Hydroelectricity: Difference between revisions

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	].The power station at the lower reservoir has four water turbines which can generate 360 megawatts of electricity within 60 seconds of the need arising. The water of the upper reservoir (Llyn Stylan) can just be glimpsed on the right.]]

	'''Hydroelectricity ''' is ] obtained from ''']'''. Most hydroelectric power comes from the ] of ]med water driving a ] and ]. Less common variations make use of water's ] or undammed sources such as ]. Hydroelectricity is a ] source.

	The energy extracted from water depends not only on the volume but on the difference in height between the source and the water's outflow. This height difference is called the ]. The amount of ] in water is ] to the head. To obtain very high head, water for a hydraulic turbine may be run through a large pipe called a ].

	While many supply public electricity networks, some projects were created for private commercial purposes. For example, ] processing requires substantial amounts of electricity, and in ]'s ] there are examples at ] and ], designed and constructed during the early years of the 20th century. Similarly, the ] were constructed in ] to provide electricity for the ] aluminium industry.
	In many parts of ] (the provinces of ], ], ], ] and ]) hydroelectricity is used so extensively that the word "hydro" is used to refer to any ] delivered by a power utility. The government-run power utilities in these provinces are called ], ], ] (formerly "Ontario Hydro"), ] and ] respectively. Hydro-Québec is the world's largest hydroelectric generating company, with a total installed capacity (]) of 31,512 MW.

	==Importance==

	Hydroelectric power supplies 20% of world electricity. ] produces virtually all of its electricity from hydro, while ] produces 83% of its requirements (]), ] produces 67 % of all electricity generated in the country from hydro (over 70 % of its requirements). ] is the world's largest producer of hydro power and produces over 70% of its electricity from hydroelectric sources.

	Apart from a few countries with an abundance of it, hydro capacity is normally applied to peak-load demand, because it can be readily stored during off-peak hours (in fact, ] are sometimes used to store electricity produced by thermal plants for use during peak hours). It is not a major option for the future in the developed countries because most major sites in these countries having potential for harnessing gravity in this way are either being exploited already or are unavailable for other reasons such as environmental considerations.

	No

	==Hydro-electric facts==
	===Oldest===
	*], ], ] completed ].

	*], ], ] completed ], A waterwheel on the ] supplied the first commercial hydroelectric power for lighting to two paper mills and a house, two years after ] demonstrated ] to the public. Within a matter of weeks of this installation, a power plant was also put into commercial service at ].

	*], Launceston, Tasmania. Completed 1895. The first publicly-owned hydro-electric plant in the Southern Hemisphere. Supplied power to the city of Launceston for street lighting.

	* Decew Falls 1, ], ], ] completed 25 August 1898. Owned by ]. Four units are still operational. Recognised as an IEEE Milestone in Electrical Engineering & Computing by the ] Executive Committee in 2002.

	===Largest hydro-electric power stations===
	]
	The ] Complex in ], ], is the world's largest hydroelectric generating system. The eight generating stations of the complex have a total generating capacity of 16,021 MW. The ] station alone has a capacity of 5,616 MW. A ninth station (Eastmain-1) is currently under construction and will add 480 MW to the total. An additional project on the Rupert River, currently undergoing environmental assessments, would add two stations with a combined capacity of 888 MW.



	<td>]</td><td>Brazil/Paraguay</td><td>1984/1991</td><td align="right">12,666 MW</td><td align="right">93.4 TW-hours</td>
	</tr><tr>
	<td>]</td><td>Venezuela</td><td>1986</td><td align="right">10,200 MW</td><td align="right">46 TW-hours</td>
	</tr><tr>
	<td>]</td><td>United States</td><td>1942/1980</td><td align="right">6,809 MW</td><td align="right">22.6 TW-hours</td>
	</tr><tr>
	<td>]</td><td>Russia</td><td>1983</td><td align="right">6,400 MW</td>
	</tr><tr>
	<td>]</td><td>Canada</td><td>1981</td><td align="right">5,616 MW</td>
	</tr><tr>
	<td>]</td><td>Canada</td><td>1971</td><td align="right">5,429 MW</td><td align="right">35 TW-hours</td>
	</tr><tr>
	<td>]</td><td>Romania/Serbia</td><td>1970</td><td align="right">2,280 MW</td><td align="right">11.3 TW-hours</td>
	</table>

	These are ranked by maximum power.

	====In progress====
	*], ]. First power in July ], scheduled completion ], 18,200 MW

	===Countries with the most hydro-electric capacity===
	*], 341,312 GWh (66,954 MW installed)
	*], 319,484 GWh (79,511 MW installed)
	*], 285,603 GWh (57,517 MW installed)
	*], 204,300 GWh (65,000 MW installed)
	*], 173,500 GWh (44,700 MW installed)
	*], 121,824 GWh (27,528 MW installed)
	*], 84,500 GWh (27,229 MW installed)
	*], 82,237 GWh (22,083 MW installed)
	*], 77,500 GWh (25,335 MW installed)

	These are 1999 figures and include ] schemes.

	== References ==
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	==See also==
	{{Commons\|Category:Hydroelectric_power}}
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	*] an early private hydro-electric station

	==External links==
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	{{Sustainability and energy development group}}

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Revision as of 15:02, 26 May 2006

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