Book contents
- Still No Miracles Needed
- Praise for No Miracles Needed
- Still No Miracles Needed
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Foreword
- Preface
- 1 What Problems Are We Trying to Solve?
- 2 WWS Solutions for Electricity Generation
- 3 WWS Solutions for Electricity Storage
- 4 WWS Solutions for Transportation
- 5 WWS Solutions for Buildings
- 6 WWS Solutions for Industry
- 7 Solutions for Nonenergy Emissions
- 8 What Doesn’t Help
- 9 Electricity Grids
- 10 Photovoltaics and Solar Radiation
- 11 Onshore and Offshore Wind Energy
- 12 Steps in Developing 100 Percent WWS Roadmaps
- 13 Keeping the Grid Stable With 100 P1ercent WWS
- 14 Timeline and Policies Needed to Transition
- 15 My Journey
- References
- Index
9 - Electricity Grids
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 17 February 2026
Book contents
- Still No Miracles Needed
- Praise for No Miracles Needed
- Still No Miracles Needed
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Foreword
- Preface
- 1 What Problems Are We Trying to Solve?
- 2 WWS Solutions for Electricity Generation
- 3 WWS Solutions for Electricity Storage
- 4 WWS Solutions for Transportation
- 5 WWS Solutions for Buildings
- 6 WWS Solutions for Industry
- 7 Solutions for Nonenergy Emissions
- 8 What Doesn’t Help
- 9 Electricity Grids
- 10 Photovoltaics and Solar Radiation
- 11 Onshore and Offshore Wind Energy
- 12 Steps in Developing 100 Percent WWS Roadmaps
- 13 Keeping the Grid Stable With 100 P1ercent WWS
- 14 Timeline and Policies Needed to Transition
- 15 My Journey
- References
- Index
Summary
A 100 percent WWS energy infrastructure involves electrifying or providing direct heat for all energy sectors and then providing the electricity or heat with WWS. The solution also requires interconnecting geographically dispersed WWS generators on transmission and distribution grids and providing electricity and heat for isolated microgrids. Because electricity and grids are such a large part of the solution, understanding how both work is important. This chapter discusses these issues along with the history of electromagnetism and the battle between George Westinghouse/Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison to determine whether alternating current (AC) or direct current (DC) would predominate worldwide. The chapter also discusses how transformers, motors, and generators work.
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- Still No Miracles NeededHow Today's Technology Can Save Our Climate and Clean Our Air, pp. 205 - 224Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
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