Hydroelectric Power

026 - Hydroelectric Power

In this video Paul Andersen explains how energy can be harnessed was water moves through a turbine. Three types of systems are discussed in the video; run-of-the-water, impoundment, and tidal. Several advantages and disadvantages of dams are discussed.

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Music Attribution

Intro
Artist: CosmicD
Creative Commons Atribution License

Outro
Title: String Theory
Artist: Herman Jolly

All of the images are licensed under creative commons and public domain licensing:

[yoongilifeu]

Your videos are always so helpful! Please never stop making them. You teach so well

[Ucardz]

The perception of the hidroeletric power as a definitive source of renewable eletric power has been changing in the course of the years. As a biologist the drawbacks of buiding a dam are bigger than it seems, here in South America to be precise Brazil, many dam systems generate a lot of green house effect gases, methane and carbon dioxide, primary production is high and forests are dense, creating a big organic material source for decomposition which will, in some cases, damage turbines due to a increase in carbon dioxide in the water and a decrease in pH and increase maintenance costs.
The consequences on the natural enviroment are devasting, literally annihilating the benthic biota due to the change in water stratification, a lotic water body turns into a lentic enviroment, the bottom of the dam gets anoxic where only a few organisms can survive. Fish ladders are traps. Fish usually gets exausted by climbing it and in the end predatory fish are the waiting for hunting them, other times fish became adrift because there is no stream in reservoir to guide the way upstream.
I could talk a lot more about it, if someone is curious try searching for a dam called Belo Monte, which sums up what kind of troubles a hidroeletric system can cause.

Eexcuse me for any grammar mistakes, english is not my main language.

[AmbryAmbry]

this videos are so helpful. they have helped me when I am studying because they are just one big review. please make more :-). they are truly helpful

[Ucardz]

The perception of the hidroeletric power as a definitive source of renewable eletric power has been changing in the course of the years. As a biologist the drawbacks of buiding a dam are bigger than it seems, here in South America to be precise Brazil, many dam systems generate a lot of green house effect gases, methane and carbon dioxide, primary production is high and forests are dense, creating a big organic material source for decomposition which will, in some cases, damage turbines due to a increase in carbon dioxide in the water and a decrease in pH and increase maintenance costs.

[bryancampos]

awesome intro ! i just wished u talked about the magnetic and electric fields taking place

[Zonekiller]

0:33 did any one else mutter out "damn..." after he said that?

[laurenchobert]

Could you build another dam after the the first one to capture the flow of the released water again?

[Ucardz]

The consequences on the natural environment are devastating, literally annihilating the benthic biota due to the change in water stratification, a lotic water body turns into a lentic environment, the bottom of the dam gets anoxic where only a few organisms can survive. Fish ladders are traps. Fish usually gets exhausted by climbing it and in the end predatory fish awaits for hunting them, other times fish becomes adrift because there is ni stream in the reservoir to guide the way upstream. Fish that gets into the turbine chamber undergoes from a pressure of several bars to 1 bar and dies of sudden decompression.
I could talk a lot more about it, if someone is curious, try searching for a dam called Belo Monte, which sums up what kind of troubles a hydroelectric system can cause.

Excuse me for any grammar mistakes, English is not my main language.

[simonbowman]

RDP Marine Australia for the new multi stage turbine update systems

[lawson]

i thought dams actually increase flooding

[mohdkhairolhilmimatlazim]

How about small hydro power from run off river, what is the environmental and socio impacts?

[remcovanwoerkom]

so i was thinking, if you were to have a really high waterfall and you'd build a dam at the top, then have big pipelines go all the way down and then have a couple turbines at the bottom, wouldn't that utilise a lot more of the potential energy? with some dams it looks like they are only using like 20 meters of heigt difference.

