What is electric power generation?

What Does Electricity generation Mean

We explain what electrical power generation is, its types and how it is produced. In addition, stages of the electricity sector.

What is electric power generation?

The generation of electrical energy encompasses the set of different processes through which electricity can be produced , or what is the same, transform other forms of energy available in nature ( chemical , kinetic , thermal , light , nuclear energy , etc. ) in usable electrical energy.

The ability to produce electricity is one of the main concerns of contemporary humanity , since its consumption has become massive and normalized since its discovery in the 19th century, to the point of becoming indispensable in our daily lives. Our homes, industries , public lighting, even our personal appliances, depend on a constant and stable supply of electrical power.

Thus, world energy consumption is on the rise . While in 1900 global energy consumption was only 0.7 Terawatts (0.7 x 10 ¹² W), already in 2005 it was estimated at about 500 Exajoules (5 x 10 ²⁰ J), equivalent to 138,900 Terawatts.

The industrial sector is the largest consumer of all , and therefore the developed world (the so-called First World) is responsible for the highest percentages of consumption. The United States, for example, consumes 25% of the energy generated worldwide.

For this reason, the search for new and more efficient ways to obtain it is an area in which enormous scientific and technological resources are invested, especially at a time when the climatic effects of industrialization and the burning of fossil fuels have been made. not just obvious, but alarming.

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How is electrical energy produced?

Electricity, in general, is produced in large facilities called power plants or power plants, which, using different types of raw materials or natural processes, "manufacture" electricity.

For this, most of the power plants have alternators, which are large devices that generate alternating current . They are in turn composed of a coil, which is a large, rotating roll of electrically conductive material arranged in threads, and a magnet that remains fixed.

By rotating the coil inside the magnet at high speeds, a phenomenon called electromagnetic induction occurs : the resulting magnetic field mobilizes the electrons of the conductive material, creating a flow of energy that must then be "prepared" for distribution through a series of transformers.

The issue, then, is how to make the coil rotate at high speeds and steadily. In experiments carried out in the 19th century with electricity, it was generated by pedaling a bicycle, which produced only a tiny amount, of course.

In the case of power plants, something much more sophisticated is required: a turbine, which is a rotating device capable of transmitting mechanical energy to the coil , making it rotate, from the use of another force.

For example, you can use the falling water in a waterfall, or the constant blowing of the wind, or in most cases, the rising steam of a good amount of boiling water, for which it is necessary to generate a quantity constant heat , through the combustion of various types of materials.

As will be seen, the complete process of generating electrical energy is nothing more than the transformation of chemical energy into caloric energy (combustion), to later convert it into kinetic and mechanical (by mobilizing the turbine), and later into electromagnetic, that is, , in electricity.

Stages of the electricity sector

The electricity sector is the one that is in charge of the entire circuit of electricity production, from its inception to its consumption in each of our houses, for example. The entire energy production cycle in this sector involves the following stages:

• Generation . The first stage, logically, consists of obtaining electricity through the available means, in any of the types of power plant that exist.
• Transformation . Once electricity is obtained, it is usually subjected to a transformation process that prepares it for transport along a power line network, since electricity, unlike other products and goods, cannot be stored for consumption later, but must be transmitted immediately.

The so-called substations or transformer plants, located in the vicinity of the power plants, and also the transformation centers, close to the consuming populations , are responsible for this, since their mission is to modulate the electrical voltage to make the electricity transportable (high voltage) and consumable (low voltage).

• Distribution . Electricity must finally be supplied to our homes or to the industries that consume it through a wiring network known as power lines, which is usually handled by different energy distribution and marketing companies.
• Consumption . Finally, each consumer household or industrial plant has a link installation, which links the distribution networks with the indoor facilities, allowing energy to be present wherever we need it.

