Discussion
Our hypothesis was correct according to the results that we recorded. We stated that a moving water source if applied to a water wheel will create renewable energy. Although our water flow rate is pretty little, the weight that we lifted was also relatively small. According to our experiment you can just imagine how much energy could be generated by a large water flow rate such as Niagara Falls. The two categories that were recorded onto our table was the wind up time and Flow rate. What wind up time is, is how long it takes for the water to spin the wheel thus causing the load to rise eventually to the top. Flow rate is how much water that is needed for the weight to be lifted this is measured in cups/seconds. As you can see from our data the higher the flow rate the longer it took for the water to lift the load. There are a lot of factors that can affect our observations. For example if we had turned the faucet on harder or softer the results will differ accordingly. Also the water sometimes might not hit the exact same spot every time it flows down. This causes the wheel to suddenly spin the other direction clockwise or counter clockwise. If you increase the weight of the load that you are lifting this too will affect your data. The height and size of the water wheel will also undoubtedly affect the data. Changing the design of the water wheel such as changing the number of paddles or the size of the bend in the paddles will definitely give you different results especially wind up time.
Using water to lift a load is also known as hydraulic lifting. Machines that you use and see in your daily life all depend on hydraulics. In hydraulic machines, pipes carry a liquid from a pump to cylinders where the liquid drives pistons with great force. For example in an earth mover pistons drive the earth moving shovel into the ground and then rises scooping up a heavy load of soil. Why should you use water instead of air is because liquid is incompressible, which means that if you press on it you cannot change the volume. The hydraulics system is very easy to add force multiplication just like any other common mechanical systems. How this works is because pressure remains constant in a closed system, because of this the pressure in the fluid is equal and remains constant. Therefore the bigger area the bigger the force. For the hydraulics systems to work all the parts have to work in unison. A formula that represents this statement is force=pressure x area.
A common question concerning hydro power is how efficient is it? Efficiency is the productive result with the maximum of wasted effort. The ratio of work done or energy expanded to the energy supplied in the form of fuel. In this case it is water. When discussing efficiency and water wheels there are always two types of water wheels, undershot and overshot. The undershot is a paddle wheel that turns under the water current. This water wheel requires gears that could drive a typical millstone. The problems with undershot water wheels are if the levels of rivers fall in the dry season, and their flow diminishes, undershot wheels will not perform as well. Another problem is if they are fixed to the banks of rivers, their paddles can end up above the water flow. The overshot wheel is more popular because it is more efficient. The overshot wheel receives water from above, often from specially constructed channels; it uses the water flowing downhill to create energy. An overshot wheel requires gears and an elevated stream of water.
Many successful empires all used hydro power to create energy. The ancient Romans used water wheels to create energy. Specifically the most famous one is located at Barbegal in Southern France. Ancient China also used waterpower for a source of energy. The Chinese built large rotary mills that were typically horizontal. The Chinese didn’t just used the mills for generating water into energy they also used them for hulling rice and crushing ore. In Medieval times the usage of water mills was massive. Every little town or big city relied on water mills to survive. The system they used was called irrigation. The irrigation system used pipes and water mills to create energy. Fast forward to present day technology has already surpassed the ancient civilizations most complex systems. However we as human beings are still amazed at the simplicity yet efficiency of the water mill.
Someday fossil fuels will undoubtedly be all used up. That is why scientists all around the world are trying to find another way to produce energy. Experimenting with wind, the sun, and many other quirky and unusual methods. However hydro power is the best of them all and the direction must be pointed towards hydroelectricity for the future.
Using water to lift a load is also known as hydraulic lifting. Machines that you use and see in your daily life all depend on hydraulics. In hydraulic machines, pipes carry a liquid from a pump to cylinders where the liquid drives pistons with great force. For example in an earth mover pistons drive the earth moving shovel into the ground and then rises scooping up a heavy load of soil. Why should you use water instead of air is because liquid is incompressible, which means that if you press on it you cannot change the volume. The hydraulics system is very easy to add force multiplication just like any other common mechanical systems. How this works is because pressure remains constant in a closed system, because of this the pressure in the fluid is equal and remains constant. Therefore the bigger area the bigger the force. For the hydraulics systems to work all the parts have to work in unison. A formula that represents this statement is force=pressure x area.
A common question concerning hydro power is how efficient is it? Efficiency is the productive result with the maximum of wasted effort. The ratio of work done or energy expanded to the energy supplied in the form of fuel. In this case it is water. When discussing efficiency and water wheels there are always two types of water wheels, undershot and overshot. The undershot is a paddle wheel that turns under the water current. This water wheel requires gears that could drive a typical millstone. The problems with undershot water wheels are if the levels of rivers fall in the dry season, and their flow diminishes, undershot wheels will not perform as well. Another problem is if they are fixed to the banks of rivers, their paddles can end up above the water flow. The overshot wheel is more popular because it is more efficient. The overshot wheel receives water from above, often from specially constructed channels; it uses the water flowing downhill to create energy. An overshot wheel requires gears and an elevated stream of water.
Many successful empires all used hydro power to create energy. The ancient Romans used water wheels to create energy. Specifically the most famous one is located at Barbegal in Southern France. Ancient China also used waterpower for a source of energy. The Chinese built large rotary mills that were typically horizontal. The Chinese didn’t just used the mills for generating water into energy they also used them for hulling rice and crushing ore. In Medieval times the usage of water mills was massive. Every little town or big city relied on water mills to survive. The system they used was called irrigation. The irrigation system used pipes and water mills to create energy. Fast forward to present day technology has already surpassed the ancient civilizations most complex systems. However we as human beings are still amazed at the simplicity yet efficiency of the water mill.
Someday fossil fuels will undoubtedly be all used up. That is why scientists all around the world are trying to find another way to produce energy. Experimenting with wind, the sun, and many other quirky and unusual methods. However hydro power is the best of them all and the direction must be pointed towards hydroelectricity for the future.
This is a Chinese water mill made from timber and operates exactly like a wheel.
This diagram represents the formula of force=pressure x area.
This is a diagram of an overshot water wheel. This is different than an undershot waterwheel because the water source is flowing down to create energy. The undershot water wheel has energy created from a water current.