[simonbowman]

MORE ON DAMS BETTER OUTPUT WITH THE SAME VOLUME OF WATER, , , ,

[rawstarmusic]

Hydro electric is good but has to be done properly. What I want you to address is food. Red meat uses a lot of fressh water and resources. Plants use less fresh water and fertilizers. Fish uses no fresh water and fertilizers. Oceans make up 70% of the planet. Address eating fish for nutrients omega-3, vitamins and protein. California has no water but they eat burgers and fresh water plants.

[simonbowman]

you wish to make a difference??
Hydro electricity
The Frozen technology
An open letter to the world
By Simon Bowman
Australia
Since the beginning the growth of hydro science has been slow and we have made very little forward movement in the past 40 years.
The ideas that might make it leap forward with more efficient use of the water are stifled by education being thought of as immovable .
What was wrong yesterday will be wrong forever and new tech can't get around a problem.

This is not a problem solving mind set

Australia has forced many an idea to leave this country to grow
just because we have an issue with new ideas

A classic example was Metal Storm a new type of fire arm that had no magazine and no brass cartridges to hold the propellent.
all the bullets are held in the barrel and with this configuration the barrels can be stacked this gives it a rate of fire unmatched anywhere
It had to leave Australia to become a product or stay and die.

This I fear is the same story about to happen with the hydroelectric field
For the past two years RDP Marine Australia has been working on a system that can be retro fitted to all dams with tailraces longer than the turbine hall needs so it has to deal with a backpressure higher than is ideal creating a loss that can now be recovered

At this point it should also be noted that the inventor asks where is it written that water storage dams can’t make hydro power to ?

So is this inventor saying “This is the answer to all ur power needs?”

No of course not but like all good things it is a part of a solution it will fill the gap for base load green power
Lets not forget at the location where these units will be fitted has most of the infrastructure already in place to build the system

NOW TO THE ISSUES
There are three main issues right of the top that are the most commonly raised as why it will not happen
So lets stomp on them straight off

1, fit an item into the tailrace and backpressure will rise in the turbines
No this is not true as a this system if done right it can be fitted to be like a tuned exhaust for a car

2, There will be to little back pressure so RPM will not be constant
Again No if the system is correctly fitted this to is a dead issue

3, Dissolved gasses that are held in suspension
This is a minor issue and most chief engineers are well capable to work with this

4, NOW this one can be a deal-breaker it is to do with a what if question.
So what if the new set of turbines go down or just one ?
Well if one or all freeze up the main turbine hall will be unaffected and no issues flowing up hill
These four issues are the most common reasons I am told No

It is this closed thinking (knee jerk response) to a new idea from the same family of being blinded by their education that stifles the industry moving forward

The one question I have no answer to is time
How long to install?

How long to service the new turbines?
To service time i still don't know but the system is set to allow a swap out setup so actual down time for that turbine slot is less than two hours and the rest of the system remains running during the swap

How much will it cost?
I can guess only the price but the price is not so high as to be to costly

Whats its life span?
Well with servicing I can see it giving service for the life of the dam

NOW the big question Money!!
this is a fluid issue shall we say the rate changes and i have stated previously money values but the income is in two parts the improved tailrace efficiency and the second bank of turbines should be close to 10% extra income

The one main issue I find so wrong is the time line needed from this point to the world seeing a working unit.
The tech is there to make it
The skills are available to hire
The market is in need of this item

But the price will rise with demand as the population is getting bigger but the book keepers are happy to see it remain as a rare item with a limited output that pushes up the price

The first adopters have always been the biggest winners I wonder in this area if it will be the big four or will a player from left field run on and wipe the floor with the rest standing with their hands in their pockets confused as to what just happened

Well, I hope this has given you food for thought and made you pause your thinking and look into what I have said I do not expect you to just except what I have stated as fact nor do I know it all so I can learn a new thing to.

Please pass this around let the open minded look it over and pass judgment after all the driver in the end is the need and the ability to see what is needed down the road is the saving grace of the human species to plan ahead

If you think i have missed a point or you have questions please comment i will respond well within 24hr and as i have said many times i don't know it all and you never stop learning