Name: - Akhil. J.

th
Class: - 10 ‘B’
Subject: - Science
{Physics}
Activity: -
Assignments
Topic: -
Hydroelectric
Power Station
Introduction: -

Meeting the growing demands for electricity

creates difficult decisions for many countries. The
context for decision-making is also changing,
particularly in light of climate change imperatives
encouraging a move away from greenhouse gas
emitting energy sources.
Hydropower is a mature technology, harnessing the
energy moving from higher to lower elevations. It
comes in various shapes and sizes from large
reservoir projects to small run-of river facilities.
Hydropower is renewable, and has low greenhouse
gas emissions. It is a premium energy source,
providing a range of services. These include
baseload and peak load generation, and support for
other forms of electricity generation, particularly
renewables.

Elements of a
Hydroelectric Power
Station: -

1) Reservoir:
 This is a basic requirement for hydropower plants.
Its purpose is to store water during the abundant
period (i.e., rainy season) and supply water during
the low flow period (i.e., dry season) to help feed
the turbine according to the load of the power
plant.
2) Dam:
The function of the dam is not only to lift the
surface of the stream to create an artificial slope
but also to provide the pondage 1, storage or the
facility of diversion into conduits 2. Dams are the
most expensive and most important part of a
hydropower project. Dams are made of concrete or
masonry, soil or rock embankments. The type and
placement depend on the terrain of the site. Brick
dams can be built in narrow canyons3. Soil dams
may be best suited for wide valleys. The choice of
dam also depends on the condition of the
foundation, local materials and available means of
transportation, earthquake occurrence and other
hazards.
3) Forebay:
A forebay is an enlarged body of water just above
the intake to store water temporarily to meet the
hourly load fluctuations. This may either be a pond
behind the diversion dam or an enlarged section of
a canal spread out to accommodate the required
widths of intake.
Where the hydroelectric plants are located just at
the base of the dam, no forebay is required
because the reservoir itself serves the purpose of
the forebay. However, where the plants are
situated away from the storage reservoir a forebay
is provided.
4) Spillway:
Due to heavy rains in the catchment area4, the
water level is likely to be higher than the capacity
of the reservoir. This can affect the stability of the
tank. A system was created around the tank to
remove excess water. This system is called
spillway. The spillway stabilizes the reservoir and
lowers the water level during floods.
5) Surge Tank:
It is a small tank (open at the top). It is provided to
reduce the pressure surges in the conduit. It is
located near the beginning of the conduit.
6) Penstock:
Penstocks are open or closed conduits that carry
water to the turbines. They are generally made of
RCC 5 or steel. The RCC penstocks are suitable for
low water heads (< 30 m). The steel penstocks are
ideal for any head, as they can be designed
according to water head or working pressure.
7) Valves and Gates:
Low-head power plants typically require gates at
the entrance to the turbine housing to shut off flow
and drain the turbine for inspection and repairs. In
cases where frequent downtime may be required
and when time for inspection is limited, gates
operated by individual lifts are provided.
8) Waste bin:
They consist of long flat bars placed vertically or
almost vertically and spaced according to the
minimum width of the channel through the turbine.
For very large installations, the net distance
between the bars varies from 25 mm or 40 mm to
150 or 200 mm. They serve to prevent suspended
solids and other substances from entering the
turbine. When using a large diameter turbine, the
rack is omitted, but usually a scraper wall or arm is
installed to prevent ice and other material entering.

9) Tailrace:

The water after having done its useful work in the

turbine is discharged to the tailrace which may lead
it to the same stream or to another one. The design
and size of tailrace should be such that water has a
free exit and the jet of water, after it leaves the
turbine, has unimpeded 6 passage.
10) Draft Tubes:
Draft Tube is a diverging tube fitted at the exit of
runner of turbine and used to utilize the kinetic
energy available with water at the exit of runner.
This draft tube at the end of the turbine increases
the pressure of the exiting fluid at the expense of
its velocity. This means that the turbine can reduce
pressure to a higher extent without fear of back
flow from the tail race.
11) Water Turbines:
A water turbine is a rotary machine that
converts kinetic energy and potential energy of
water into mechanical work.
Types of water Turbines: -
Reaction turbines: -
A reaction turbine generates torque7 in response to
the fluid’s pressure and weight. A reaction
turbine has fixed rotor blades and a rotating nozzle.

Impulse turbine: -
Impulse turbines are defined as turbines in which
high-velocity jets of water or steam collide with the
blades of the turbine to rotates the turbine and
produce electricity using this winding. The impulse
turbine is so named because it acts on the impulse
force created for the striking blade of the water jet

12) Generators:-
As the turbine blades turn, so do a series of
magnets inside the generator. Giant magnets
rotate past copper coils, producing alternate
current (AC) by moving electrons.

Working Of Hydroelectric Power

Station: -
The working principle of the hydroelectric power
plant is that it converts the potential energy (due to
the elevation of water from the channel) and the
kinetic energy (due to fast-flowing water) of the
water into mechanical energy with the help of
turbines. The water that is stored in the reservoir or
forebay behind the dam falls through the penstock,
and it strikes the blades of the turbine with high
pressure, and the turbine runner starts rotating.
The runner is attached to the central shaft that is
connected to the generator, which eventually
generates electricity, i.e., the turbine’s mechanical
energy is converted into electricity through electric
generators. The electrical energy obtained is then
supplied for domestic or industrial uses through the
transmission lines after the voltage regulation by
the transformers. The electrical energy obtained
through the hydroelectric plants is proportional to
the rate of flow of water and the elevation drop.
Advantages of Hydroelectric Power
Plant: -

1) Although the initial instalments of the various

components of hydroelectric plants require high
investment, once’s it’s installed, it is the
cheapest method of electricity generation in a
long run. The dams, once constructed, usually
last for an average of 50-100 years and only
require some maintenance cost after its
establishment.

