In one day, 2 500 000 kg of water passes through the hydroelectric generator - AQA - GCSE Physics - Question 4 - 2023 - Paper 1

To find the mean change in vertical height (h), we can use the equation for gravitational potential energy:

$E_p = mgh$

Where:

• $E_p$ is the change in gravitational potential energy (367.5 MJ or $367.5 \times 10^6$ J)
• $m$ is the mass of the water (2 500 000 kg)
• $g$ is the gravitational field strength (9.8 N/kg)

Rearranging the formula for h gives:

$h = \frac{E_p}{mg}$

Substituting in the values:

$h = \frac{367.5 \times 10^6}{2 500 000 \times 9.8}$

Calculating:

$h = \frac{367 500 000}{24 500 000}$

$h = 15 \text{ m}$