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Power engineering

The word “engineering” is likely to make you think of things like shipbuilding, “engineering works” on the railway, lines or repairs your washing machine or car. In reality, engineering covers a far wider range of businesses and industries; not only building and transport structures, but also jobs in food, medicine and much more. Engineers work in all kind of environments. Engineering today is closely linked with technology. The quality of the land, air and water around us is becoming increasingly important with the onset of climate change. Engineers are on the forefront of preserving our planet and ensuring that modern technology is kind to the world in which we live. Being an environmental engineer might mean that you have a special interest in ecosystems and biology, or other branches of engineering like civil engineering (buildings, roads and structures).

Engineers are concerned with the production of energy through natural resources such as the sourcing and use of wind, solar and wave power. They are involved in developing and maintaining power stations and the machinery used in alternative energy sourcing and production biofuel sourced from crops. Energy engineers construct equipment designed by engineering designers, and conduct testing and make modifications prior to installation and running. They may work for industry, university or government research departments. They may hold senior positions, head up a team of energy engineers or have a key post in the team. Ultimately these engineers are focused on finding efficient, clean and innovative ways to supply energy to millions of households for years to come. Renewable energy is extremely important to the future of our planet and that‘s something that we'd all like to rely on. Engineers influence every aspect of modern life and it‘s likely that today you will have already relied on the expertise of one or more engineers.

Power engineering, also called power systems engineering, is a subfield of electrical engineering that deals with the generation, transmission, distribution and utilization of electric power, and the electrical apparatus connected to such systems. These include transformers, electric generators, electric motors and power electronics. Power engineering draws the majority of its theoretical base from electrical engineering.

Electric power transmission requires the engineering of high voltage transmission lines and substation facilities to interface to generation and distribution systems. Electric power distribution engineering covers those elements of a power system from a substation to the end customer.

Power system protection is the study of the ways an electrical power system can fail, and the methods to detect and mitigate for such failures.

In most projects, a power engineer must coordinate with many other disciplines such as civil and mechanical engineers, environmental experts, and legal and financial personnel. At most levels of professional power system engineering practice, the engineer will require as much in the way of administrative and organizational skills as electrical engineering knowledge.

Text B

New words and word combinations:

1) conservation – сбережение; 2) fossil fuels – ископаемые виды топлива; 3) to pollute – загрязнять; 4) waste – отходы; 5) solar cells – солнечные батареи; 6) steam – пар; 7) wind turbine – ветровая турбина; 8) carbon – углерод; 9) nuclear – ядерный; 10) fission – распад; 11) devices – устройства;           12) to require – требовать; 13) renewable – возобновляемый; 14) alternative – альтернативный; 15) tower – башня; 16) to flow – течь.

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Alternative Energy

Alternative energy is any energy source that is an alternative to fossil fuel. These alternatives are intended to address concerns about fossil fuels, such as its high carbon dioxide emissions, an important factor in global warming. Marine energy, hydroelectric, wind, geothermal and solar power are all alternative sources of energy.

The nature of what constitutes an alternative energy source has changed considerably over time, as have controversies regarding energy use. Because of the variety of energy choices and differing goals of their advocates, defining some energy types as "alternative" is considered very controversial.

1) Hydro electricity captures energy from falling water. 2) Nuclear energy uses nuclear fission to release energy stored in the atomic bonds of heavy elements. 3) Wind energy is the generation of electricity from wind, commonly by using propeller-like turbines. 4) Solar energy is the use of energy from the sun. Heat from the sun can be used for solar thermal applications or light can be converted into electricity via photovoltaic devices. 5) Geothermal energy is the use of the earth's internal heat to boil water for heating buildings or generating electricity. 6) Biofuel and ethanol are plant-derived gasoline substitutes for powering vehicles. 7) Hydrogen can be used as a carrier of energy, produced by various technologies such as cracking of hydrocarbons or water electrolysis.

The principle of the conservation of energy, of which mechanical work, electricity, and heat were only different forms, was the greatest physical discovery of the middle of the nineteenth century. It brought many sciences together. Energy became the universal gold standard of changes in the universe.

64% of the electricity we need comes from burning fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal. These resources pollute and are not renewable, so once we have burned them all up, there will be no more. This means that the world MUST find and use alternative sources of energy. This alternative energy needs to use no fuel and create no waste or pollution.

Renewable energy is generated from natural resources – such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides and geothermal heat – which are renewable (naturally replenished). When comparing the processes for producing energy, there remain several fundamental differences between renewable energy and fossil fuels. The process of producing oil, coal, or natural gas fuel is a difficult and demanding process that requires a great deal of complex equipment, physical and chemical processes. On the other hand, alternative energy can be widely produced with basic equipment and natural processes. Wood, the most renewable and available alternative fuel, emits the same amount of carbon when burned as would be emitted if it degraded naturally. Nuclear power is an alternative to fossil fuels that is non-renewable, like fossil fuels, nuclear ones are a finite resource.

A renewable energy source such as biomass is sometimes regarded as a good alternative to providing heat and electricity with fossil fuels. Biofuels are not inherently ecologically friendly for this purpose, while burning biomass is carbon-neutral, air pollution is still produced.

SUN (solar power): enough of the sun’s energy hits the Earth every minute to power the world for a whole year! In sunny countries, solar cells can be put on rooftops to convert sunlight directly into electricity. We could even build solar power stations like Solar One in California. This uses the sun’s heat to make steam, which then drives a generator to produce electricity.

WIND (wind power): we can use the power of the wind by building wind turbines. These are tall towers with a big propeller on top. The wind blows the propeller, which turns a generator in order to create electricity. If we build a number of wind turbines together in a windy place, we can make a ‘wind farm’ and produce quite a lot of electricity!

WATER (hydroelectric power): a dam can be used to trap a large area of water, like a reservoir or a lake. This water then flows through tunnels in the dam, turns turbines and drives generators to create electricity. Hydroelectric power stations can produce a lot of power very cheaply.

Text C

New words and word combinations:

1) prime mover – первичный двигатель; 2) burning fuels – сжигание топлива; 3) flow of air – поток воздуха; 4) pistontype steam engine – поршневой паровой двигатель; 5) consumer – потребитель; 6) turbine shaft – вал турбины; 7) to convert – преобразовывать; 8) mechanical – механический;  9) rotational – вращательный; 10) efficiency – эффективность; 11) capacity – емкость; 12) to generate – производить; 13) penstocks – шлюзы; 14) salinity – минерализация; 15) chamber – камера; 16) to pump – закачивать.