2) Hydroelectric power plants are a renewable

source of energy as they only require the
energy of fast-flowing water and not the water
itself, i.e., the water is not consumed in the
process. Moreover, they do not release harmful
emissions into the environment as compared to
the other fossil fuels power plants.

3) Hydropower stations are very reliable, and

adjustable. The production of electricity can be
easily maintained by controlling the flow of
water through the penstocks. One need not wait
for the sunlight or the wind as in the case of
other electricity generation methods as water is
 always available in the reservoirs for the
constant supply of electricity.

4) Hydroelectric power plants provide enormous

energy as the water at the high altitudes has a
remarkable amount of potential energy, and
even the smaller part of the fast-flowing water
is enough to provide abundant energy that can
serve the need for electricity for millions of
people.

5) As the water stored in the reservoirs is clean

and usable, hence reservoirs are also used as
water reserves that can be used for various
purposes in case of draughts situations. The
flood can also be prevented by establishing
flood control dams as they prevent the extra
water from running down in the villages or the
cities by storing them in the reservoirs.

6) As the dams are often located in remote rural

areas that are not much developed. The
construction of hydropower plants requires the
transport of various equipment and materials
from the cities, and to improve the connectivity,
proper highways, and roads need to be built,
which eventually results in the development of
the rural towns. The lakes (reservoirs) can also
be used for recreational purposes, which may
attract mass tourism and eventually result in an
economic boost for the nearby towns.
Disadvantages of Hydroelectric
Power Plant:-

1) The hydropower plant can only be

established in a suitable location, and these
locations are very limited in number and are
usually found away from the cities and the
villages. Hence, it requires a large number of
components and long transmission lines to
supply the generated electricity to the required
areas.
2) The electricity generation process from the
hydroelectric power plant may not produce
emissions, but the plants that are grown at the
bottom of the reservoirs releases harmful
greenhouse gases like methane and carbon
dioxide upon decomposition that can impact the
environment.

3) The construction of dams restricts the

natural flow of water that can cause a negative
impact on the breeding cycle of the fishes and
other aquatic animals, which may result in the
extinction of some species.

4) Although flood control dams store the extra

water and prevent floods; heavy rainfall or any
kind of malfunctioning in the dams may result
in the collapse of the dams, which can cause
the lives of people residing in the nearby areas
at risk. The ‘Banqiao Dam’8 collapse due to the
typhoon Nina is considered the worst dam
failure, in history which resulted in many
casualties.
Some of the uses of Hydropower
Energy are:

1) Electricity –
Hydroelectricity is one of the most important
sources of energy in the world. Hydroelectricity is
one of the cheapest and non-polluting sources of
power. Though it can cause ecological damage
initially it has better climate compatibility than
other major forms of energy like nuclear, coal,
gas and others. Many countries in the Nordic
region and South America are almost completely
dependent on hydro power for their energy
needs.
2) Energy Storage –
There is 90 GW of Global Pumped Hydro
Storage already existing in the world and with
increasing Solar and Wind Energy this Capacity is
only going to grow. The main use of Pumped
Hydro Storage is for Grid Energy Storage.
3) Agriculture –
Hydropower was used in ancient times for
producing flour from grain and was also used for
sawing timber and stone, raised water into
irrigation canals.

4) Industry –
 Hydropower was used earlier for some industrial
applications such as driving the bellows in small
blast furnaces and for extraction of metal ores in
a method known as hushing.

Glossary: -
1) pondage: - pondage usually refers to the
comparably small water storage behind the weir of
a run-of-the-river hydroelectric power plant
2) conduits: - a channel for conveying water or
other fluid:
3) canyons: - a deep gorge, typically one with a
river flowing through it
4) catchment area: - the area from which rainfall
flows into a river, lake, or reservoir.
.5) RCC: - Reinforced concrete
6) unimpeded: - not obstructed or hindered:
7) torque: - a twisting force that tends to cause
rotation:
8) Banqiao Dam: - In August 1975, the Banqiao
dam collapsed, creating the third-largest flood in
history which affected a total population of 10.15
million and inundated around 30 cities and counties
of 12,000 square kilometres (or 3 million acres),
with an estimated death toll up to 240,000.

Reference: -
1) https://www.engineeringenotes.com/power-
plants-2/hydroelectric-power-plant/12-main-
elements-of-hydroelectric-power-plant/29416

2) Hydropower:-Practice and Application,

Edited by Hossein Samadi-Boroujeni, InTech
Publication ,2012.
Source:-
https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Hydropo
wer/8ayZDwAAQBAJ?
 hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=hydroelectric+power+stati
on&printsec=frontcover

3) https://studiousguy.com/hydroelectric-
power-plant-working-principle/

4) http://www.greenworldinvestor.com/
2012/11/17/uses-of-hydropower-energy-hydro-
electricity-facts-about-plants-and-dams/