Three-phase alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) networks
AC and DC Networks Association. Optimization of Power Transfer

In the early 1880s, the standard for transmitting electrical energy was DC lines. This was how Edison (1847-1931) first installed electricity distribution on Wall Street in New York in 1882. The voltage distributed by the network was around 110 V, supplied by dynamos. Unfortunately, with a 110 V DC generator, it's difficult to supply a receiver beyond 1.5 km, due to voltage drops on the line.

Edison was in fierce opposition to George Westinghouse (1846-1914) and Nikolas Tesla (1856-1943), both advocates of alternating current (AC line) from 1886 onwards. Indeed, the invention of the transformer made it possible to use an alternator to create high-voltage networks, such as those seen today, by using a step-up transformer. If, after...