Hydro-power By: Shaun, Kaitlyn, and Allison

Hydro History The earliest form of hydropower is from over 2000 years ago when the Greeks used water wheels to make flour by grinding wheat. In the 1770's Bernard Forest de Belidor published a book about hydraulic machines called "Architecture Hydraulique".

More history of hydro The first time hydropower was used to make electricity was in 1878 in Northumberland, England by William George Armstrong and it powered an arc lamp in his art gallery. In 1881, a hydropower station was used to produce hydroelectricity. The station was called the Schoelkopf Power Station No. 1 and it powered Niagara Falls' city street lights. On September 30, 1882, the first hydroelectric power plant in the US was created by Edison, was called the Vulcan Street Plant and it was in Appleton, Wisconsin. It generated about 13 kilowatts of power. By 1886, there were approximately 45 hydropower plants in the US and Canada combined.

Even More Hydro history In 1920, the US government created a Federal Power Act that states that you need a license or permit to dam streams to generate hydroelectricity. In 1928, one of the most famous dams in the world was built on the border between Nevada and Arizona, called the Hoover Dam. The percentage of how much electricity in the US was produced by hydropower started to climb going from 15% in 1907 to 25% in 1920 then eventually to 40% in 1940 but fell and in 2003 was only at 10%.

Dams the dam stops and controls water flow the intake is where the water is coming from the control gate controls how much water and pressure is allowed to come through the dam the turbine is rapidly spun by the water as it passes through the generator consumes the electricity being generated by the turbine the transformer turns the electricity into the correct voltage that the power lines take to the city The out flow is where the water goes when it's done

Pumped plants Same system as a dam The upper reservoir lets water flow down through the plant the lower reservoir catches the water as it exits the plant so it can be pumped back into the top reservoir

Why it is a good Power source? Doesn’t cause air pollution, in comparison to other energy sources (i.e. fossil fuel). Very high efficiency rate (approx. 90%). This means there is very little amount of energy wasted in the process of generating electricity. Low operational and maintenance cost once the dams are built. Dams can offer different types of economic benefits. For instance, the lake that forms behind the dams can be used for irrigation, or for recreational purposes, such as water sports, fishing, swimming, etc. No waste disposal issues, such as fossil fuel and nuclear fired in power plants. Very reliable and stable source of energy. It can continuously produce electricity instead of in short, not steady streams like wind or solar energy.

Why it’s a bad resource? Building large hydroelectric power plants can cause serious environmental impacts if not built correctly. Some potential impacts includes: flooding, erosion, and landslides. High upfront costs, especially when building a large dams. In some parts of the world, there can be times of drought. The hydroelectric power plants aren’t able to produce electricity because there isn’t enough water.

Practical example Invented by Robert Komarechka in Ontario, Canada, this hydroelectric shoe can charge laptops, cell phones, GPS receivers, etc. How this shoe works is that as a person walks, the compression of fluid in a sac located on the heel will force the fluid through wire and into the hydroelectric generator connector. As the person walks, the heel will be lifted and pressure will exert the sac under the ball of the foot. The movement will rotate the rotor and will generate electricity. A power control output worn on the user’s belt, which enables electronic devices to be charged.

Examples In BC...

Buntzen Lake Hydroelectric Generating Station Located north of Ioco, approximately 30 kilometers from Vancouver Water from the lake flows through penstocks down deep the mountain slope to two power plants located on the Indian Arm. However, in 2000, Buntzen No. 1 was shut down. Currently, Buntzen No.2 is being controlled in a facility in Burnaby. In times of low water periods, the Burrard Generation Station provides transmission support and back-up electrical supply for the lower Mainland.

Mica Dam Located in Revelstoke, BC. It is the largest hydroelectric dam in BC. Its reservoir is the Kinbasket Lake, where the dam is built. It also has an underground powerhouse, in which it generates 1,805 megawatts (MW).

Stave Falls Dam The reservoir lake, Hayward Lake, located in north central Fraser Valley, is where the dam is built. The generation system (Aloulette-, Stave-, Ruskin- ), serves as a source of electricity to the Lower Mainland. First, water from Aloulette Lake is directed to a tunnel that leads into the Aloulette Powerhouse, which leads into the Stave and Ruskin Powerhouses. These generators created megawatts of power.

Cost The average cost of a hydropower plant that is bigger than 10 megawatts is 3-5 cents per kilowatt-hour The average hydropower plant in the US costs about 85 cents per kilowatt-hour There is very little labour cost because a typical plant only needs a few people there during the normal operating schedule because the plants are automated and do almost everything on their own Hydropower's cost is about 50% of the cost of nuclear, 40% the cost of fossil fuel and 25% the cost of natural gas

Cost

Price It is expected that the price of hydroelectricity will go up due to inflation rates, and people using a larger amount of electricity (i.e.: computers, TV’s, etc.)

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