They hold or reserve vast water volumes and contain it for controlled disbursement. Reservoir : Hydroelectric station reservoirs are like batteries.In America, most hydro dams are concrete constructed except for a few earthen or rock-based structures. A dam is a front-line wall that stops a natural watercourse flow and retains or directs it as an energy supply. Dam : A dam is the backbone of a hydroelectric generation station.Here’s a detailed look at the components in a hydropower concrete dam and its generation system: This creates an electric field, and the generated electric power then travels through transmission lines to the end user. Inside the generator, huge magnets rotate through equally large copper wire coils in a fixed stator. Hydropower involves controlling and directing water flow through a turbine system that drives a generator wheel. HOW DOES HYDROELECTRIC POWER WORK?Īlthough the engineering and mechanics behind constructing generators and concrete dams are complicated, the theory of hydropower generation is straightforward. As a testament to concrete ingenuity, the Hoover Dam stands strong today and produces enough hydroelectricity to power 1.3 million American homes. Hydroelectric dam construction hit a major milestone with the Hoover Dam being built of concrete during the 1930s. Hydropower concrete construction kept pace with ongoing generation and delivery system improvements. A large portion of hydropower generation advances was due to evolving concrete technology that allowed engineers to design and build critical components like dams and spillways. With a strong demand and a continuous supply, electrical energy changed the face of America’s energy supply. Dammed-up water energy drove a Faraday turbine generator supplying electricity to the town’s paper mill.ĭuring the first half of the 20th century, hydroelectric generator technology expanded to serve a nation-wide grid that supplied power to American cities and towns. In 1882, the first commercial hydroelectric station opened in Appleton, Wis. It was a natural progression that inventors would convert water power energy once the secret to electrical generation was unlocked in the mid-1800s. Before the Industrial Revolution, water wheels were common throughout Europe and Asia, where they powered mills and craft shops. The ancient Greeks and Romans captured water in reservoirs and used its mass to turn water wheels and drive irrigation systems. From that origin, hydroelectric power refers to electricity generated from a falling or fast-running water source. Humans have harnessed water power energy for thousands of years. “Hydro” derives from the Greek word meaning water. However, hydropower plants wouldn’t exist without one main component required to build their facilities - concrete. Hydroelectric power stations deliver high-voltage feeds through a nation-wide grid that you can safely depend on every time you flick a light switch or plug in a device. Hydroelectric power plants rely on nature’s hydrologic cycle to deliver constant streams of kinetic energy that’s mechanically converted into electrical current. Best of all, hydropower is a repeatable and renewable resource. The problem with capturing natural energy and converting it into reliable electrical power is building economical infrastructures that leave an environmentally-friendly footprint with low carbon emissions and an undamaged ecology.įortunately for Americans, there’s one proven electrical energy production form that’s served the United States well for over a century. Hydroelectric power is based on water-driven generation systems, and it’s clean, affordable and dependable. It’s not that renewable energy sources like the sun, wind and water aren’t available to us. Harvesting environmentally stable energy is one of the biggest challenges facing the world today.
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