Conventional dams

Mainstream hydropower

Old-fashioned hydropower projects form a lot of the water power produced inside U.S. these days and have now already been performing this reliably for many years.

Some conventional hydropower projects use a dam to get and launch water in controlled conditions. Dams tend to be constructed on streams in which there was a fall in height generating what exactly is generally “head” — the level distinction between water contained in the reservoir behind the dam hence associated with the water introduced underneath the dam, utilize the gravity of this streaming liquid to make clean renewable energy. A higher head means that liquid will flow with more force through a turbine to generate even more power.

Liquid saved behind a dam enters the turbine through a pipeline called a penstock. Water flows from penstock to turn the blades of a turbine, which spins a shaft connected to the generator that yields electrical energy. Water after that moves from the turbine and into the river beyond.