Energy: What is Micro Hydro Power

A hydroelectric generator is a machine that uses mechanical energy to generate electricity, the hydroelectricity comes from a large volumes of falling water to create the mechanical energy. I will be constructing my own hydroelectric generator in order to show it is possible to create electricity using large volumes of water, enough power to light a light bulb.

The prevalence and severity of extreme changes in climate will likely affect how much energy is produced, delivered and consumed all over the world. There?s pressure to produce more energy resources for the growing population that have been depleted by unsustainable production systems. Impetus to better manage nonrenewable energy resources must become part of market systems and signals that form decision making in energy resources.

As we go throughout life, we use various kinds of energy sources for our needs. Whether it be from solar energy to wind energy, there is a multitude of sources that allow us to do the things we do each and every day. Throughout the world, however, coal and nuclear power have risen to the

On the same note, the energy revolution spoken of above brings forth another advance in the ongoing global climate situation. The nature of the Kyoto Protocol calls for nations to increase research and eventually semi-convert their energy usage to accommodate for cleaner energy. Products such as solar power, wind power, biomass, geothermal power, and hydropower are now widely being studying to create processes that use less coal, oil, and natural gas in production. Altogether the results have

In this paper I will be discussing the renewable technology Hydropower and the pros and cons of it. I will be using three separate articles from GREENR focusing on hydropower as a whole and some of the possible downsides of this technology in addition to the very noticeable positive effects from hydropower. The three articles mentioned are "Building BRIC: Carrieann Stocks takes a look at recent developments in hydropower across Brazil, Russia, India and China." (International Water Power & Dam Construction) (Jan. 2015), "Electricity Production from Hydroelectric Sources, Top Ten Countries, 2003/4." (Global Reference on the Environment, Energy, and Natural Resources Online Collection), and "Green streak." (Earth Island Journal) (Jun. 22, 2015). I will be discussing the possible reasoning behind some people not wanting to focus on this possibly very beneficial alternative and try to explain why “If Hydropower is available why don’t we use it?” Keywords: dams, turbine, hydroelectric, renewable resource, nonrenewable resource

Humans have made significant discoveries in utilizing the countless benefits of water, one of the most important being the ability to use water to perform work. This is the concept of hydropower. Hydropower is using the energy of moving water to create power. This clean and renewable method of power generation is used all throughout the globe, and accounts for a small percentage of global electricity demand. Hydropower hasn’t always existed as the large scale dams that are abundant today. Hydropower technologies have been slowly evolving for many centuries.

Recently, a report by REN21 (Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century) reported two facts that set the stage for the growth of green energy. First, in 2015, the global economy experienced the largest annual increase of renewable energy; second, developing economies spent more than developed countries on increasing their use of green energy. Another notable fact to mention is that the substantial increase in green energy

International Energy Agency & Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (2012). World energy outlook 2012. Paris: OECD/IEA.

One resource that is essential to produce electricity is renewable energy. Providing one’s own energy consists of utilizing solar panels, wind turbines and micro hydroelectricity. Solar panels absorb energy from the Sun to produce solar energy. A great number of people who live off the grid use solar power. Wind turbines generate electrical power from the wind and functions in the reverse manner as a fan does. Micro hydroelectricity is another source of energy, which fascinatingly “uses a source of running water, like a stream, to generate electricity” (Dunn 3). Between all three sources of renewable energy, micro hydroelectricity is the most efficient, reliable and commonly used form.

Over the past decade, energy has brought social, economic and environmental advantages and played a major role in the urbanisation and industrial revolution. However, after the uncontrollably frequent use of these energy sources, depletion of these energy sources also became a major concern which brings about its own economic, social and environmental disadvantages. Of a particular concern is the availability of these energy sources which affects both industry and the lives of the consumers.

Over 2,000 years ago, the Greeks used the water wheel to grind wheat into flour. They would put the wheel in the water and the flowing water would push the wheel, which was connected to a grinder that grinded the flour (Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy). This means before technology was developed, the idea of hydropower was being used by the Greeks with the wheel. Not only did they use the wheel in the water to grind wheat, they used the wheel to power textile mills, to saw wood, and to manufacture plants (Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy). The Greeks were more than 2,000 years ago and they thought of using water for energy. Hydropower has been around for more than a couple millenniums, but it wasn’t until the mid-1700’s that the modern hydropower turbines had a breakthrough. Bernard Forest de Béilidor, a French hydraulic and engineer, wrote the book Architecture Hydraulique, which started the evolution of hydropower (Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy). The concept of using water for energy has been around since the Greeks, but it wasn’t until Béilidor’s book that the modern world thought about making an efficient way to make hydropower. In 1849, James Francis invented the Francis Turbine, which is most commonly used today. (hydro.org/). Francis shaped the way modern society uses hydropower plants. It wasn’t until 1882, when the first hydroelectric power plant was running was in the Fox River, in Appleton, Wisconsin. (hydro.org/). One of the most famous and well known dams is the Hoover Dam, located in Colorado. The construction of the Hoover Dam began in 1931 and employed more than 20,000 workers during the Great Depression. The project of the Hoover Dam was completed in 1937 (http://www.hydro.org/tech-and-policy/history-of-hydr). In 1940, hydropower produced 40 percent of electricity to the United

Last year for my science fair project I personally invented my own version of a sun tracking solar panel. The solar panel was able to produce three watts of power per hour regardless of its small three-inch by three-inch size, showing me that having direct access to the sun can increase the amount of watts gained multifold. This year, instead of researching over the topic of solar panels, I instead inquired alternative methods of producing energy from economical sources. In this experiment I chose to use a water turbine to produce electricity which in the long run was much more difficult to do.

“Worldwide, hydropower facilities possess a significant amount of installed electric generating capacity. IEA statistics indicate that at the end of 2001 there was in excess of 450,000 MW of installed capacity within IEA member countries, with about half in Europe and half in North America. In addition to conventional hydropower, there is more than 80,000 MW of installed pumped-hydro capacity in IEA countries. In contrast, utility-scale wind power is relatively new in the electric market, but increasing rapidly” (Integration of Wind and Hydropower Systems)

The International Energy Agency estimates that by the year 2003 forty percent of the world's energy production will be from sources other than fossil fuels or nuclear power. Nevertheless, the need for

Bilen et al., (2008:1531) predicted that global energy consumption will account for around 85% of the increase in world primary demand over 2002– 2030. The increasing of global energy demand happens the global stock of fossil fuel resources may be adequate for short term period, thus requiring the development of renewable energy sources, which would not decrease the stock of fossil fuel resources available for future generation. There is an increasing interest in the development of renewable energies such as biofuel and wind power, which have a great potential energy to produce enough power for the world’s population demand.