Most electricity in the U.S.
is generated using coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear energy, or hydropower. Some
production is done with alternative and/or renewable fuels like geothermal
energy, wind power, biomass, solar energy, or fuel cells.
The electricity you use may be generated from one or more of these methods. No
matter which fuels produce the electricity you use, your lights shine, your
radio plays, and your computer runs in the same way.
Hydropower
Hydroelectric plants use the power of falling water to turn the turbines that
help generate electricity. Water stored behind a dam is released and directed
through special tubes to flow against the blades of turbines and make them turn.
Fossil Fuels
Coal, oil, and natural gas are known as fossil fuels because they were formed
from the fossilized remains of animals or plants that lived long ago. Long ago,
even before the dinosaurs, these plants and animals died and settled to the
bottom of lakes and oceans to be covered over by sand and mud. Over millions of
years, the earth's pressure and heat converted their remains into coal, oil, and
natural gas.
Coal is extracted from the ground at large mines. Natural gas and oil are
obtained through wells drilled deep in the earth.
Most of the electricity used in the U.S. is generated from power plants that
burn fossil fuels to heat water and make steam. The highly pressurized steam is
directed at the blades of turbines to make them spin.
Nuclear Power
Nuclear power plants use the heat from splitting atoms to convert water into the
steam that turns turbines. These plants rely on uranium, a type of metal that
must be mined from the ground and specially processed. Fuel rods containing
uranium are placed next to each other in a machine called a nuclear reactor. The
reactor causes the uranium atoms to split and in so doing, they release a
tremendous amount of heat.
Geothermal Energy
Steam (or hot water converted to steam) from under the ground is used to turn
turbines.
Wind Power
The force of the wind is used to spin many small turbines. Most wind power is
produced from wind farms—large groups of turbines located in consistently windy
locations.
Biomass
Biomass is organic matter, such as wood chips and bark left over when lumber is
produced, and agricultural wastes. Biomass can be burned to heat water to make
steam, which turns a turbine to make electricity. It can also be converted into
a gas, which can be burned to do the same thing.
Solar Energy
Solar energy is generated without a turbine or electromagnet. Special panels of
photovoltaic cells capture light from the sun and convert it directly into
electricity. The electricity is stored in a battery.
Fuel Cells
Fuel cells produce electricity through a chemical reaction.
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