Pumped Storage Hydropower | Water Research
Pumped storage hydropower facilities rely on two reservoirs at different elevations to store and generate energy. When other power
When electricity supply exceeds demand, often due to surplus renewable energy, a pumped storage power plant uses this excess electricity to pump water from the lower reservoir to the upper reservoir.
Pumped storage hydropower (PSH) is a type of hydroelectric energy storage. It is a configuration of two water reservoirs at different elevations that can generate power as water moves down from one to the other (discharge), passing through a turbine. The system also requires power as it pumps water back into the upper reservoir (recharge).
Pumped storage hydropower plants fall into two categories: Pure (or closed-loop) pumped storage: in this type of plant, naturally flowing sources of water into the upper reservoir contribute less than 5% of the volume of water that passes through the turbines annually.
In a pumped storage hydropower system, all of the water in the top reservoir sits as potential energy. When energy demand from the local area surges, a dam-like gate opens up, allowing water to naturally flow downhill through a pipeline.
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