Hydroelectric Power Plant:
The power of water has been benefitting people for more than 2000 years. Water wheels were used to grind flour and later it was used to generate electricity. At the end of the nineteenth century, water turbines replaced the water wheel,s and storage devices were constructed to regulate the flow of water. Hydroelectric Power is a renewable form of energy, economical, apparently non-polluting, and environmentally benign. In India, such power is over 100 years old. With time the electricity requirements increased, technologies advanced and emphasis was given to the installation of big-sized hydroelectric power plants. In 1963, hydropower achieved a 50.62% share out of the total capacity of power production in India.
Working Principle of Hydroelectric Power:
Hydroelectric Power can convert the natural flow of water into electricity. Descending water flow that turns the turbine blades coupled with a generator to produce electricity creates the energy. The amount of electricity production depends on the volume of water passing through a turbine and the elevations from which the waterfalls. The flow and the head are directly proportional to the amount of electricity generated. A dam is built to trap water, much thicker at the base than the top to bear the load of water. Gravitational potential energy is stored in the water and is allowed to flow through passageways in the barrage to turn turbines and drive generators.
A station can be built next to a fast-flowing river so that the outgoing water flows normally. So, there can be dams to raise the head and control the water flow and reservoirs that may store water for the future. While others generate electricity immediately using the water flow. Once built, water flow is free and power is cheap. More than 50% of the country’s energy requirement is met by hydropower in Switzerland and New Zealand. However, Dam constructed on the Colorado River supplied most of the electricity needed for las Vegas City at that time.