Technology
How does a turbine work?
A turbine works by letting a moving fluid — wind, water, steam, or hot gas — push against angled blades mounted on a shaft. The flow spins the blades, the shaft turns, and that rotation is used to generate electricity or drive machinery.
See it in motion.
Watch a 2-minute animated lesson that shows exactly how a turbine works.
Step by step
- 1A fluid such as steam, water, wind, or combustion gas flows over curved blades shaped to capture its energy.
- 2The blades convert the fluid's kinetic or pressure energy into rotation of a central shaft.
- 3The spinning shaft drives a generator or other machinery to produce useful power.
- 4Most power plants boil water into steam to spin turbines — only the heat source (coal, gas, nuclear) differs.
Frequently asked questions
- How does a turbine generate electricity?
- Its spinning shaft turns a generator, where rotating magnets induce an electric current in coils of wire.
- Do most power plants use turbines?
- Yes. Coal, gas, and nuclear plants mostly boil water into steam that spins a turbine — they differ mainly in how they make the heat.
- How is a turbine different from a piston engine?
- A turbine spins continuously from steadily flowing fluid, while a piston engine produces power in repeated discrete strokes.