WATER WHEEL LIFTING WEIGHT - DIY kit for Students

Water wheels are machines that use the energy of flowing or falling water (or both) to turn the wheel. The axle of the turning wheel can then power other machines to do work. This kind of power is called hydro power

Earth is an amazing planet. It has everything that we need: food, shelter, and water. Sure, we need water to drink, but have you thought about using water to create energy? Moving water has a lot of energy and all we need to do is to harness it. Moving water made the Grand Canyon. That took a lot of energy! In this project, you will demonstrate the power of water by converting the kinetic energy in moving water to mechanical energy, which will lift a small weight.

Waterwheels are usually positioned vertically (up and down), so that their movement turns an axle positioned horizontally (side to side). The axle transfers its energy to a drive belt or system of gears that operate a mechanism to do work of some sort.

Waterwheels are devices first created by the ancient Greeks over 3,000 years ago. Although waterwheels were still used often in the early part of the 20th century, they’re not used very often today. You can still see them in action, though, as part of historical exhibits at museums across the United States. Waterwheels had many important uses in the past. Some waterwheels were built alongside grist mills to help mill flour. Others were built near paper mills to help grind wood into pulp to make paper. Waterwheels were also used for a wide variety of other purposes, including hammering iron, crushing ore and preparing fiber to make cloth.

Waterwheels require a nearby source of flowing or falling water. These sources could include streams or small rivers. Occasionally, special ponds — called mill ponds — would be built by damming a flowing stream. A special channel — called a mill race — would be created from the pond to the waterwheel, so that flowing water could be accessed any time the waterwheel was needed.Today, the idea behind the waterwheel is still used. Modern hydroelectric dams still use the power of flowing water to create electric power with the help of modern machines called turbines.

OBJECTIVE : The goal of this project is to understand hydro power. It converts the energy in falling water to mechanical energy to lift a small weight. Energy can be generated using solids, gas, or liquids as its a source of power. So, how do you use energy? Energy can be generated to produce light, heat or to make objects move. In this experiment, we explore how to get power from water, i.e., hydro power, which can be used to pick up household objects. Hydro power is mechanical energy that is generated by using the motion of water caused by gravity. It is one of the oldest known forms of energy and has been used by humans since 4000 BC!

MATERIALS

Water Wheel

Blades

Water Wheel Mount(3 Nos.) [2 A Shaped Piece + 1 Rectangular Piece]]

Weight

Connector

Plastic Nobe

Rotating Shaft

String

Transparent Sleeve

OBSERVATIONS

As we have placed water wheel under running water, the wheel spins and produces enough mechanical energy to elevate small items tied to the end of the thread

WHY?

You just generated hydropower using the water from your faucet! Gravity pulls water down towards the earth and the weight of the water exerts torque (a rotational force) on the water wheel. This torque provides enough energy to turn the rotating shaft, allowing you to

raise items or weight attached to the other end. Did you notice that more water pressure was needed to lift heavier objects? More energy is needed to lift heavy items than lighter ones, and by increasing the flow of water you can generate more power.