Unit I – Energy Resources

Hydroelectricity
 Water flowing from higher level to lower level has
kinetic energy which can be converted to mechanical
energy and then to electrical energy.
 Hydro energy is an easily storable, conventional

renewable energy.
 Hydro energy is a function of weight of water and the

head through which the water falls.

Merits :
 Hydro is a flexible source of electricity.
 Elimination of the cost of fuel.
 Suitability for industrial applications

 Reduced CO emissions
2
Demerits :
 Ecosystem damage and loss of land
 Methane emissions (from reservoirs)
 Need to relocate the people living where the reservoirs

are planned
 Water stored in the upper reservoir/lake/pond
constitutes the primary energy.
 Primary energy is a renewable energy with recurring

period of one year or six months.

 Primary available energy is useful for energy

conservation.
 The total estimated hydro electric resources in the

world are 2261000 MW.

 Estimated exploitation in terms of installed capacity
will be 553,800 MW i.e.,24.49%
 Percentage of unexploited hydro resources is higher in

less developed countries like Asia and Africa.

 India stands seventh in the serial list of nations with

hydro resources.
 Resources in Northern and North-Eastern region of

India are yet to be exploited.

 Major difficulties in exploitation are high installation
and development costs of civil works, high cost of long
transmission lines, long construction periods, lack of
financial resources and environmental problems like
earthquake possibility, deforestation and submergence
of agricultural lands.
 The most common method of classifying the types of
Hydro Electric power plants is on the basis of available
head of water between the reservoir level and the turbine
tail race(channel that carries water away from a turbine)
level.
 The selection of turbine is based on the head, the flow
rate and output rating.
 The three categories of hydroelectric power plants are:
◦ High head (>150m)
◦ Medium head (20-150 m)
◦ Low head (2 – 20 m)
 Energy reserve in the reservoir is proportional to the
head (H) of water and quantity (Q) of water in the
reservoir.
 Recently, the energy planners have given the following

classification:
◦ Small Hydro (less than and upto 15 MW)
◦ Mini Hydro (upto 1 MW)
◦ Micro Hydro (upto 100 kW)
Conventional (dams):
 Most hydro electric power comes from the potential

energy of dam water driving a water turbine and

generator.
 The power extracted from the water depends on the

volume and on the difference in height between the

source and the water’s outflow.
 The height difference is called the head.
 The amount of potential energy is proportional to head.
 A large pipe deliver water to the turbine.
Pumped storage:
 Produces electricity to supply high peak demands by

moving water between reservoirs at different

elevations.
 At times of low electrical demand, excess generation

capacity is used to pump water into the higher

reservoir.
 When there is higher demand, water is released back

into the lower reservoir through a turbine.

Run of the river
 Small or no reservoir capacity, so that the water

coming from upstream must be used for generation at

that moment, or must be allowed to bypass the dam.
Tide:
 Makes use of the daily rise and fall of ocean water due

to tide; such sources are highly predictable, and if

conditions permit construction of reservoirs, can also
be dispatchable to generate power during high demand
periods.
Underground:
 Makes use of a large natural height difference between

two water ways, such as a waterfall or mountain lake.

 An underground tunnel is constructed to take water

from the high reservoir to the lower outlet water way.

 Electric power production at a hydroelectric power
plants is P = ρhrgk, where
 P is power in Watts
 ρ is the density of water,
 ‘h’ is height in metres,
 ‘r’ is flow rate in cubic metres per second
 ‘g’ is acceleration due to gravity.
 ‘k’ is coefficient of efficiency ranging from 0 to 1.
 Hydro energy is a clean, environment friendly
renewable energy.
 Energy source is water reservoir head renewed during

rains and melting of snow.

 About 25% of electrical power generation in India is by

Hydro Electric power plants.