Intro to Hydropower
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)NTROTO (YDROPOWER 0ART 3YSTEMS/VERVIEW >Ê iÜ ^Óää{Ê >Ê iÜ (YDROPOWERISBASEDONSIMPLECONCEPTS-OVINGWATER TURNSATURBINE THETURBINESPINSAGENERATOR ANDELECTRICITY ISPRODUCED-ANYOTHERCOMPONENTSMAYBEINASYSTEM BUTITALLBEGINSWITHTHEENERGYALREADYWITHINTHEMOVING WATER 7HAT-AKES7ATER0OWER 7ATERPOWERISTHECOMBINATIONOFHEADANDFLOW"OTH MUST BE PRESENT TO PRODUCE ELECTRICITY #ONSIDER A TYPICAL HYDRO SYSTEM 7ATER IS DIVERTED FROM A STREAM INTO A PIPELINE WHERE IT IS DIRECTED DOWNHILL AND THROUGH THE TURBINE FLOW 4HE VERTICAL DROP HEAD CREATES PRESSURE AT THE BOTTOM END OF THE PIPELINE 4HE PRESSURIZED WATER EMERGING FROM THE END OF THE PIPE CREATES THE FORCE THAT DRIVESTHETURBINE-OREFLOWORMOREHEADPRODUCESMORE ELECTRICITY %LECTRICAL POWER OUTPUT WILL ALWAYS BE SLIGHTLY LESS THAN WATER POWER INPUT DUE TO TURBINE AND SYSTEM INEFFICIENCIES (EADISWATERPRESSURE WHICHISCREATEDBYTHEDIFFERENCE INELEVATIONBETWEENTHEWATERINTAKEANDTHETURBINE(EAD CAN BE EXPRESSED AS VERTICAL DISTANCE FEET OR METERS OR AS PRESSURE SUCHASPOUNDSPERSQUAREINCHPSI .ETHEADIS THEPRESSUREAVAILABLEATTHETURBINEWHENWATERISFLOWING WHICHWILLALWAYSBELESSTHANTHEPRESSUREWHENTHEWATERIS TURNEDOFFSTATICHEAD DUETOTHEFRICTIONBETWEENTHEWATER ANDTHEPIPE0IPELINEDIAMETERHASANEFFECTONNETHEAD &LOW IS WATER QUANTITY AND IS EXPRESSED AS hVOLUME PER TIME v SUCH AS GALLONS PER MINUTE GPM CUBIC FEET PER SECOND CFS OR LITERS PER MINUTE $ESIGN FLOW IS THE MAXIMUMFLOWFORWHICHYOURHYDROSYSTEMISDESIGNED )T WILL LIKELY BE LESS THAN THE MAXIMUM FLOW OF YOUR STREAM ESPECIALLY DURING THE RAINY SEASON MORE THAN YOURMINIMUMFLOW ANDACOMPROMISEBETWEENPOTENTIAL ELECTRICALOUTPUTANDSYSTEMCOST 9ÕÊii`ÊÌÊ >ÛiÊÌ ÃÊ`ÊvÊ i>`Ê>`ÊvÜÊÌÊ >ÛiÊ>Ê}`Ê Þ`À«ÜiÀÊÃÌiÊpLÕÌÊÞÕÊVÕ`Êv>Ì>Ãâi° HOMEPOWEROCTOBERNOVEMBER HYDROINTRO (EAD AND FLOW ARE THE TWO MOST IMPORTANT THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR SITE 9OU MUST HAVE THESE MEASUREMENTS