The energy-starved US seems unlikely to adopt the Japanese idea of doubling
the voltage of its domestic electricity supply to 230 volts
(51¶¯Âþ, 3 June, p 6).
“I see no advantages and I see a lot of cost for
the consumer,” says Karl Stahlkopf of the California-based Electric Power
Research Institute, which is funded by the power industry. He says that the high
cost of replacing appliances and sockets, and the need to upgrade wiring in many
homes, would more than outweigh the energy savings made by transmitting at
higher voltages.
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