Turbine Runner Type in Hydroelectricity Various types of water turbine runners. From left to right: Pelton Wheel, two types of Francis Turbine and Kaplan Turbine
Hydroelectricity energy is a renewable energy source dependent upon the hydrologic cycle of water, which involves evaporation, precipitation and the flow of water due to gravity. Canada has abundant water resources and a geography that provides many opportunities to produce low-cost energy. In fact, accessing the energy from flowing waters has played an important role in the economic and social development of Canada for the past three centuries.
Hydroelectricity is electricity generated by hydropower, i.e., the production of power through use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy. Once a hydroelectric complex is constructed, the project produces no direct waste, and has a considerably lower output level of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) than fossil fuel powered energy plants. Worldwide, hydroelectricity supplied an estimated 816 GWe in 2005. This was approximately 20% of the world's electricity, and accounted for about 88% of electricity from renewable sources.
Hydroelectricity is obtained from the energy contained in falling water; it is a renewable, comparatively nonpolluting energy source and Canada's largest source of electric power generation. In N America in the 1850s the energy content of moving water was exploited through the use of small-capacity waterwheels and turbines for the direct drive of machinery, for example, in gristmills and sawmills. By the 1860s many hundreds of turbines, ranging up to 1000 HP capacity, were manufactured annually in the US and by the early 1870s the production of at least one Canadian factory was averaging about 20 machines per year. Hydroelectricity was introduced in the 1880s, soon after Thomas Edison began manufacturing direct-current (DC) electric generators, which were initially belt driven by steam engines. It was not long before enterprising mill owners began to install generators of up to 10-12 kW capacity, with belt drives from existing mill turbines, to provide electric lighting in the mills and adjacent premises.
Hydroelectricity is another term for power generated by harnessing the power of moving water. Not necessarily falling water, just moving water. There are many famous such generating stations in the world, not the least of them at Niagara Falls, Grand Coulee and Boulder Dam. These are just a few of the many examples of energy produced by falling water. On the other hand, a small mill set in the rapids of a fast-moving stream is also an example of it in action, on a lesser scale. The truth is that any steady current of flowing water from a river or other waterway can be converted to power.
How the Dam hydroelectric works? The water is held in a reservoir as per picture above (Dam Hydroelectricity), behind the dam, the water close to the control gates is where the intake is, and when the control gates open, the water rushes through the penstock and turns the turbine. After the water does so, it goes through the outflow into the river. The turbine spins the generator, and the electricity goes to the transformer in the powerhouse. Then the transformer transforms the electricity into a usable form, and the electricity travels through the power lines and goes to homes and businesses.
One more thing that is needed is location. To build a dam there has to be valleys and rivers. This will help with the building of the dam. There has to be great location or it won’t work. The land cannot be flat, or there is no way to build a dam. Canada, USA, the former USSR, Brazil, China, Norway, Japan, Sweden, India, and France all use hydroelectric energy. These countries are in order from the largest number of kilowatts in billions that are used each year.
There are advantages and disadvantages of using hydroelectricity energy. Here are some of the advantages. It is renewable, clean, non-polluting, and it prevents floods. Not all dams produce electricity, but they prevent flooding, and others do both.
As said, there are advantages of using hydroelectricity energy. There are disadvantages too. Here are some of the disadvantages. Hydroelectricity dams can harm many species that live on the area, the land around the dam can be destroyed, and the furious turbines will kill the fish.
As said before, dam hydroelectricity energy is one of many sources of electricity in the world. The future of hydroelectricity power is looking like it will still be used in the next century or more, because the world will still have plenty of running water and the need for lots of non-polluting energy.
Turbine Runner Type in Hydroelectricity 
