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breaker, underground power transmission, электростанция, турбина,
подстанция, inherent problem, installation, urban areas
Decide which of the given words you can refer to the topic. Write
them down in your personal professional glossary
TEXT A
Read the text and underline or highlight the key points
A.
Power engineering deals with the generation, transmission and
distribution of electricity. The design of a range of related devices is also an
important category in the power engineering process. These devices are
transformers, electric generators, electric motors and power electronics. But
first, let us see how electricity is generated.
B.
Power stations, generating units or power plants are facilities which
generate electric power. The center of nearly all power stations is a generator,
a rotating machine that converts mechanical energy into electrical energy. The
energy sources, renewable and non-renewable, harnessed to turn the generator
vary from water, fossil fuel, nuclear reaction, wind or solar energy. Each of
them has some unique aspects, but they all operate on the similar principle of
converting some form of fuel into heat energy, then mechanical energy and
finally electrical energy.
C.
When fuel, e.g. natural gas, coal or oil is burned in a boiler, the heat
is used to produce steam under pressure. The steam is piped to a turbine. The
steam strikes the blades of the turbine and spins them, revolving the turbine
shaft. The turbine shaft turns the electromagnet of the generator, changing the
mechanical energy from the turbine into electrical energy. The electric energy
then takes the form of alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC). The
hydro electric power plant consists of a water turbine
D.
Once electricity is produced, it runs from the power plant through
wires to step up transformer. The transformer raises the pressure so it can
travel long distances. Transformers play very important role in power
transmission because they allow power to be converted to (step up
transformers) and from (step down transformers) higher voltages. Higher
voltages, on the other hand, are important because higher voltages suffer less
power loss during transmission. Electricity is usually transmitted over long
distance through overhead power transmission lines. Underground power
transmission is used only in densely populated areas such as large cities
because of the high cost of installation and maintenance and because the
power losses increase dramatically compared with overhead transmission.
