Academic 2022

Year 2023
 Academic 2022
Year 2023

Generation of electrical energy

 Content Academic 2022
Year 2023

1. Energy sources
1. Classification
2. Power plants
1. Turbine-alternator system
2. Conventional power plants
1. Hydroelectric power plants
2. Thermal power plants
3. Nuclear power plants
 Content Academic 2022
Year 2023

3. Non-conventional power plants

1. Solar power plants
2. Wind power plants
3. Other ways to produce electrical energy

3. Transport of electrical energy

4. Electric energy and sustainability
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What is renewable? Year 2023

• When we use a resource at a rhythm

slower than the Earth can regenerate it,
we are talking about a renewable source.
– Use of wind or solar energy.
• When we use a resource at a higher
rhythm than the Earth can regenerate it,
we are talking about a non-renewable
source.
– Use of petrol in thermal power plants.
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Types of energy sources Year 2023
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Year 2023

Power plants

How electricity is produced to be

used everywhere
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Turbine alternator system Year 2023

• When an alternator turns, it produces

alternating current (AC).
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Year 2023

Conventional power plants

The first power plants invented

and still the most used in the
whole World
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Hydroelectric power plants Year 2023
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Hydroelectric power plants Year 2023

• The potential energy of a high water

reservoir is converted into kinetic when the
water is released.
• Water is able to move the turbine and
therefore produce electricity.
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Hydroelectric power plants Year 2023

• Environmental aspects:
– This plant uses renewable energy.
– There is always an impact in the environment
because the flow of the river is modified. For
example: some animals can die trapped in the
filters of the plant.
– The construction of the dam changes the flow of
the river, affecting it ecosystem.
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Fossil fuel thermal power plants Year 2023
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Fossil fuel thermal power plants Year 2023

• A closed water circuit if flowing

continuously.
• This water is heated thanks to fossil fuels
combustion in the boiler.
• High pressure steam is then produced,
and the turbine is moved.
• Steam is cooled down to return to liquid
state thanks to cooling tower. Some plants
use rivers to make this cooling process.
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Fossil fuel thermal power plants Year 2023

• Environmental aspects:
– This plant uses non-renewable energy.
– There is pollution because of the combustion of
fossil fuels.
– Some plants use a river to cool down the water in
the condenser. This can affect the ecosystem of
the river.
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Nuclear power plants Year 2023
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Nuclear power plants Year 2023

• They work in the same way as thermal

power plants
• This water is heated thanks to uranium
nuclear chain reaction in the reactor
vessel.
• High pressure steam is then produced,
and the turbine is moved.
• Steam is cooled down to return to liquid
state thanks to cooling tower.
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Nuclear power plants Year 2023

• Environmental aspects:
– The classification of nuclear energy is
controversial. For this unit we are considering it
non-renewable.
– There is no pollution when the plant works,
because there is not combustion of fossil fuels.
– The big issue in nuclear power plants is the
nuclear waste. They can be radioactive for many
years. For this reason, they are storage in big
containers covered in concrete to avoid a
radiation leakage.
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Year 2023

Non-conventional power plants

This type appeared due to the

environmental problems of the
conventional power plants
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Characteristics Year 2023

• They don’t work constantly due to energy

source conditions (no wind, clouds,…).
• This type of plants contaminates less and
use renewable sources.
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Wind power plants Year 2023
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Wind power plants Year 2023

• Every windmill has a turbine that moves

with the wind and generates electricity.
• The individual energy of every turbine is
concentrated and transported where is
needed.
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Thermal solar power plants Year 2023
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Thermal solar power plants Year 2023

• Individual adjustable mirrors concentrate

sun rays in a big boiler tower.
• Water is heated and the electricity is
produced in the same way as is in nuclear
and fossil fuel thermal power plants.
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Photovoltaic solar power plants Year 2023
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Photovoltaic solar power plants Year 2023

• Photovoltaic panels produce electrical energy

thanks to photovoltaic cells.
• Panels produce DC current.
• This energy can be stored in batteries in
order to have electricity when there is no
sunlight.
• DC current is transformed in AC thanks to an
inverter, and it is distributed.
• Like windmills, panel’s energy can be
concentrated before being distributed.
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Geothermal power plants Year 2023
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Geothermal power plants Year 2023

• Water is heated using the internal heat

inside the ground (magma).
• The classical steam turbine method of
nuclear and other plants is used to
produce electricity.
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Geothermal energy at home Year 2023

• Geothermal energy can be used at home.

• It uses the same principle of the
geothermal power plant, but the tubes only
go some meters underground.
• This produces a constant flow of water at
constant temperature all year around. This
advantage is used for cooling or heating
the house.
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Geothermal energy at home Year 2023
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Biomass power plants Year 2023
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Biomass power plants Year 2023

• Biomass consist in all-natural compounds

that are produced by natural processes.
• This material properly prepared acts as a
fuel for this type of plant, that works as
fossil fuel thermal plants.
• The ashes produced in the combustion
can be reused for agriculture.
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Ocean power plants Year 2023
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Ocean power plants Year 2023

• In this type of plant, turbine is move thanks

to the energy produced by the water flow
in oceans and seas.
• This energy can come from:
– Mechanical energy in tides.
– Mechanical energy in waves.
– Energy from ocean’s thermal difference.
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Year 2023

Electricity transportation

How electricity arrives everywhere

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Electricity transportation Year 2023

• Electricity is produced in AC because is

more efficient to transport.
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Electricity transportation Year 2023

• Power plants generate enough power for

the area they cover.
• When current (I) is high, energy is lost
during the transportation (Joule effect).
• Electricity is produced in the power plant
with high voltage (V) to keep the same
power but reduce current.
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Electricity transportation Year 2023

• Voltage is then reduced for some heavy

industries (medium voltage network).
• And voltage is reduced again for the
conventional industries and homes (low
voltage network).
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Electricity transportation example Year 2023

• You have 10 photovoltaic solar panels at

home that produce 10KW.
• You want to insert this energy into the
electrical network.
• In your area the standard values of voltage
are:
– High voltage network: 10 KV
– Medium voltage network: 1.5 KV
– Low voltage network: 220 V
• What would the maximum value of current at
every step of the network?
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Electricity transportation example Year 2023

• High voltage:

• Medium voltage:
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Electricity transportation example Year 2023

• Low voltage:
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Year 2023

Electric energy and sustainability

How electricity can be used in an

efficient and sustainable way
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Consuming less electric energy Year 2023

• Use light colors in walls and roofs to use

the solar energy as much as possible.
• Switch off the lights when you do not need
it.
• Use LED technology for light bulbs.
• Unplug the devices when you do not need
them. Stand by mode consumes up to
10% of the total energy of the device.
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Consuming less electric energy Year 2023

• Choose low consumption appliances.

• Place the fridge and the freezer away from
heat sources.
• Use washing and dishwashing machines
at full load.
• When you are cooking, adapt saucepans
to the right hob.
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Consuming less electric energy Year 2023

• Reinforce the thermal insulators to avoid

thermal loss.
• In winter, allow the sunlight to enter during
the day and close the blinder at night. This
will help to keep the temperature inside.