Why is AC current so widely used. Are there any specific things that make it better than dc? In regards to power lines, voltage levels, temperature and stuff I dunnothanks
Be it AC or DC, they are the same although DC is more stable. However it is in the generation that makes AC advantageous. You cannot generate a pure DC. You will need a converter. Filtration and regulation is much much more expensive than AC.
Power is always generated as AC. Conversion to DC requires more equipment and will also experience losses in the conversion . AC works really for motors because you don't need brushes, so they more efficient. AC is also safer than the same voltage DC because DC will tend to grab you and not let you go but AC tends to throw you since it passes through 0 volts every cycle. High voltage DC can actually be transmitted more efficiently than AC but in order to justify converting it you need to be transmitting it along very large length of power lines. Oh and of course anytime you want to change the voltage you need to go back to AC, because that's what a transformer needs. That's probably one of the biggest reasons actually. I should credit Midatlantian for reminding me.
There are several reasons why AC is much the better choice in terms of an electrical supply. The first reason is, as a previous respondent mentioned, that it is generated that way: that is the way it comes out of a electrical generator or alternator, and converting it to DC is costly and wastes energy. No conversion process is 100% efficient. But the largest advantage is that you need AC to be able to use a transformer to change the voltage: you must have an alternating current. If you are supplying electricity at a distance, you will want to send it in as high a voltage as you are able, because the power loss is dependent on the current - on the amperage - and for a given amount of electrical power, the higher the voltage, the lower the current - so the lower the power lost to heat. But if you send electricity at high voltages, you need to be able to convert that to a voltage that is reasonably safe - 300,000 volts would be a bit much in your home! - and you do that transformers, and you need AC to use a transformer. There are other reasons too. AC motors are much more efficient than DC motors. And even in small electrical gadgets you may need various voltages, and then - in your computer, for example - transformers or converters are used and they rely on alternating current.