BEFORE YOU CAN SERIOUSLY DISCUSS YOUR 5SEFUL(YDRO PROJECT HOW MUCH ELECTRICITY IT WILL GENERATE OR THE COST #ONVERSIONS OF COMPONENTS %VERY ASPECT OF A HYDRO SYSTEM REVOLVES AROUND HEAD AND FLOW )N 0ART OF THIS SERIES WE WILL DISCUSSHOWTOMEASURETHEM 0OWER £Ê ÀÃi«ÜiÀÊrÊÇ{ÈÊÜ>ÌÌà 0OWER#ONVERSION%FFICIENCY £ÊÜ>ÌÌÊrÊ£°Î{Ê ÀÃi«ÜiÀ 4HE GENERATION OF ELECTRICITY IS SIMPLY THE CONVERSION IÊ vvViVÞÊÌÊ>VVÕÌi`ÊvÀ OFONEFORMOFENERGYTOANOTHER4HETURBINECONVERTSTHE ENERGY IN THE MOVING WATER INTO ROTATIONAL ENERGY AT ITS 3TATIC(EAD0RESSURE £ÊvÌÊvÊ i>`ÊrÊä°{ÎÊ«Õ`ÃÊ«iÀÊõÕ>ÀiÊV ʫî SHAFT WHICH IS THEN CONVERTED TO ELECTRICAL ENERGY BY THE GENERATOR £Ê«ÃÊrÊӰΣÊviiÌÊvÊ i>` %NERGY IS NEVER CREATED IT CAN ONLY BE CONVERTED &LOW FROMONEFORMTOANOTHER3OMEOFTHEENERGYWILLBELOST £Ê}>Ê«iÀÊÕÌiÊ}«®ÊrÊä°ääÓÓÊVÕLVÊviiÌÊ«iÀÊ THROUGHFRICTIONATEVERYPOINTOFCONVERSION%FFICIENCYIS ÃiV`ÊVvî THEMEASUREOFHOWMUCHENERGYISACTUALLYCONVERTED4HE £Ê}«ÊrÊä°ääääÈÎÊVÕLVÊiÌiÀÃÊ«iÀÊÃiV` SIMPLEFORMULAFORTHISIS £Ê}«ÊrÊΰnÊÌiÀÃÊ«iÀÊÕÌi iÌÊ iÀ}ÞÊrÊÀÃÃÊ iÀ}ÞÊÝÊ vvViVÞ £ÊVvÃÊrÊ{{Ê}« 7HILESOMELOSSESAREINEVITABLEASTHEENERGYINMOVING £ÊVvÃÊrÊä°ÓnÎÊVÕLVÊiÌiÀÃÊ«iÀÊÃiV` WATERGETSCONVERTEDTOELECTRICITY THEYCANBEMINIMIZED £ÊVvÃÊrÊ£]ÇääÊÌiÀÃÊ«iÀÊÕÌi WITHGOODDESIGN%ACHASPECTOFYOURHYDROSYSTEMFROM WATERINTAKETOTURBINE GENERATORALIGNMENTTOTRANSMISSION WIRE SIZEAFFECTS EFFICIENCY 4URBINE DESIGN IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT ANDMUSTBEMATCHEDTOYOURSPECIFICHEADAND FLOWFORBESTEFFICIENCY !HYDROSYSTEMISASERIESOFINTERCONNECTEDCOMPONENTS 0IPELINE0ENSTOCK 7ATERFLOWSINATONEENDOFTHESYSTEM ANDELECTRICITYCOMES 4HE PIPELINE OR PENSTOCK NOT ONLY MOVES THE WATER OUT THE OTHER (ERE IS AN OVERVIEW OF THESE COMPONENTS TOYOURTURBINE BUTISALSOTHEENCLOSURETHATCREATESHEAD FROMTHEWATERSOURCETOTHEELECTRICALCONTROLS PRESSUREASTHEVERTICALDROPINCREASES)NEFFECT THEPIPELINE FOCUSESALLTHEWATERPOWERATTHEBOTTOMOFTHEPIPE WHERE 7ATER$IVERSION)NTAKE THE TURBINE IS )N CONTRAST AN OPEN STREAM DISSIPATES