A River Ran Through It
Hydropower plants capture the kinetic energy of falling water to generate electricity. A turbine and a generator convert the energy from the water to mechanical to electrical energy. Hydropower is a renewable domestic resource that does not release polluting emissions.Copyright (Top to bottom) U.S. Department of the Interior, Office of Scientific and Technical Information, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers http://www.usbr.gov/power/data/sites/glencany/glencany.html http://www.osti.gov/hyp/ http://www.lrb.usace.army.mil/brochure/mmd.html)
Students learn how water is used to generate electricity. They investigate water's potential-to-kinetic energy transformation in hands-on activities about falling water and waterwheels. During the activities, they take measurements, calculate averages and graph results. Students also learn the history of the waterwheel and how engineers use water turbines in hydroelectric power plants today. They discover the advantages and disadvantages of hydroelectric power. In a literacy activity, students learn and write about an innovative new hydro-electrical power generation technology.
Hydroelectric power has been used by people for thousands of years, with engineering design of hydroelectric power plants for industrial use dating to the 1880s. Hydroelectric power accounted for nearly 7% of U.S. power generation and 38% of renewable power generation in 2019. Environmental engineers are concerned with dams that aid in the production of hydroelectricity because of the effects on humans and animals in the surrounding environment. It is the job of these engineers help to design maximum efficiency dams that do not harm the environment and its inhabitants.
After this lesson, students should be able to:
- Describe the energy transformations that occur in a hydroelectric power plant.
- Describe some of the environmental effects of hydropower.
- Identify how engineers are involved in designing and constructing hydropower systems.