3. Basic Power
Conversion Steps
The water at the top of the penstock (described on page 18) possesses potential energy. This is what
is being finally transformed into electricity. This transformation takes a couple of steps as described
below.
Water possessing Potential Energy
(at the top of the penstock)
Potential Energy of water transforms into Kinetic
Energy up to the bottom of penstock
Kinetic Energy of water transforms into Mechanical Energy by rotating the turbine
Mechanical Energy transforms into
Electrical Energy by rotating the generator shaft
The micro-hydro technology is used to transform the energy in water into electricity. This technology
needs certain infrastructure, as detailed in section 5. Energy loss takes place during the entire energy
transformation process as well as at the infrastructure. The designers, constructors and implementers
should pay due attention to ensure an optimum level of useful energy. A typical community based micro-
hydro village electrification scheme hardly surpasses an overall efficiency of 60%.
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