|
Engineering & the Future The Falkirk Wheel Considered a "World's First". In order to connect two canal systems (Forth & Clyde and Union Canals) on different levels, engineers came up with the Falkirk Wheel. The boats enter a tank containing 300,000 gallons of water, the wheel revolves and the boats are carried to the next level.
Everything in Balance Because both tanks weigh exactly the same and are balanced, the Falkirk Wheel is very energy efficient. Archimedes (an ancient Greek) discovered that anything that floats displaces its own weight in water. The tanks are filled to the brim, so each boat that enters pushes out water that weighs exactly the same as the boat. The tanks remain completely balanced.
|
