Poynting vector
  • Familiarity with high-voltage transmission systems
  • Basic principles of alternating current (AC) electricity
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the impact of skin effect on different conductor materials
  • Learn about high-voltage transmission line design and efficiency
  • Explore the principles of electromagnetic wave propagation in conductors
  • Study the relationship between voltage, current, and power in AC systems
USEFUL FOR

Electrical engineers, power system designers, and students studying electromagnetic theory and high-voltage transmission systems will benefit from this discussion.

cool0crash
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Hi all! This is my first post :D

I came across skin effect which blocks propagation of an em-wave within a conductor...
But doesn't the energy generated at an electric plant reach our house through conductors flowing for over a 1000 miles sometimes?

If I have to consider it just as an alternating voltage/electric field which makes the charge carriers to flow such long distance, then I have these 2 doubts:
1. Can just 11000 volts be sufficient for pulling / pushing electrons in the conductor after thousands of miles from the source?
2. Even though it is an alternating electric field at the source, while propagation, there will an alternating magnetic field around the conductor which makes it an em wave. And now the same skin effect should work here to to limit the propagation to just a few millimeters or cms...

Thanks in Advance for whoever clears my doubts :P
 
Physics news on Phys.org
The interstate power line voltage in the U.S. is often over 700,000 volts. See
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overhead_power_line
Higher voltage reduces the current. The power line conductor diameter is small relative to the skin depth at 60 (or 50) Hz, so the skin loss is small. The actual power is carried in an em wave between the power line conductors (the Poynting vector), because the energy flow (magnitude and direction) is the vector cross product of the magnetic field and the electric field.. See
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poynting_vector
Bob S
 

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