How does hydroelectricity work

So we can figure out how many people our dam could serve by dividing the annual energy production by 3, So our local irrigation or recreation dam could provide enough renewable energy to meet the residential needs of people if we added a turbine and generator. Note: Before you decide to add hydropower to a dam, have a hydropower engineer review your calculations and consult with the local resource agencies to be sure you can obtain any permits that are required.

Book Navigation. How Hydropower Works Hydropower plants capture the energy of falling water to generate electricity. Parts of a Hydroelectric Plant Most conventional hydroelectric plants include four major components see graphic below : Dam. Raises the water level of the river to create falling water. Also controls the flow of water. The reservoir that is formed is, in effect, stored energy. The force of falling water pushing against the turbine's blades causes the turbine to spin.

A water turbine is much like a windmill, except the energy is provided by falling water instead of wind. The turbine converts the kinetic energy of falling water into mechanical energy. Connected to the turbine by shafts and possibly gears so when the turbine spins it causes the generator to spin also.

Converts the mechanical energy from the turbine into electric energy. Generators in hydropower plants work just like the generators in other types of power plants. That's why Energy Matters was created.

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There are different types of hydroelectric plants. The most common type are dam hydroelectric power plants in which water carried by rivers is stored in a reservoir and released when energy is needed.

Water released from the reservoir flows through a turbine , spinning it, which in turn activates a generator to produce electricity. The power extracted from the water depends on the volume and on the difference in height between the source and the water's outflow.

Afterwards, the voltage of the electricity produced is lifted to be transported with minor losses to the distribution points, where the voltage is lowered again for consumption. The water used in the process retakes the natural course of the river downstream after going through the station.