A Generator

Is a device that converts kinetic energy to

electrical energy.

A turbine spins the

generator.
 Generators Grand Coulee Dam
The water comes out of the
dam down this pipe to turn
the turbine and generator.

40’

Activity: Go in your school where you have tiled floors, they are
1 foot, count off 40 of them. That is how big the diameter of the
pipe is carrying water. Is that big?
 Think of this – there is a big tube like you just saw
Generators
feeding every one of these generators.
Power output 600 MW, 600,000,000 watts each. A
toaster uses 500 watts - how many toasters will it run?

Compare to
size of man!
 Inside the Wind Turbine

So how can we pick the right size generator for our town?

The area of the disc covered by the

Ring around tips of propeller and the wind speeds determines
the propeller. the amount of energy it will produce.

Area covered
by propeller
when it spins.
 Find the size of wind turbine you need.
From your calculations, how many kW did you
need? ________________

For example, if you

needed 300 kW, you
would get a turbine
with a 33 meter
diameter rotor.
 Inside the
box

Some pictures
to show you
the size of
these things
compared to a
man.
 Coal fired power plants burn the coal,
generate heat and steam, which spins a
steam turbine to turn the electric generator.
Generator

Steam
Turbine
 We now have our power generated.

•How do you think it gets to your house?

How about something called a GRID?
 THE POWER GRID
These power generating
systems are all tied together
by lines like you see in photos.

Look at the
color of the
lines and see
how many volts
are on the
lines.
 THE GRID

Service lines by helicopter

High tension lines are inspected and repaired
by men riding on the outside of a helicopter.

•Go to this website

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tzga6q
AaBA

•http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=uEKbMMHAwm0
What does the voltage look like coming
into your house?

It is a sine
wave , there
1 cycle
are 60 cycles
per second.
The wave will
repeat 60
times a
second.
 Id ea
so n’s
Edi
DC –

ea
’s Id
s l a
– Te
AC
“War of the Currents in the late 1800’s was due to different
ideas of Edison, Westinghouse, and Tesla. Edison wanted a DC
network, but lost out to Tesla and Westinghouse.

Nikola Tesla, Serbian-

Thomas Edison, George Westinghouse, American inventor,
American inventor and American entrepreneur physicist, and electro-
businessman, was and engineer, backed mechanical engineer,
known as "The Wizard financially the was known as "The
of Menlo Park" and development of a Wizard of The West"[1]
pushed for the practical AC power and was instrumental
development of a DC network. in developing AC
power network. networks.

We have AC voltage in our houses.

 We can change AC voltages up or down by using
transformers.
You go from 300,000 volts on the
big lines down to 120 volts for
your house.
First power station using AC voltage
in Telluride, CO about 1890

First power poles

feeding the gold
mine.

The Nunn power station was the first to

transmit Alternating Current (AC electricity)
over a long distance, supplying power to the
Gold King Mill near Telluride, Colorado