Introduction :

Hydropower Plant

HISTORY OF HYDROPOWER

Humans have been harnessing water to perform work for

thousands of years. The Greeks used water wheels for grinding
wheat into flour more than2,000 years ago. Besides grinding
flour, the power of the water was used to sawwood and power
textile mills and manufacturing plants.

For more than a century, the technology for using falling

water to createhydroelectricity has existed. The evolution of the
modern hydropower turbinebegan in the mid-1700s when a
French hydraulic and military engineer,Bernard Forest de
Bélidor wrote Architecture Hydraulique. In this four volumework,
he described using a vertical-axis versus a horizontal-axis
machine.

During the 1700s and 1800s, water turbine development

continued. In1880, a brush arc light dynamo driven by a water
turbine was used to providetheatre and storefront lighting in
Grand Rapids, Michigan; and in 1881, abrush dynamo
connected to a turbine in a flour mill provided street lighting
atNiagara Falls, New York. These two projects used direct-
current technology.

Alternating current is used today. That breakthrough

came when theelectric generator was coupled to the turbine,
which resulted in the world's,and the United States', first
hydroelectric plant located in Appleton, Wisconsin,in 1882.

HYDROELECTRIC POWER / HYDROELECTRICITY

Hydro means "water". So, hydropower is "water power" and

hydroelectricpower is electricity generated using water power.
Potential energy (or the"stored" energy in a reservoir) becomes
kinetic (or moving energy). This ischanged to mechanical energy
in a power plant, which is then turned intoelectrical energy.
Hydroelectric power is a renewable resource.
In an impoundment facility (see below), water is stored behind a
dam in areservoir. In the dam is a water intake. This is a narrow
opening to a tunnelcalled a penstock.

Water pressure (from the weight of the water and gravity)

forces thewater through the penstock and onto the blades of a
turbine. A turbine issimilar to the blades of a child's pinwheel. But
instead of breath making thepinwheel turn, the moving water
pushes the blades and turns the turbine. Theturbine spins
because of the force of the water. The turbine is connected to
anelectrical generator inside the powerhouse. The generator
produces electricity that travels over long-distance power lines to
homes and businesses. The entireprocess is
calledhydroelectricity.
LAYOUT OF HYDROELECTRIC POWER PLANTS

Hydroelectric power plants convert the hydraulic potential

energy fromwater into electrical energy. Such plants are
suitable were water with suitableheadare available. The layout
covered in this article is just a simple one andonly cover the
important parts of hydroelectric plant.The different parts
of ahydroelectric power plant are

1) Dam

Dams are structures built over rivers to stop the water flow
and form areservoir.The reservoir stores the water flowing down
the river. This water isdiverted to turbines in power stations. The
dams collect water during the rainy season and stores it, thus
allowing for a steady flow through the turbinesthroughout the
year. Dams are also used for controlling floods and irrigation.The
dams should be water-tight and should be able to withstand the
pressureexerted by the water on it. There are different types of
dams such as archdams, gravity dams and buttress dams. The
height of water in the dam iscalled
head race
.

(2) Spillway

A spillway as the name suggests could be called as a way

for spilling of water from dams. It is used to provide for the
release of flood water from adam. It is used to prevent over
toping of the dams which could result indamage or failure
of dams. Spillways could be controlled type or uncontrolledtype.
The uncontrolled types start releasing water upon water rising
above aparticular level. But in case of the controlled type,
regulation of flow is possible.
(3) Penstock and Tunnel

Penstocks are pipes which carry water from the reservoir to

the turbinesinside power station. They are usually made of steel
and are equipped withgate systems.Water under high pressure
flows through the penstock. A tunnelserves the same purpose
as a penstock. It is used when an obstruction ispresent between
the dam and power station such as a mountain.

(4) Surge Tank

Surge tanks are tanks connected to the water conductor

system. Itserves the purpose of reducing water hammering in
pipes which can causedamage to pipes. The sudden surges of
water in penstock is taken by the surgetank, and when the water
requirements increase, it supplies the collected waterthereby
regulating water flow and pressure inside the penstock.

(5) Power Station

Power station contains a turbine coupled to a generator. The

waterbrought to the power station rotates the vanes of the
turbine producing torqueand rotation of turbine shaft. This
rotational torque is transfered to thegenerator and is converted
into electricity. The used water is released through the tail race.
The difference between head race and tail race is called gross
headand by subtracting the frictional losses we get the net head
available to theturbine for generation of electricity.