THE 4HEINTAKEISTYPICALLYTHEHIGHESTPOINTOFYOURHYDRO ENERGYASTHEWATERTRAVELSDOWNHILL SYSTEM WHERE WATER IS DIVERTED FROM THE STREAM INTO THE 0IPELINE DIAMETER LENGTH MATERIAL AND ROUTING ALL PIPELINE THAT FEEDS YOUR TURBINE ! DIVERSION CAN BE AS AFFECT EFFICIENCY 'UIDELINES ARE AVAILABLE FOR MATCHING SIMPLEASASCREENEDPIPEDROPPEDINTOAPOOLOFWATER OR THE SIZE OF YOUR PIPELINE TO ASBIGANDCOMPLEXASADAMACROSSANENTIRECREEKORRIVER THE DESIGN FLOW OF YOUR ! WATER DIVERSION SYSTEM SERVES TWO PRIMARY PURPOSES SYSTEM !S YOULL SEE IN THE 4HE FIRST IS TO PROVIDE A DEEP ENOUGH POOL OF WATER TO NEXT ARTICLE IN THIS SERIES CREATEASMOOTH AIR FREEINLETTOYOURPIPELINE!IRREDUCES ASMALL DIAMETERPIPELINE HORSEPOWERANDCANDAMAGEYOURTURBINE 4HESECONDISTO CAN CONSIDERABLY REDUCE REMOVEDIRTANDDEBRIS 4RASHRACKSANDROUGHSCREENSCANHELP STOP LARGER DEBRIS SUCH AS LEAVES AND LIMBS WHILE AN AREA OF QUIET WATER WILL ALLOW DIRT AND OTHER SEDIMENT TO SETTLE TO THE BOTTOM BEFORE ENTERING YOUR PIPELINE 4HIS HELPS REDUCE ABRASIVEWEARONYOURTURBINE!NOTHER APPROACH IS TO USE A FINE SELF CLEANING SCREEN THAT FILTERS BOTH LARGE DEBRIS AND SMALLPARTICLES / ÃÊÛ>À>LivÜ]ÊVÀÃÃvÜÊÌÕÀLiÊÕÃiÃÊ>ÊLiÌ`ÀÛiÊ VÕ«}ÊÌÊ>Ê{äÊ7ÊÃÞV ÀÕÃÊ}iiÀ>ÌÀ°Ê ÌÊÃÕ««iÃÊiiVÌÀVÌÞÊÌÊ>ÊVvviiÊ«ÀViÃÃ}Ê«>ÌÊÊ*>>>° WWWHOMEPOWERCOM HYDROINTRO %LEMENTSOFA THE WATER THAT OPERATE FULLY IMMERSED IN WATER AND ARE TYPICALLYUSEDINLOWTOMODERATEHEADSYSTEMSWITHHIGH (YDROELECTRIC3YSTEM FLOW%XAMPLESINCLUDE&RANCIS PROPELLER AND+APLAN )MPULSETURBINESUSERUNNERSTHATOPERATEWITHOUTBEING Ì>iÊ ÛiÀà IMMERSED DRIVENBYONEORMOREHIGH VELOCITYJETSOFWATER EÊ-VÀii %XAMPLES INCLUDE 0ELTON AND TURGO )MPULSE TURBINES ARE TYPICALLY USED WITH MODERATE TO HIGH HEAD SYSTEMS AND USENOZZLESTOPRODUCETHEHIGH VELOCITYJETS3OMEIMPULSE TURBINESCANOPERATEEFFICIENTLYWITHASLITTLEASFEETM OFHEAD 4HE CROSSFLOW TURBINE IS A SPECIAL CASE !LTHOUGH TECHNICALLY CLASSIFIED AS AN IMPULSE TURBINE BECAUSE THE RUNNER IS NOT ENTIRELY IMMERSED IN WATER THIS