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Hydro-Electric Power

            
             Hydro-electric power produces electricity by using water. To do that power plants capture the energy released by water. That water falls through a vertical distance and transforms this energy into useful electricity. The falling water is channeled through a turbine, which converts the energy into mechanical power.
             Hydro-electric power has always been an important part of the worlds electricity supply. During the twentieth century hydro power had a great influence on peoples lives than any other time in history. However hydro power still play a major role in making the wonders of electricity a part of everyday life. Hydro power continues to produce twenty-four percent of the worlds electricity and supply more than one billion people with power.
             Hydro-electric power must be one of the oldest methods of producing power. The first recorded use of water power was with a clock. It was built around 250 BC. The world s first hydro-electric power plant began operation on September 30, 1882. The plant was located on Fox River in Appleton, Wisconsin. Later the plant was called "Appleton's Edison Light Company". It was initiated by H.F. Rogers. Rogers was inspired by Thomas Edison, Even though Edison had plans for a power producing station in New York. .
             Hydro-electric power have both advantages and disadvantages to the environment. Just recently there was almost an universal belief that hydro power is a clean and environmentally safe method of producing electricity. Hydro power plants do not emit any of the standard atmospheric pollutants such as: carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide given off by fossil fuel fired plants. The water needed to run the power plant is provided free by nature. Hydro-electric power is the leading source of renewable energy. Rainfall renews the water in the reservoir, so water is basically always there.
            


Essays Related to Hydro-Electric Power

1. Hydroelectric Power

... are positive and negative aspects of each source, but which source of energy is best? What are the environmental effects of generating power with water versus these other alternatives of nuclear power plants, solar, and wind power? Hydroelectric power is currently the world's largest renewable source of electricity. It accounts for six percent of the worldwide energy supply or about fifteen percent ... of the world's electricity. In Canada alone hydroelectric power provides sixty percent of their electrical needs. Hydroelectric power plants such as the Hoover Dam, used in the United Sta...

  • Word Count: 1560
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

2. Nuclear Power for New Jersey

... the rate of water flowage downstream, it provides flood control, which is a huge plus for down water residence! Although hydroelectric power is very sufficient to the MAR because it requires large bodies of water to operate, hydroelectric power can be very costly. These hydroelectric plants can cost an estimated $100 billion. But since HydroNuc uses a large body of water, our large scale dams ... of an issue. The environmental impact of using hydroelectricity is both low and high. There is a low environmental impact because there is no radiation or pollution produced in our hydroelectri...

  • Word Count: 2154
  • Approx Pages: 9
  • Has Bibliography

3. Clean Power in California

... matter, which are respiratory irritants. In addition, particulates may contribute to acid rain formation. This is the reason why there has been exploration into clean power sources. Hydroelectric is one of the oldest forms of clean power. Hydropower converts the energy of flowing water into electricity. Today's hydropower plants generally range in size from several hundred kilowatts to several hundred megawatts, but ... . The large deserts in southern California make a perfect place for solar power plants. With very little moisture the possibility of the sun being blocked by clouds is ve...

  • Word Count: 1458
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

4. The Environment and Sources of Power

... represents the lowest costs of building and maintaining a plant for any turbine-generated form of electricity. In comparison, the costs for hydroelectric and coal-driven plants range from $1200-1700 per kW, while the highest costs for building and maintaining a power plant involves the construction of a nuclear generator. Furthermore, newer energy sources, such as wind, biomass, and geothermal, entail very high ... highest conversion efficiency of all energy sources at 7800 BTU/kWh. In comparison, the nuclear power plant has the highest heat rate at 10,400 BTU/kWh, followed by coal plan...

  • Word Count: 847
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

5. Nuclear Power Uses

... energy was understandable in order to give a great energy source and "unfortunately- the absolute lethal weapon. The World War 2 and the Hiroshima-Nagasaki bombs proved the consequences of nuclear power as a war "tool". One important thing that we must mention is that the products of a nuclear explosion (as a bomb or as an accident) have the ability to "keep" their ... stop, but they will affect peoples and environment for a long time. Most of the world's electricity is generated by either thermal or hydroelectric power plants. Thermal power plants use fuel to boil water which makes st...

  • Word Count: 1950
  • Approx Pages: 8
  • Grade Level: High School

6. THE POWER, PROMISE,

THE POWER, PROMISE, AND TURMOIL OF NORTH AMERICA"S FRSH WATER The same wells that were overflowing with water centuries ago; today, are in danger of running dry. Water supply hasn't changed; earth ... as was released by the explosion of the Hiroshima bomb. Humans have realized the potential and have been eager to harvest new power. The Niagara Falls is overflow four Great Lakes. This is the site of the continent's pioneer commercial hydroelectric plant. About 30 percent of New York's electricity is from hydroelectricity. The cool thing about the dam is at night they ... . These reservoirs ar...

  • Word Count: 2248
  • Approx Pages: 9
  • Grade Level: High School

7. Nuclear Power and Fukushima

... Journal, The National Review, and many other publications. He begins the article by talking about the first thoughts many of us have when thinking about nuclear power, "Why risk it?" And the reason is, because of the amount of energy and because of the way technology will be headed in the ... solar energy works only when the sun is out, and must cover 20 square miles to be effective. Hydroelectric power must back up a 250 square-mile reservoir to create the same amount of energy as a single nuclear power plant. And the way they are now, each of these sources are 15 times less effective t...

  • Word Count: 1044
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

8. Nuclear Power

... the debate on further development of nuclear power generation is at the heart of our energy needs for the future. This is especially so given the possibilities of global warming generated by our burning of fossils fuels such as oil, coal and gas. Hydroelectric schemes have a massive cost in terms ... of the disruption caused by displacement in the environment. Yet how much do you know about nuclear fission, the process that gives us power and energy? The development of nuclear power was once seen as a cheap and ... storing or disposing of this dangerous waste. Suggested burial in deep c...

  • Word Count: 1285
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

9. hydroelectricity

... river. Several years worth of water can be stored (The 1998 Canadian Encyclopedia). Only about 20 percent of the potential area in the United States is being used for hydroelectric power plants (Hydroelectric Power). Many sites in Northern Canada that are potential areas are not developed (Humphrys, 100). The best places for plants are on areas with swift-flowing rivers, mountainous regions ... , and areas of heavy rainfall (hydroelectric, 1998). California is a state that uses significant amounts of hydroelectric power. About 40 percent of its power comes from hydroelectric power. The re...

  • Word Count: 741
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

10. World Water Supply and Conservation

... from Virginia's center for water research showing the amount of water used for different types of fuel: looking at the above chart on the right, the efficiency of power generation technologies are shown. The most efficient of these is hydroelectric power generation, which is advantageous because it is currently the most widely used renewable energy source in the world. The benefit to using ... production is that building dams to support the extraction of energy can cause flooding of a large area and deem the surrounding land unusable. Another difficulty with wide span use of hydroelectr...

  • Word Count: 2430
  • Approx Pages: 10
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

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