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Hydro Electric Power Plant

Water is a chemical substance that is


composed of hydrogen and oxygen
and is essential for all forms of life.
And it covers 71% of earths surface.


Hydroelectricity is electricity generated by
hydropower, the production of power
through use of the gravitational force of
falling or flowing water. It is the most widely
used form of renewable energy. Once a
hydroelectric complex is constructed, the
project produces no direct waste, and has
a considerably lower output level of the
greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide
(CO
2
) than fossil fuel powered energy
plants.



Hydroelectric power plants are plants that
produce energy through the use of water.

Parts of the Plant
Dam - A dam is a barrier that impounds water or
underground streams. Dams generally serve the
primary purpose of retaining water.

A penstock is a sluice or gate or intake
structure that controls water flow,



A turbine is a rotary engine that extracts
energy from a fluid or air flow and convert
it into useful work.






An electrical generator is a device that
converts mechanical energy to electrical
energy, generally using electromagnetic
induction.

Electrical Generator
How it works:
Most hydroelectric power comes from the
potential energy of dammed water driving
a water turbine and generator. In this case
the energy extracted from the water
depends on the volume and on the
difference in height between the source
and the water's outflow. This height
difference is called the head. The amount
of potential energy in water is proportional
to the head. To obtain very high head,
water for a hydraulic turbine may be run
through a large pipe called a penstock.


Pumped storage hydroelectricity produces
electricity to supply high peak demands by
moving water reservoirs at different
elevations. At times of low electrical
demand, excess generation capacity is
used to pump water into the higher
reservoir. When there is higher demand,
water is released back into the lower
reservoir through a turbine.

Advantages:
Economics
The major advantage of hydroelectricity
is elimination of the cost of fuel. The cost
of operating a hydroelectric plant is
nearly immune to increases in the cost
of fossil fuels such as oil, natural gas or
coal, and no imports are needed.


Hydroelectric plants also tend to have
longer economic life than fuel-fired
generation, with some plants now in
service which were built 50 to 100 years
ago. Operating labor cost is also usually
low, as plants are automated and have
few personnel on site during normal
operation.

Greenhouse gas emissions
Since hydroelectric dams do not burn
fossil fuels, they do not directly produce
carbon dioxide(a greenhouse gas).
While some carbon dioxide is produced
during manufacture and construction of
the project, this is a tiny fraction of the
operating emissions of equivalent fossil-
fuel electricity generation.
Disadvantages:
Very Hazardous
Dam failures have been some of the largest
man-made disasters in history. Also, good
design and construction are not an
adequate guarantee of safety. Dams are
tempting industrial targets for wartime
attack, sabotage and terrorism.


Limited Service Life
Almost all rivers convey silt. Dams on those rivers will
retain silt in their catchments, because by slowing the
water, and reducing turbulence, the silt will fall to the
bottom. Siltation reduces a dam's water storage so that
water from a wet season cannot be stored for use in a
dry season. Often at or slightly after that point, the dam
becomes uneconomic. Near the end of the siltation, the
basins of dams fill to the top of the lowest spillway, and
even storage from a storm to the end of dry weather will
fail. Some especially poor dams can fail from siltation in
as little as 20 years.

Environmental damage

Hydroelectric projects can be disruptive
to surrounding aquatic ecosystems
both upstream and downstream of the
plant site.

Population relocation
Another disadvantage of hydroelectric
dams is the need to relocate the people
living where the reservoirs are planned.
In February 2008, it was estimated that
40-80 million people worldwide had
been physically displaced as a direct
result of dam construction

Hydroelectricity eliminates the flue gas
emissions from fossil fuel combustion, including
pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitric oxide,
carbon monoxide, dust, and mercury in the
coal. Hydroelectricity also avoids the hazards of
coal mining and the indirect health effects of
coal emissions. Compared to nuclear power,
hydroelectricity generates no nuclear waste,
has none of the dangers associated with
uranium mining, nor nuclear leaks. Unlike
uranium, hydroelectricity is also a renewable
energy source.
Compared to wind farms, hydroelectricity power
plants have a more predictable load factor. If
the project has a storage reservoir, it can be
dispatched to generate power when needed.
Hydroelectric plants can be easily regulated to
follow variations in power demand.
Unlike fossil-fueled combustion turbines,
construction of a hydroelectric plant requires a
long lead-time for site studies, hydrological
studies, and environmental impact assessment.

End of Session


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