Generating Hydro Power

In nature, energy cannot be created or destroyed, but its form can change. In generating electricity, no new energy is created. Actually one form of energy is converted to another form.

To generate electricity, water must be in motion. This is kinetic (moving) energy. When flowing water turns blades in a turbine, the form is changed to mechanical (machine) energy. The turbine turns the generator rotor which then converts this mechanical energy into another energy form -- electricity. Since water is the initial source of energy, we call this hydroelectric power or hydropower for short.

At facilities called hydroelectric power plants, hydropower is generated. Some power plants are located on rivers, streams, and canals, but for a reliable water supply, dams are needed. Dams store water for later release for such purposes as irrigation, domestic and industrial use, and power generation. The reservoir acts much like a battery, storing water to be released as needed to generate power.

The dam creates a "Ahead" or height from which water flows. A pipe (penstock) carries the water from the reservoir to the turbine. The fast-moving water pushes the turbine blades, something like a pinwheel in the wind. The waters force on the turbine blades turns the rotor, the moving part of the electric generator. When coils of wire on the rotor sweep past the generator=s stationary coil (stator), electricity is produced.

This concept was discovered by Michael Faraday in 1831 when he found that electricity could be generated by rotating magnets within copper coils.

When the water has completed its task, it flows on unchanged to serve other needs.