Skip to main content
BBC NEWS / CORNWALL
Graphics VersionBBC Sport Home
News Front Page | Africa | Americas | Asia-Pacific | Europe | Middle East | South Asia | UK | Business | Health | Science & Environment | Technology | Entertainment | Also in the news | Have Your Say |
UK Contents:  England | Northern Ireland | Scotland | Wales | UK Politics | Education | Magazine

14:04 GMT, Thursday, 28 August 2008 15:04 UK

Archimedes drives river generator

An activity centre on Dartmoor is generating electricity using a device which dates back to ancient Greece.

The hydro-electric generator at the River Dart Country Park, near Ashburton, employs an Archimedes screw.

Water flows through the screw to turn it and the motion turns a turbine to produce electricity.

About 1.5 tonnes of water passes through the screw a second and the screw in turn allows fish and eels to pass through it safely.

Fish migration

The Environment Agency said the River Dart was an important salmon river, so the ability for fish to pass through the screw has been described by those involved in the project as an important aspect of its green credentials.

Mark Simpson, from the River Dart Country Park, said: "There are so many sites in the South West where small hydro-power schemes like this could be utilised.

"This screw has proved that it is a very environmentally-friendly with regards to fish and migrating salmon."

The turbine will be able to produce an estimated £35,000-worth of electricity a year.

Archimedes was a Greek mathematician, philosopher and inventor who lived from about 287BC to 212BC.

He wrote important works on geometry, arithmetic and mechanics and is credited with inventing the hydraulic screw for raising water from a lower to higher level.

The country park generator uses a reversed screw, with water running along it from higher to lower ground.




E-mail this to a friend
Related to this story:
Micro hydro scheme shares on sale (23 Nov 07 |  Derbyshire )
Library of Alexandria discovered (12 May 04 |  Science/Nature )

RELATED INTERNET LINKS
River Dart Country Park
Environment Agency
BBC History - Archimedes
Britannica.com - Archimedes screw
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites



SEARCH BBC NEWS: 

News Front Page | Africa | Americas | Asia-Pacific | Europe | Middle East | South Asia | UK | Business | Health | Science & Environment | Technology | Entertainment | Also in the news | Have Your Say |
UK Contents:  England | Northern Ireland | Scotland | Wales | UK Politics | Education | Magazine

NewsWatch | Notes | Contact us | About BBC News | Profiles | History

^ Back to top | BBC Sport Home | BBC Homepage | Contact us | Help | ©