An energy monitor is required to measure a home’s electricity consumption with a simple installation process that doesn’t require any major modifications to the wiring. To measure the value of electricity, we need voltage and current. Voltage is the force that pushes electrons through electrical devices, while current measures the rate at which electrons move through the wire. When multiplied together, it results in power i.e. Power = Voltage x Current.
Voltage can be measured by connecting to a single circuit breaker, where the pressure at one point is the same as the pressure everywhere. On the other hand, measuring current is a little complicated. In order to measure the electric current flowing within every device in a home, all the electricity will be required to be run through the monitor. Therefore, an energy monitor installation if preferred so that the process becomes less invasive.
Electricity and magnetism are so deeply connected that electricity in motion produces a magnetic field, and an altering magnetic field produces an electric field. This relationship between electricity and magnetism is used in electric generators to produce electricity throughout the world. The motion created by turbines rotates electrical conductors within magnetic field, which is how electric current is passed on into homes. On the other hand, inside electric motors, a large portion of the electricity generated is consumed doing just the opposite. The electric current moves magnetic fields, which causes the shaft to rotate.
Apart from generators, there is another important element that plays an essential role in power distribution, and these are called transformers. In a transformer, the electric current passes through coils of wires (primary) wrapped around a magnetically permeable core that produces a changing magnetic field within the core. Instead of using this magnetic field to cause motion, it is passed through another coil of wire (secondary) where the electric current is induced. By having such an arrangement of primary and secondary with different number of turns within both, the voltage can be stepped up or down. With transformers, voltage from generators can be raised to higher voltages for long distance transmission, and then again lowered to reach household appliances safely.
One of the important transformers is the current transformer that passes a current carrying wire through the center of a ring-shaped magnetic core, which is wound with a long coil of wire. This wire acts like a single turn of wire that produce magnetic field, which is guided through the core through the secondary coil, which is wound multiple times. The core of such current transformers can be split into two parts for installation that are clamped together for measurement. In this way, the wires within a home need not be disconnected to be passed through these transformers. Instead, the current transformers can be clipped onto the home’s main wires without disconnecting them. This technique helps in safer installation that keeps the operator away from the risks of getting shorts from the wires. The main principle current transformers work on is the relationship between electricity and magnetism spoken of above.
To get the best-in-class transformers for all kinds of residential and commercial purposes, you can get in touch with Miracle Electronics, the leading power transformer manufacturer in India, who has been providing all kinds of superlative transformers to customers since more than the two decades.