Hydroelectric turbine HELP

AFTER you've done your research and concluded your experiments, it is time to prepare for the science fair. Ask specific questions about preparing for a science fair, including how to set up your display board, how to prepare a presentation, etc. (Please post questions about selecting a project or conducting your experiment by posting in the appropriate "area of science" forum.)

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Shaheer1245
Posts: 3
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2014 7:56 pm
Occupation: Student
Project Question: For a project at school I have to make a hydroelectric small scale turbine. I need to know how the copper and the magnets work. All I know is that there is something to do with a magnetic flux that makes energy or something.
Project Due Date: January 25th
Project Status: I am just starting

Hydroelectric turbine HELP

Post by Shaheer1245 »

I need help in constructing my hydroelectric turbine. The project is supposed to be made out of recycled items and I need to know what the science behind it is. I am using magnets and coils to power the turbine and I didnt start yet. THere is only a week left. Pls help ASAP.
theborg
Moderator
Posts: 360
Joined: Mon Oct 03, 2011 12:26 pm
Occupation: Space Test Analyst
Project Question: "To explain all nature is too difficult a task for any one man. 'Tis much better to do a little with certainty and leave the rest for others that come after you, than to explain all things by conjecture without making sure of anything." - Sir Isaac Newton
Project Due Date: N/A
Project Status: Not applicable

Re: Hydroelectric turbine HELP

Post by theborg »

Shaheer,

Thank you for your question. Much information can be found on the operation of hydroelectric power. However, in just a few words, they work on a concept called Electromagnetic Induction. While the Science and math behind it can be quite difficult, the concept is fairly simple. Basically, a coil of wire in a changing magnetic field will have a current induced if connected to a load. The trick is to get a changing magnetic field with respect to the coil of wire. This can be done a few ways, but the two you will want to focus on is either rotating the coil in close proximity to the magnet or rotate the magnet in close proximity to the coil of wire. This is what a hydroelectric turbine does. As water falls through a turbine it spins either magnets with respect to coils of wire or vice versa to induce a current.

For your project, you could build a water wheel that when it spins would rotate a magnet connected in some way to the axis of rotation with a coil of wire positioned such that the magnetic field is parallel to the coil.

You can find a decent description of hydroelectric power here:

http://water.usgs.gov/edu/hyhowworks.html

Additionally here is a SB project that deals with Faraday's Law and Lenz's Law, the underlying scientific principles that governs Electromagnetic Induction.

https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... p097.shtml
Hope this helps.

theborg
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Science Buddies science fair guide:
http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_guide_index.shtml

Science Buddies project ideas:
http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas.shtml
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