Renewable Resources

Hydroelectric PowerHydroelectric Power

CAES Energy Efficiency Research Institute

Boise State University

What are some energy sources

that we know exist?

• Nuclear

• Coal

• Natural Gas

• Biomass• Biomass

• Geothermal

• Hydro (water)

• Solar (Sun)

• Wind

What separates the energy

sources on the left from the

ones on the right?

• Coal

• Natural Gas

• Geothermal• Hydro (water)• Natural Gas

• Petroleum

• Hydro (water)• Solar (Sun)• Wind• Nuclear

Renewable: Energy resources that are naturally

replenishing but flow-limited. They are virtually

inexhaustible in duration but limited in the amount of

energy that is available per unit of time. Renewable energy

resources include biomass, hydro, geothermal, solar, wind,

ocean thermal, wave action, and tidal action.

Non-Renewable: Fuels that cannot be easily made or

"renewed," such as oil, natural gas, and coal.

Why do we need these energy

resources?resources?

Is there a “best” energy source? Why do you think one may be the best? Or, if we can not

decide which is best, why can’t we?decide which is best, why can’t we?

“In the early part of the century hydroelectric plants supplied a bit less than one-half of the nation's power, but the number is down to about 10 percent today. The trend for the about 10 percent today. The trend for the future will probably be to build small-scale hydro plants that can generate electricity for a single community.”

-USGS

China is the largest producer of hydroelectricity, followed by Canada, Brazil, and the United States. (eia.gov)

So What…?

http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/wuhy.html

Today’s use and future use of

Hydroelectric power in Idaho

Does anybody know where

this is?

Hoover Dam Pictures

How does this produce

electricity?

Pinwheel Under Water

• This can be conducted at any point where the teacher deems it appropriate.

– used at the very beginning as a kind of “hook.”

– use it at the end, and then ask the students and compare it to a Hydro dam.

Turbin-ator Supplies

• NREL REACT Hydromill “Turbin-ator” instructions

• 2L clear, plastic bottle

• Scissors

• Tape

• Wooden dowel

• String (for lifting)

• Objects of varying masses (for lifting)• Bath fish (0.5oz)

• Bath duck (1.5oz)

Cut a hole in the bottom of the

bottle. Um… sure

• The NREL instructions do not include this step. How convenient…

• Scissors won’t cut it (haha)

Cut a hole in the bottom of the

bottle. Um… sure

• Neither will an exact-o knife

Cut a hole in the bottom of the

bottle. Um… sure

• Neither will hammering a sharp object

Cut a hole in the bottom of the

bottle. Um… sure

• Neither will a drill with a standard, 1/8” drill bit

Cut a hole in the bottom of the

bottle. Um… sure

• Perhaps from a different angle?

Accept defeat and wait for help

Cut a hole in the bottom of the

bottle… Finally!

Really long, ¼” drill

bit + man muscles bit + man muscles

= success!

Cut a hole in the bottom of the

bottle… Finally!

Wiggle it around to get hole big

enough for ½” dowel (actually

measured 3/8”)

Enjoying the victory

Measure blade location

Use dressmakers tape measure (or

string with marked distances)

Measure blade location

Wrap around bottle and secure

Mark blade location

Can do any size, number, or spacing

desired.

How do I know how many

blades and what spacing?• Think of a Dutch or American windmill…

large blades, lots of them (simplistic version) for grinding grain or PUMPING WATERWATER

Mark blade location

Draw straight line across bottle

Mark blade location

Do this all the way around the bottle.

Good math exercise to ensure equal

spacing.

Cut blades (carefully!)

I found it easiest to do short, sawing

motion with exact-o knife until it

poked through the plastic, then it slid

easily

Fold blades out

Have students hypothesize (and

experiment with) the effect of pitch

(the angle between the blade and the

bottle)

Final set-up

•Insert dowel and place in water-safe zone•Experiment with water flow rate and water

elevation•Use funnel (or other device) to keep water

flow-rate steady

Final set-upBath fish = 0.5oz

Bath duck = 1.5oz

•Experiment with lifting different

objects

•Increasing water flow rate

•Increasing water source elevation

Videos

• Hydro Elevation Video

http://vimeo.com/60298514

• Hydro Lift Video

http://vimeo.com/60298515http://vimeo.com/60298515

Based on what you created what is

the role of the turbine in generating the role of the turbine in generating

electricity?

Hydro Dam Tour

What is the main energy transfer that

Hydroelectric power relies on in order

to generate electricity?

a. Potential Energy to Kinetic Energy

b. Chemical Energy to Kinetic Energy b. Chemical Energy to Kinetic Energy

c. Heat Energy(as in steam) to Electrical Energy

Now that you essentially have built your own Hydro dam imagine putting that in a

river….

What would that do to a river and the inhabitants of a river or the surrounding inhabitants of a river or the surrounding

areas?

What does Hydro Power have to do

with the water cycle?

BioHazards

How do fish ladders work?

+

Different types of Fish Ladders• pool-weir fishway Denil fishways

• vertical slot fishway• Steeppass fishways

• natural bypass

Cons of Hydroelectricity

Demand for electricity is not "flat" and constant.

Demand goes up and down annually (daily too but that is later).

When might demand for energy resources decrease in an area like Idaho?

What have we done to fix this

problem?

Spillways

Other unseen effects of “Renewable Resources”

How do we make the materials to build the dam?

-concrete and steel

Will the cost outweigh the benefits and vice versa?*

Emissions?

• Greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide and methane, may also form in reservoirs and be emitted to the atmosphere.

• The exact amount of greenhouse gases produced from hydropower plant reservoirs is uncertain. hydropower plant reservoirs is uncertain.

China is the largest producer of hydroelectricity, followed by Canada, Brazil, and the United States (eia.gov)

So…

So What…?

s5

Slide 53

s5 Repeat slide. This slide was also in the beginning of your presentation.sandycardon, 2/22/2013

How else can the Hydroelectric

topic be used in the classroom?

• River Ecology

• Physics: Motors, Rotors, Magnets etc.

• Collaboration with a History teacher• Collaboration with a History teacher

• Any Other Ideas?