hSQUIRREL -ÌÀi> CAGEv TYPE OF RUNNER IS USED IN APPLICATIONS WITH LOW TO *iÃÌV MODERATE HEAD AND HIGH FLOW 4HE WATER PASSES THROUGH ALARGE RECTANGULAROPENINGTODRIVETHETURBINEBLADES IN CONTRASTTOTHESMALL HIGH PRESSUREJETSUSEDFOR0ELTONAND TURGOTURBINES 2EGARDLESSOFTHETURBINETYPE EFFICIENCYISINTHEDETAILS %ACHTURBINETYPECANBEDESIGNEDTOMEETVASTLYDIFFERENT REQUIREMENTS 4HE TURBINE SYSTEM IS DESIGNED AROUND NET *ÜiÀ ÕÃi HEAD AND DESIGN FLOW 4HESE CRITERIA NOT ONLY INFLUENCE WHICHTYPEOFTURBINETOUSE BUTARECRITICALTOTHEDESIGNOF THEENTIRETURBINESYSTEM -INOR DIFFERENCES IN SPECIFICATIONS CAN SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACT ENERGY TRANSFER EFFICIENCY 4HE DIAMETER OF THE /ÕÀLi />À>Vi RUNNER FRONTANDBACKCURVATURESOFITSBUCKETSORBLADES CASTING MATERIALS NOZZLE IF USED TURBINE HOUSING AND QUALITYOFCOMPONENTSALLAFFECTEFFICIENCYANDRELIABILITY YOUR AVAILABLE HORSEPOWER EVEN THOUGH IT CAN CARRY ALL ÊÃÌÀi>ÊÃVÀiiÊii«ÃÊ`iLÀÃÊ>`ÊÃÌÊÕÌÊvÊÊ AVAILABLEWATER,ARGERDIAMETERPIPELINESHAVELESSFRICTION Ì iÊ«iÃÌVÊ>ÌÊÌ iÊÃ>ÃÌÀi>ÊÌ>iÊÊ vÀÊ>ÊVÀ Þ`ÀÊÃÞÃÌiÊÊ7>à }Ì° ASTHEWATERTRAVELSTHROUGH 0OWERHOUSE 4HEPOWERHOUSEISSIMPLYABUILDINGORBOXTHATHOUSES YOURTURBINE GENERATOR ANDCONTROLS)TSMAINFUNCTIONISTO PROVIDEAPLACEFORTHESYSTEMCOMPONENTSTOBEMOUNTED ANDTOPROTECTTHEMFROMTHEELEMENTS)TSDESIGNCANAFFECT SYSTEMEFFICIENCY ESPECIALLYWITHREGARDTOHOWTHEWATER ENTERSANDEXITSYOURTURBINE&OREXAMPLE TOOMANYELBOWS LEADINGTOTHETURBINECANCREATETURBULENCEANDHEADLOSS ,IKEWISE ANYRESTRICTIONSTOWATEREXITINGTHETURBINEMAY INCREASERESISTANCEAGAINSTTHETURBINESMOVINGPARTS 4URBINE 4HE TURBINE IS THE HEART OF THE HYDRO SYSTEM WHERE WATER POWER IS CONVERTED INTO THE ROTATIONAL FORCE THAT DRIVESTHEGENERATOR&ORMAXIMUMEFFICIENCY THETURBINE SHOULDBEDESIGNEDTOMATCHYOURSPECIFICHEADANDFLOW 4HERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT TYPES OF TURBINES AND PROPER SELECTION REQUIRES CONSIDERABLE EXPERTISE ! 