Types of electricity generation

Electricity generation is classified, normally, by the type of power plant in which it is produced, or what is the same, according to what specific procedure is used to, as we explained before, mobilize the turbine to rotate the coil that in turn. time generates electricity. Thus, we have:

• Thermoelectric energy from fossil fuels . Thermoelectric plants are those that produce electricity from heat energy, boiling large amounts of water, or similarly heating other gases, thanks to the combustion of various organic materials (coal, oil , natural gas or other fossil fuels) in a internal boiler. In these cases, the expanding gas is responsible for moving the turbine, and then it is cooled to be able to repeat the cycle.
• Thermonuclear energy . The principle of operation of thermonuclear energy is not different from that of thermoelectric energy, with the exception that the heat necessary to turn the turbines is obtained through various chemical processes of fission of heavy atoms , that is, by bombarding the particles with particles. atomic nuclei of certain elements , to force them to become lighter elements and release an immense amount of energy. In these plants, known as reactors, the same logic of the atomic bomb is followed , but applied for peaceful purposes. The disadvantage is that it produces radioactive waste that is difficult to handle and is highly toxic.
• Geothermal energy . Again, in this case the operation of the power plant obeys the thermoelectric model, but without the need for fuels or boilers, since the internal heat of the earth's crust is used . For this, a suitable tectonic location is required, that is, an area with tectonic activity that allows water to be poured into the depths of the earth and take advantage of the resulting steam to mobilize the electric turbines.
• Solar thermal energy . Similar to the previous cases, this type of power plant takes advantage of sunlight , focusing and concentrating it through a complex system of mirrors, in order to heat liquids to temperatures between 300 and 1000 ° C, and thus initiate the thermoelectric generation process.
• Photovoltaic energy . This type of energy is also obtained by taking advantage of sunlight, but in a different sense: by means of large fields of photovoltaic cells, made up of diodes sensitive to sunlight, which generate small potential differentials at their ends. Large sites of these solar panels are required to generate electricity, but at the same time it is done without requiring raw materials and without polluting the environment too much.
• Hydropower . In this case, the electric turbines of the generation plant are not moved by the action of heat, but by taking advantage of the mechanical energy of a waterfall. For this reason, a specific topography is required for this, such as waterfalls, waterfalls, mighty rivers or bodies of water in which dikes or dams can be implanted. Beyond the brutal modification of these bodies of water and their own ecosystems, it is a form of clean, cheap and safe energy.
• Tidal or wave energy . This is the name given to the plants for obtaining electrical energy from the tides or sea waves, through coastal facilities that, through floating devices, take advantage of the pressure of the water to mobilize the turbines. However, they are not very powerful and not very profitable ways of obtaining energy, at least for the moment.
• Wind power. If in the previous cases the natural movement of water was taken advantage of, in the wind power plants the force of the wind is taken advantage of, especially in regions where it blows constantly, such as coastal areas, the great plains, or similar. For this, entire fields of giant propellers are available, sensitive to the passage of the wind, which when moving transmit the mechanical energy to an electric turbine. It is a relatively inexpensive and safe form of electricity production, but unfortunately not very powerful and at a significant cost in terms of landscaping.

Renewable energy

Obtaining electricity is a complex process with a high environmental impact, especially in its traditional variants, such as fossil fuel. In addition, in the latter cases, the available fuel has limited reserves, since coal and oil have a very slow and prolonged geological origin, which does not allow us to replenish planetary stocks at the same rate at which we are consuming them.

For this reason, many of the efforts of the energy sector are invested in the search for possible renewable sources , or in the improvement of those that already exist, such as solar, hydroelectric and geothermal energy.

However, the great hopes of humanity in energy matters point to the possibility of atomic fusion as a safe, reliable, non-polluting and renewable source of energy: hydrogen atoms, the most abundant element in the universe, are taken and merged to generate enormous amounts of energy, just as occurs in the heart of stars in space.

Unfortunately, such technology is still far from our reach, so humanity will have to make greater efforts to adapt its energy consumption to the possibilities of the world, or run the risk of completely ruining it in our desire for infinite electrical energy.