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China has a hydropower station whose individual unit capacity far exceeds that of the Three Gorges Dam, making it the second largest of its kind in the world. Although the construction challenges are not as great as those associated with the Three Gorges Dam, from 2003 to the present, China has invested 180 billion yuan and deployed tens of thousands of construction machines to complete this project at all costs. What is the underlying reason for this? Is it really worth such a huge effort on the part of our country? As China’s veritable money-printing machine, the Three Gorges Dam is surely familiar to you, but have you heard of the Baihetan Hydropower Station? Even though construction has been underway for several years, its reputation is far less well-known than that of the former project. Yet the Baihetan Hydropower Station required an investment of 180 billion yuan, a amount equivalent to the annual GDP of small cities in China. The Baihetan Hydropower Station is located at the border between Sichuan and Yunnan provinces in China, along the main course of the Jinsha River. Those who have studied geography may be aware that this area was formed as a result of the collision and compression between the Eurasian and Indian Ocean tectonic plates; such regions are often prone to floods and earthquakes. Therefore, in addition to its economic benefits, the construction of the Baihetan Hydropower Station serves an important purpose as well: to ensure the safety of the local environment, a goal that is very similar to that of the Three Gorges Dam. As we all know, building a hydroelectric power plant is no easy task; the Three Gorges Dam was completed only through the combined efforts of the entire nation. Moreover, the location of Baihetan is extremely special, as it lies in a dangerous area surrounded by mountains thousands of meters high. Additionally, hydroelectric power plants require numerous various facilities, which is why it’s not surprising that its construction cost can reach nearly 20 million. At the beginning of the construction, the main challenge for the engineers was figuring out how to transport various excavators and mixers to a cliff located thousands of meters above ground. The usual method involved cranes, but this approach was clearly not suitable for the Baihetan site. As a result, it was necessary to temporarily modify the cliff by using steel frames to create rope bridges, in order to lift all the equipment to the construction site; this process is said to have taken half a year. Now that the mechanical equipment is in place, the next step is excavation. First, after extensive calculations, the engineers identified the location for excavation, and there they dug a massive basement – the amount of soil removed alone amounted to 25 million cubic meters. Various chambers were arranged in a complex pattern within it, making it the largest underground facility of its kind in modern times. You might ask, why was it necessary to dig such holes? Isn’t flat-bottom construction faster? In fact, terrain constraints also need to be taken into account. With high mountains on both sides of the construction site, forming a V-shaped area between them, there is no wide flat land available. Even if space could be found for the construction of a hydroelectric power plant, there would be no suitable place to locate the construction equipment; therefore, basements have to be dug instead. In addition to construction methods tailored to local conditions, the Baihetan Hydropower Station also makes use of many advanced technologies. For example, low-heat silicate cement is used, as it is an essential material for building dam structures. When ordinary cement is used for dam construction, it generates a large amount of heat upon contact with water, causing the dam to expand; once it cools down, cracks form, due to the principle of thermal expansion and contraction. However, dams are not like ordinary buildings, and any foreseeable risks must be avoided promptly, which is why low-heat cement is used. This type of cement releases heat slowly and has higher strength, thus effectively preventing cracks in the dam structure. To further reinforce the dam, engineers implemented additional safety measures: during the pouring process, they installed specific temperature sensors and circulating cooling pipes in certain areas of the concrete, so that any increase in temperature could be detected immediately, allowing for cooling through water. It is clear that engineers have conducted thorough research on the construction process. Now that we know about the cutting-edge technologies used in the construction of the Baihetan Hydropower Station, what people must be curious about next is its power generation capacity. Perhaps a comparison will help clarify this: China’s Three Gorges Hydropower Station is currently the largest in the country, with each unit having a capacity of 700,000 kilowatts. However, although Baihetan is smaller in scale overall, each of its units has a capacity of over 1 million kilowatts, which is unique in the world. In mid-February this year, the Baihetan Hydropower Station was finally inaugurated, revealing its true appearance to the public for the first time. A few days ago, the water filling process also proceeded in an orderly manner. According to current plans, all of the units are set to come online by the end of 2020; by then, China will have another true powerhouse for generating electricity. It not only enables hydroelectric power generation on a regular basis but also helps to address local flood disasters in critical moments. This shows that benefiting the country and its people is always the ultimate goal of infrastructure development in China. As Baidibitan becomes increasingly well-known among the Chinese people, their previous negative views have given way to admiration. Looking back at China’s water conservancy projects, from the initial surveying stages in 1958 to their widespread presence today, many heroes have dedicated their efforts to the Jinsha River in order to contribute to the country and its people through hydroelectric power – this is the true spirit of a great nation. Source: Transsensory Science