PRESSURE PULSATION IN THE STATIONARY AND ROTATING SYSTEM OF A HIGH SPECIFIC SPEED KAPLAN PIT-TYPE TURBINE – CFD-SIMULATIONS AND EXPERIMENTAL VERIFICATION

Helmut Benigni, Jürgen Schiffer-Rosenberger, Christian Bodner, Helmut Jaberg

Publikation: KonferenzbeitragPaperBegutachtung

Abstract

Power generation in irrigation channels and at other low head locations becomes more interesting due to the still increasing demand for green energy. For these applications a low-cost standardised turbine concept was developed with a high specific speed Kaplan pit-type turbine with a belt drive as core component. The horizontal axis 3-blade runner with a nominal specific speed in the best efficiency point of nq = 230 rpm has such a flat characteristic that operation with nq = 260 rpm practically provides the same peak efficiency. The optimisation of the runner was realised by means of CFD with a special focus on the unfavourably high susceptibility of cavitation for such a high specific speed unit. As the built-in situation is very variable and as the encasing of the turbine in concrete is not guaranteed, the structure itself must be stiff and able to resist all possible load cases. Pressure pulsations during the operation are of special interest.
The design of the turbine was tested during a model test according to IEC 60193[1] with a nominal runner diameter of D = 0.3 m. The measurements of the pressure pulsation were realised for selected operation points with 24 pressure transmitters in total, whereas 8 transmitters were located in the stationary system in the draft tube conus and 16 transmitters were located on both, the pressure and the suction side of a blade in the rotating system. A telemetry system transferred the signal from the rotating runner to the measurement system. The numerical model comprises mainly structured meshes of all components, including the intake with the pit, a 360 degree model of the distributer for different wicket gate positions, the complete runner for different positions, the draft tube and the tail water downstream. A loss analysis for each of the components was monitored during the solver run, to verify the convergence for different mesh qualities and different operation points of these pre-calculations in stationary mode [2]. Afterwards transient simulations were realised with a scale resolving turbulence model for different operation points for more than 10 revolutions of the runner and a small time-step.
The pressure pulsations show a clear influence of the pit on the rotating runner blades as well as pressure pulsations downstream of the runner and an interaction with the draft tube.
Originalspracheenglisch
SeitenCMFF18-074
PublikationsstatusVeröffentlicht - 7 Sept. 2018
Veranstaltung2018 Conference on Modelling Fluid Flow - Hotel Gellert, Budapest, Ungarn
Dauer: 4 Sept. 20187 Sept. 2018

Konferenz

Konferenz2018 Conference on Modelling Fluid Flow
KurztitelCMFF 18
Land/GebietUngarn
OrtBudapest
Zeitraum4/09/187/09/18

Fields of Expertise

  • Sustainable Systems

Treatment code (Nähere Zuordnung)

  • Experimental

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