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can the machenical energy of the train somehow be used to run the turbine and generate electricity

can the machenical energy of the train somehow be used to run the turbine and generate electricity

Grade:9

1 Answers

Ayush Mishra
27 Points
6 years ago
The excess energy, quite literally, went down the drain.If all of the energy into the turbine were to produce electricity, this means that something in the electrical circuit must account for it. Whether the excess fluid flow energy ever was converted into electricity at all in the first place depends on the design of the generator.In the case of a simple alternator using permanent magnets, increasing the fluid flow would result in an increase in speed. This, in turn, would increase the voltage (and frequency) in the raw AC circuit. If connected to a simple resistive circuit (with the resistor also termed the “load”), the load is forced to absorb and dissipate the energy by Ohm’s Law for Power:P = V^2 / RSince all of the energy dissipated becomes heat in a resistive load, then the resistor will get hotter. If the generator produces more voltage and current than the resistor (or other circuit elements) can handle, then something will overheat and burn up. That’s what fuses and circuit breakers are for. Once that happens, the turbine will have no electrical load to push against and effectively be allowed to freewheel until it matches (or nearly so) the velocity of the water moving through it at some equilibrium point.When a more sophisticated field alternator is used, a voltage regulator is used to control the amount of current going to the electromagnetic field coils. This is how variable speed alternators in nearly all automobiles work. The alternator’s output is regulated to be a constant voltage by varying the strength of the electromagnetic field from nearly zero to the maximum output. Of course, in this case, because the output AC is rectified into DC and then fed into a battery (which soaks up and smooths the power), all is well for the electrical systems connected to it. One should never disconnect an automobile battery while the engine is running!I know this may all sound confusing but so much depends on the design of the particular system. One thing is for sure, and that’s that if the moving water’s energy is not used, then it merely ends up downstream from the turbine, or literally “down the drain.”

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