Analyzing hydro abrasive erosion in Kaplan turbine： A case study from India

• Published in: Journal of hydrodynamics. Series B Vol. 28; no. 5; pp. 863 - 872
• Main Authors: RAI, Anant Kr, KUMAR, Arun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Singapore Elsevier Ltd 01-10-2016; Springer Singapore; Alternate Hydro Energy Centre, IIT Roorkee, Roorkee, India
• Subjects: Engineering; Engineering Fluid Dynamics; erosion; Hydrology/Water Resources; hydropower; IEC 62364; measurement; Numerical and Computational Physics; sediment; Simulation; turbine; 侵蚀模型; 卡普兰; 印度; 喜马拉雅地区; 模型估计; 水力磨蚀; 汽轮机; 泥沙分析; erosion; turbine; IEC 62364; sediment; measurement; hydropower
• ISSN: 1001-6058; 1878-0342
• DOI: 10.1016/S1001-6058(16)60687-X

Sediment flow through hydro turbine causes erosion of hydraulic components resulting in drop of turbine efficiency, particularly in hydropower plants of the Himalayan region. The measurement of erosion and monitoring of sediment flow in turbine are major concerns in erosion study. Attempts have been made to study erosion mainly in Pelton and Francis turbines. In this study, a simple and effective method has been presented to measure erosion in a Kaplan turbine of a run-of-river scheme Chilla hydropower plant in foothills of Himalaya. Recent techniques were used to measure sediment parameters like concentration, size, shape and mineral content. A standard erosion model is applied to estimate the erosion in Kaplan turbine blade, runner chamber and draft tube cone. A calibration factor has been proposed to apply the erosion model for site specific conditions. It has been found that the outer trailing edges of the turbine blade and upper runner chamber are most erosion prone zones. Sediment analysis revealed that effective operation can reduce erosion in turbine components. The estimated erosion values from model are found to be consistent with measured values. Finally, suggestions for design improvements and effective operation of erosion affected hydropower plants are given.