0ELTON DESIGN FOR EXAMPLE WORKS BEST WITH MEDIUM TO HIGH HEADS ! CROSSFLOWDESIGNWORKSBETTERWITHLOWERHEADBUTHIGHER FLOW /THER TURBINE TYPES SUCH AS &RANCIS TURGO AND PROPELLER EACHHAVEOPTIMUMAPPLICATIONS 4URBINESCANBEDIVIDEDINTOTWOMAJORTYPES2EACTION TURBINES USE RUNNERS THE ROTATING PORTION THAT RECEIVES HOMEPOWEROCTOBERNOVEMBER HYDROINTRO $RIVE3YSTEM 4HEDRIVESYSTEMCOUPLESTHETURBINETOTHEGENERATOR !T ONE END IT ALLOWS THE TURBINE TO SPIN AT THE RPM THAT (YDRO4ERMS DELIVERSBESTEFFICIENCY!TTHEOTHER ITDRIVESTHEGENERATOR AT THE RPM THAT PRODUCES CORRECT VOLTAGE AND FREQUENCY &LOW FREQUENCYAPPLIESTOALTERNATINGCURRENT!# SYSTEMSONLY ,iviÀÃÊ ÌÊ Ì iÊ µÕ>ÌÌÞÊ vÊ Ü>ÌiÀÊ ÃÕ««i`Ê vÀÊ 4HEMOSTEFFICIENTANDRELIABLEDRIVESYSTEMISADIRECT >Ê Ü>ÌiÀÊ ÃÕÀViÊ ÀÊ iÝÌ}Ê >Ê ââiÊ «iÀÊ ÕÌÊ vÊ COUPLINGBETWEENTHETURBINEANDGENERATOR Ìi°Ê ÞÊi>ÃÕÀi`ÊÊ}>ÃÊ«iÀÊÕÌiÊ 4HISISPOSSIBLEFORMANYSITES BUTNOTFORALLHEADAND }«®° FLOW COMBINATIONS )N MANY SITUATIONS ESPECIALLY WITH !# SYSTEMS IT IS NECESSARY TO ADJUST THE TRANSFER RATIO &RANCIS4URBINE SO THAT BOTH TURBINE AND GENERATOR RUN AT THEIR OPTIMUM Ê ÌÞ«iÊ vÊ Ài>VÌÊ Þ`ÀÌÕÀLiÊ ÕÃi`Ê Ê ÜÊ ÌÊ BUT DIFFERENT SPEEDS 4HESE TYPES OF DRIVE SYSTEMS CAN i`ÕÊ i>`Ã°Ê ÌÊ VÃÃÌÃÊ vÊ vÝi`Ê Û>iÃÊ Ê >Ê USEEITHERGEARS CHAINS ORBELTS EACHOFWHICHINTRODUCES à >vÌ°Ê7>ÌiÀÊvÜÃÊ`ÜÊÌ ÀÕ} ÊÌ iÊÛ>iÃ]Ê`ÀÛ}Ê ADDITIONAL EFFICIENCY LOSSES INTO THE SYSTEM "ELT SYSTEMS Ì iÊà >vÌ° TENDTOBEMOREPOPULARBECAUSEOFTHEIRLOWERCOST &RICTION,OSS 'ENERATOR ÃÌÊiiÀ}ÞÊ`ÕiÊÌÊ««iÊvÀVÌ°ÊÊ Þ`ÀÊÃÞÃÌiÃ]Ê 4HE GENERATOR CONVERTS THE ROTATIONAL ENERGY FROM THE ««iÊ Ãâi`Ê ÌÊ Ã>Ê V>Ê i>`Ê ÌÊ ÃiÀÕÃÊ vÀVÌÊ TURBINESHAFTINTOELECTRICITY%FFICIENCYISIMPORTANTATTHIS ÃÃið STAGE TOO BUT MOST MODERN WELL BUILT GENERATORS DELIVER GOODEFFICIENCY$IRECTCURRENT$# GENERATORS ORALTERNATORS (EAD / iÊ `vviÀiViÊ Ê iiÛ>ÌÊ LiÌÜiiÊ >Ê ÃÕÀViÊ vÊ Ü>ÌiÀÊ >`Ê Ì iÊ V>ÌÊ >ÌÊ Ü V Ê Ì iÊ Ü>ÌiÀÊ vÀÊ Ì >ÌÊÃÕÀViÊ>ÞÊLiÊÕÃi`ÊÃÞÞ\ÊÛiÀÌV>Ê`À«®°Ê ÌÊÌ iÊLÌÌÊvÊÌ iÊ«iÃÌV]Ê>Ê>v`ÊÀÕÌiÃÊÜ>ÌiÀÊÊ Ý«ÀiÃÃi`ÊÊÛiÀÌV>Ê`ÃÌ>ViÊÀÊ«ÀiÃÃÕÀi° ÌÊÌ iÊvÕÀÊââiÃÊvÊ>Ê>ÀÀÃÊ*iÌÊÌÕÀLiÊÊ Ì