What happens when 110 volt equipment is plugged into a 240 volt source?

Answer

You should assume that any appliance or motor designed for 110 operation and plugged into a 240 volt circuit will rapidly self destruct.

But ...

However, as more and more people travel and visit other countries with various mains voltages, there is a new generation of consumer electronics which is specifically designed to operate on a wide range of power inputs (which usually includes 110-240 volts). So you might not notice the difference! Check the equipment rating plate - it should have one.

Answer

an electrical surge and then the 110 bolt is plugged in a higher voltage it doesnt work permanently. it doesnt work because it can only handle 110 volts thats why they give them a voltage because if u plug to a higher vcoltage it gives it tooo much juice and it cant handle it so it dies

Answer

Let's look at a simple resistive circuit. The amount of current flowing through the circuit is proportional to the voltage divided by resistance: V = IR. R will remain constant, as it is a trait of the load. So, as the voltage doubles, the current flowing through it doubles. Each part of a system dissipates power. Power is the product of voltage and current. Since P = IV and V = IR, P = RI^2. Thus if the current flowing through a component doubles, the amount of power dissipated by that component quadruples!

So let's say you have a 120W light bulb. This bulb has 120 ohms of resistance and normally draws 1A at 120V. Now let's say that you hook this bulb up to 240V. Now it is drawing 2A, and is dissipating 480W. Since the bulb is not designed to dissipate that much energy, the weak points burn open.

So, when you connect a load to a voltage outside of it's rated input, you increase the energy dissipated by it to a value outside of it's operating range. This causes component failure in the form of "burning out."

Answer

It's simple, the smoke comes out, the innerds self-destruct, and you have a pile of fried, dead, elctronics.

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