After watching a Vox Youtube video yesterday I became curious on the future of DC and found this article.
Seems to make sense with most modern electronics now why we are still using AC power? Solar panels output DC which gets converted to AC only to be converted back to power your phone, computer, lights and TV.
We’re not going to get rid of AC for the electrical distribution grid anytime in the foreseeable future, so the question boils down to what we use inside the home. For now, I’d rather convert AC to DC for small-wattage items, than convert DC to AC for high-wattage items (clothes dryer, stove, oven, HVAC). Over time, that may change, of course.
AC power transmission is cheaper and more efficient. The article is seriously flawed in many ways including the argument that DC power is safer.
It can be said that the inability to easily transport DC over significant distances is one of the things that killed DC. I believe there are some areas in Manhattan that
still have 110V DC. The issue with DC is that you need to have the generator or conversion equipment within about 1 mile of the use. The I^2R losses at 110V with miles of wiring are pretty horrendous.
There is a reason for 345KV AC transmission lines are popular. Doubling the voltage halves the losses, increasing the DC voltage and the brining it back down again for residential use is expensive and inefficient, so high voltage transmission is a much more difficult proposition for DC. There are some applications for High Voltage DC transmission, but almost always they involved technical issues that are not easy to deal with (Such as long submarine power cables). As homes use more and more electrical power, the more and more unpleasant the losses become, to the point that it is now common to have a distribution transformer to reduce thousand of volts
down to 120VAC for almost every home.
While you can convert AC to DC, the benefits of DC for use inside building don’t outweigh the costs. In addition, because there is no ‘zero’ crossing with DC, DC is extremely hard on switches where there is a significant inductive load (such as large motors). DC motors, especially shunt wound DC motors, are intrinsically much more
dangerous than AC induction motors.
I agree that we won’t be replacing the distribution grid anytime soon but doesn’t a hybrid setup of AC and DC in the home make sense? Get rid of the 20+ converters in the house and just have one.
I think AC will always have a place in the kitchen and laundry due to the efficiency of AC motors. Funny to know that Tesla has an AC motor when its powered by DC batteries.
There are also serious articles from Scientific American and MIT discussing this same idea. Hybrid homes might be closer then you think! :bigsmile:
I agree completely
You must not have read the article.
The article is based on the premise that as homes go off the grid, AC will be of less and less importance. Remember, one of the chief advantages of AC is in the long distance transmission of energy.
Because doubling the voltage halves the current AND losses are proportional to I^2*R, the power loss goes down by a factor of 4! 
Even more ironic is that Space-X uses combustible fuels in their rockets, :Sp
Haha well a li-on rocket won’t make it off the ground!
checkmate 
Maybe they should try dilithium crystals? :bigsmile:
Anyway, I just want to say that this is an interesting thread. Never thought much about the future of electricity. And speaking of Star Trek, often times when thinking about the future, I ask myself how it would have been done there.
If the next iteration of in home power is D.C., maybe even further out he gets the last laugh after all
The issue at hand in relation to alternative energy (AE) ....always has been and will be cost. Even though there are alternatives to the modern energy sources the cost far outweighs the benefits. The only time that it is worthwhile is when modern energy sources are NOT available such as living off the grid or third world nations where the infrastructure is unreliable.
The wars over, can’t really see it being revisited anytime in the near future; -)
You didn’t read the article referred to in the OP also. You need to read it to understand the context of the AC vs DC in this thread.
You are right though, the current wars are over. Westinghouse-Tesla won out over Edison. In fact I always believed that the corporate Westinghouse logo points that out.
AC current stands victorious over DC
Just maybe, there will be a second war.
I don’t anticipate much change in the use of AC and Dc in our existing homes. But perhaps for places without much in the way of electricity. Much the way many areas of the world now have cell phones but no landline phones. Canada and the USA has a huge existing infrastructure that is AC. Huge costs to change or add widespread, networked DC to that. I think we in the USA stand a better chance of going metric with our weights and measures than switching the residential power system to DC.
I did, my post was more tongue in cheek
I can see the sense in what the article was saying, but anything like that is so far off, if at all - wireless electricity in the home might even be the next big step,who knows-
To much vested intrest in the status quo of AC, not to mention the upheaval, cost and confusion for consumers.
Even something as simple as a plug redesign in the 1950s from round to square 13 amp caused huge cost and confusion and that was a relatively small population with only limited reliance on basic electrical devices, could you imagine the implementation of a completely new system on the population of today or the near future?
Whilst not quite the same, but still a DC system like the one mentioned, albeit not as advanced, but asked anyone who has a fair sized boat or one of those big rv’s what they think of the DC system many will say it’s a pain.
I’ve got a 16 meter boat, with solar, batteries etc etc and all the other stuff you need for a DC system to work correctly and safely, many of it mentioned in the article and I can tell you it’s a pain, it’s like a snakes wedding all that wiring, and all the difference sizes of cables needed to carry the DC current, AC by comparison is a simple walk in the park.
Would I want to implement DC in my whole house, no thanks
I did read it and stand by my words. Going ‘off the grid’ will not be a practical option until great strides are made in efficiency of solar panels, storage capacity, and major decreases in cost.
I don’t think its as far away as you think. Wall outlets now come with USB ports, ceiling lights run on exposed DC cables. How long will it be until they make the entire light circuit DC? might as well throw a few USB QC ports on that line too right? Next thing you know half the house has DC outlets, it isn’t a bad thing! I look forward to plugging my flashlights in on the nightstand and charging my 18650s with solar panels on the roof! :bigsmile:
You can choose to believe in fairies, even choose to believe they will exist soon, but that will not make them come to life
I don’t see the masses that are already connected to the grid, going off grid in any numbers. The PV installations that are happening with greater frequency today than a few years ago are virtually all grid tied. Storage batteries cost money and need replacing as well as needing care. Newer battery technology costs even more for the initial outlay. Most people today do not conserve electrical energy well enough to be able to live off grid.
The only reason we have an off grid home is because we chose a location that is somewhat remote and is a distance from any nearby power grid connection points. Very rocky. steep terrain made grid tie extra expensive. So we are off grid and I have a bank of storage batteries to care for. They don’t last forever and do require some attention.
If you are off grid AC power does become less important if you use propane for cooking. But that is a more expensive fuel than grid tie electricity. Resistance heating of any type is not well suited for off grid when power has to be stored in batteries.
Yep as long as it’s not dark, the sun’s shinning and there isn’t a power outage or power cut :bigsmile: 
Reading some of the edited posts....
I do agree that having DC in the home may have a cool factor and that many are less intimidated to work on AC vs DC..but
The money always has and will prevail.
It can be done and some true die-hards actually do it but adding a home DC can easily add $30k to $100k to the cost of a home and it would require maintenance and suffer from component wear.
The cheapest easiest solution is what we have now. Primarily AC and certain things like computers, flashlights, and cell phones that are truly DC get their own specialized power when needed. When the day comes that the power hogs can be run cheaply on DC (washer, dryer, hot water, refrigerator, air conditioning) then we can expect to see the life of DC.