Hydro Electric Power Plant

o In this lecture, we will discuss Hydro Electric

Power Plant, which includes:
o Advantages and disadvantages
o Basic Introduction of hydro power
o Fundamental parts of hydro power plant
 Hydro Electric Power Plant
Advantages of hydro power plant :
o Water is a renewable energy source.
o Inexpensive electricity
o Maintenance and operation charges are very low.
o The efficiency of the plant does not change with age.
o Hydro-electric power plants are also useful for flood control and irrigation.
o purposes, fishery and recreation.
o Have a longer life like 100 to 125 years.
o Stored water can also be used for domestic water supply.
o Since hydro-electric power plants run at low speeds(300 to 400 rpm) there is no

requirement of special alloy steel construction materials or specialized mechanical

maintenance.
 Hydro Electric Power Plant
o Advantages of hydro power plant :
o Flexibility
o Low cost
o Suitability for industrial applications
o Negligible carbon dioxide emission
o No sulphur or nitrogen oxides
 Hydro Electric Power Plant
o Disadvantages of hydel power plant
o The initial cost of the plant is very high.
o Since they are located far away from the load centre, cost of transmission lines and

transmission losses will be more.

o During drought season the power production may be reduced or even stopped due to

insufficient water in the reservoir.

o Water in the reservoir is lost by evaporation.
o Damage to eco systems
o Mosquitos
o Earthquakes due to heavy water weight on a specific region of earth
o Seepage into nearby agricultural lands
o People are displaced from their villages to unknown places
Basics of Hydro Power Generation
o Most widely used renewable source of energy for generating electricity on large
scale basis is hydropower
o The power obtained from river or ocean water is called as hydropower.
o Hydropower is the renewable source of energy since water is available in large
quantities from rain, rivers, and oceans and this is will be available for unlimited
time to come.
o Most hydroelectric power comes from the potential energy of dammed water
driving a water turbine and generator.
o Potential energy of water is converted into kinetic energy due t difference in
height.
o The power extracted from the water depends on the volume and on the difference
in height between the source and the water's outflow.
Basics of Hydro Power Generation
o Hydroelectric power (hydropower) systems convert the kinetic
energy in flowing water into electric energy.
o Falling or flowing water turns a propeller like piece called a turbine.
o The turbine turns a metal shaft in an electric generator which
produces electricity.
Fundamental parts of hydro power plant are-
Fundamental parts of hydro power plants
Layout of hydro power plants
The essential components/features of Hydro power plant:
o 1. Catchment area.
o 2. Reservoir.
o 3. Dam and intake house.
o 4. water way.
o 5. Tail race or outlet water way.
o 6. Power house.
o Penstock
o Surge tank
o Turbines and generators
o Switchgear and protection
Catchment area.
o The catchment area of a hydro plant is the whole area
behind the dam, draining into a stream or river across
which the dam has been built at a suitable place.

Water reservoir
o In a reservoir the water collected from the catchment
area is stored behind a dam.
o Catchment area gets its water from rain and streams.
o The level of water surface in the reservoir is called
Head water level.
o Continuous availability of water is a basic necessity
for a hydro-electric power plant.
Dam
o The purpose of the dam is to store the water and to regulate the out going flow
of water.
o The dam helps to store all the incoming water. It also helps to increase the head
of the water.
o In order to generate a required quantity of power it is necessary that a sufficient
head is available.
Spillway:
o Excess accumulation of water endangers the stability of dam construction. Also
in order to avoid the over flow of water out of the dam especially during rainy
seasons spillways are provided. This prevents the rise of water level in the dam.
o Spillways are passages which allows the excess water to flow to a storage area
away from the dam.
Gate:
o A gate is used to regulate or control the flow of water from the dam.
Pressure tunnel:
o It is a passage that carries water from the reservoir to the surge tank.
Surge tank:
o A Surge tank is a small reservoir or tank in which the water level rises or falls due to
sudden changes in pressure.
o Purpose of surge tank is to serve as a supply tank to the turbine when the water in the
pipe is accelerated during increased load conditions and as a storage tank when the
water is decelerating during reduced load conditions.
o To reduce the distance between the free water surface in the dam and the turbine,
thereby reducing the water-hammer effect on penstock
o Protect the upstream tunnel from high pressure rise.
Water-hammer effect :
o The water hammer is defined as the change in pressure rapidly above or below
normal pressure caused by sudden change in the rate of water flow through the pipe,
according to the demand of prime mover i.e. turbine
Water Ways.
o Water ways are the passages, through which the water is conveyed to the turbines from
the dam.
o These may include tunnels, canals, flumes, forebays and penstocks and also surge tanks.

Forebay
o A forebay is an enlarged passage for drawing the water from the reservoir or the river
and giving it to the pipe lines or canals.

Draft tube:
o It is connected to the outlet of the turbine. It allows the turbine to be placed above the
tail water level.

Tail water level or Tail race:

o Tail water level is the water level after the discharge from the turbine.
o The discharged water is sent to the river, thus the level of the river is the tail water level.
Power House.
o The power house is a building in which the turbines, alternators and the auxiliary plant are housed.
Some important items of equipment provided in the power house are as follows:
o i. Turbines
o ii. Generators
o iii. Governors
o iv. Relief valve for penstock setting
o v. Gate valve
o vi. Transformer
o vii. Switch board equipment and instruments
o viii. Oil circuit breaker
o ix. Storage batteries
o x. Outgoing connections
o xi. Cranes
o xii. Shops & offices