1. Geothermal Electricity Production
Most power plants need steam to generate electricity. The steam rotates a turbine that activates a
generator, which produces electricity. Many power plants still use fossil fuels to boil water for
steam. Geothermal power plants, however, use steam produced from reservoirs of hot water
found a couple of miles or more below the Earth's surface. There are three types of geothermal
power plants: dry steam, flash steam, and binary cycle.
hydroelectricity
HOW DOES IT WORK?
A dam is built where there is a natural lake or a big river in a valley. The dam is used to hold the
water and create pressure so that the water can produce more electrical power. There is
gravitational potential energy stored in the water and this energy is used to turn generators and
create electricity. These turbines are within tunnels in the dam wall. Electrical generators are
turned by these massive turbines and create electricity. Water flows through these tunnels with
great pressure and is used to turn these turbines. The water has immense pressure due to the great
height at which is kept in the dam. If there is a greater volume of water or there is a very large
difference between the water level and where it flows out than you can get more power out of the
water as it has greater potential energy. This difference in height of the water is called the head.
The generator contains 2 main parts: the rotor and the stator. The rotator is the part which rotates
and the wire has a huge magnet inside of it; and the stator is the part which is covered in copper.
The electrical current is created when the rotor spins around the copper wire on the stator. This is
the charge which is then used as electricity.
Nuclear power plant.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
For a nuclear reactor to create energy it is necessary for nuclear fission to take place. This occurs
when an atom is split into smaller particles and an enormous amount of energy is released in the
process. Uranium is used as the fuel for the reaction as it is radioactive, and is therefore unstable
enough to be broken down into smaller parts. The uranium atom absorbs a neutron and splits into
two equal parts and energy is created. This kinetic energy becomes heat energy as the particles
slow down, and it is this heat energy, which is used to produce electricity (see Extras / Links for
more information on the science involved). The heat is moved through a transfer medium, such
as water, and is used to turn water into steam. This steam turns a turbine, which is connected to a
generator. As the turbine turns the generator it creates electricity, which is then transferred to the
consumers.