A New Methodology for Suppressing Pressure Pulsation in a Draft Tube by Grooved Runner Cone

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takeshi Sano ◽  
Masayuki Ookawa ◽  
Hiromi Watanabe ◽  
Nobuaki Okamoto ◽  
Hiroshi Yano ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pressure Fluctuation ◽  
Pressure Pulsation ◽  
Draft Tube ◽  
Water Injection ◽  
Hydraulic Turbine ◽  
High Amplitude ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
Spiral Groove ◽  
Pump Turbine ◽  
Partial Load

High amplitude of pressure fluctuation is observed in a draft tube, for the case of partial load operation. Several methods had been reported to decrease the amplitude so far, such as, air or water injection to the draft tube, fins on the draft tube surface, or runner replacement with optimized velocity profile at runner exit. However, several problems for each method can be considered, such as, negative influence on efficiency, high cost, technical difficulties for installation, and so on. To solve these problems and satisfy the demand for decreasing the amplitude of pressure fluctuation simultaneously, a new runner cone with grooves on the surface was developed. As for the case with reversible pump turbine, grooved runner cone was developed with unsteady draft tube calculation based on Design of Experiment (DOE) method, and confirmed by model tests. Finally, developed runner cone was installed to the prototype pump turbine, and predicted performance was confirmed by on-site tests. Using this result, development of a new runner cone for hydraulic turbine had been started. For this case, meridian shape of the runner cone was also selected as a design parameter. Finally, we obtained the optimized shape, “diverged runner cone with spiral groove”, and the performance is confirmed by the model test. In this paper, details of development, especially for the case of hydraulic turbine and considerations of the mechanism are treated.

scholarly journals Pressure Analysis in the Draft Tube of a Pump-Turbine under Steady and Transient Conditions

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (16) ◽  
pp. 4732
Author(s):  
Jing Yang ◽  
Yue Lv ◽  
Dianhai Liu ◽  
Zhengwei Wang
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Pressure Pulsation ◽  
Transient Flow ◽  
Draft Tube ◽  
Simulation Method ◽  
Wall Pressure ◽  
Pump Turbine ◽  
Steady State Condition ◽  
Transient Conditions ◽  
Pumped Storage

Pumped-storage power stations play a regulatory role in the power grid through frequent transition processes. The pressure pulsation in the draft tube of the pump-turbine under transient processes is important for safe operation, which is more intense than that in the steady-state condition. However, there is no effective method to obtain the exact pressure in the draft tube in the transient flow field. In this paper, the pressure in the draft tube of a pump-turbine under steady-state and transient conditions are studied by means of CFD. The reliability of the simulation method is verified by comparing the real pressure pulsation data with the test results. Due to the distribution of the pressure pulsation in the draft tube being complex and uneven, the location of the pressure monitoring points directly affects the accurate judgement of cavitation. Eight monitoring surfaces were set in the straight cone of the draft tube and nine monitoring points were set on each monitoring surface to analyze the pressure differences on the wall and inside the center of the draft tube. The relationships between the pressure pulsation value inside the center of the draft tube and on the wall are studied. The “critical” wall pressure pulsation value when cavitation occurs is obtained. This study provides references for judging cavitation occurrences by using the wall pressure pulsation value in practical engineering.

Comparison of Axial Water and Air Injections in the Draft Tube of a Francis Turbine for RVR Mitigation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Subodh Khullar ◽  
Krishna M. Singh ◽  
Michel J. Cervantes ◽  
Bhupendra K. Gandhi
Keyword(s):  
Pressure Pulsation ◽  
Draft Tube ◽  
Water Injection ◽  
Air Injection ◽  
Flow Instabilities ◽  
Pressure Recovery ◽  
Francis Turbine ◽  
Tube Flow ◽  
Pressure Pulsations ◽  
Jet Injection

Abstract The presence of excessive swirl at the runner outlet in Francis turbines operating at part load leads to the development of flow instabilities such as the rotating vortex rope (RVR). The presence of RVR causes severe pressure pulsations, power swings, and fatigue damage in the turbine unit. Air and water injection in the draft tube have been reported to reduce the detrimental effects of RVR formation in the Francis turbines. Air injection is one of the oldest and most widely used methods. In contrast, water jet injection is a relatively new methodology. The present work reports the numerical simulations performed to compare the respective effectiveness of these methods to mitigate the RVR and the related flow instabilities. The efficacy of the two methods has been compared based on the pressure pulsations and pressure recovery in the draft tube cone. The results show that the air and water injection influence the draft tube flow field in different ways. Both air and water injection led to a reduction in pressure pulsation magnitudes in the draft tube cone. However, the air injection led to a negative pressure recovery while the water injection improved the draft tube action.

scholarly journals Manipulation of the swirling flow instability in hydraulic turbine diffuser by different methods of water injection

2018 ◽  
Vol 180 ◽  
pp. 02090 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pavel Rudolf ◽  
Jiří Litera ◽  
Germán Alejandro Ibarra Bolanos ◽  
David Štefan
Keyword(s):  
Swirling Flow ◽  
Flow Instability ◽  
Draft Tube ◽  
Water Injection ◽  
Hydraulic Turbine ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Francis Turbine ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Vortex Rope ◽  
Wide Range

Vortex rope, which induces substantial pressure pulsations, arises in the draft tube (diffuser) of Francis turbine for off-design operating conditions. Present paper focuses on mitigation of those pulsations using active water jet injection control. Several modifications of the original Susan-Resiga’s idea were proposed. All modifications are driven by manipulation of the shear layer region, which is believed to play important role in swirling flow instability. While some of the methods provide results close to the original one, none of them works in such a wide range. Series of numerical experiments support the idea that the necessary condition for vortex rope pulsation mitigation is increasing the fluid momentum along the draft tube axis.

Computational Study of Pump Turbine: Partial Load Operations

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhannad Altimemy ◽  
Justin Caspar ◽  
Alparslan Oztekin
Keyword(s):  
Flow Rate ◽  
Draft Tube ◽  
Computational Study ◽  
Pressure Fluctuations ◽  
System Stability ◽  
Pump Turbine ◽  
Vortex Rope ◽  
Signal Velocity ◽  
Partial Load ◽  
Les Model

Abstract The performance of a pump-turbine under partial flow rates, 85%, 75%, and 65%, is studied using the LES model. The power signal, velocity, vorticity, and pressure field is presented over the blades and throughout the draft tube. Pressure fluctuations are probed at various locations over the wall of the draft tube. Examining the flow field in the blade region can provide further insights into the system performance. Flow-induced pressure fluctuations can disrupt system stability. For this turbine, a strong swirling region is observed around the draft tube walls, causing pressure fluctuations. The size and intensity of this region decrease with the flow rate. A vortex rope is present in all cases. At the design point, the strength is constant throughout the draft tube. However, at partial load, the rope is weakened along the draft tube. Between the region dominated by the vortex rope and the wall, there is a swirling shear layer, which moves closer to the wall as the flow rate decreases. Both the magnitude of pressure fluctuations at the wall and the pressure difference over the blade decrease with the flow rate. The decreased pressure differences over the blade represent less power produced, and the decline in fluctuation magnitude at the wall represents more system stability. For this turbine, there appears to be a trade-off between power and strength of pressure fluctuations.

Analysis of Off-Design Flow Field and Prediction of Performance in Hydraulic Turbine

2014 ◽  
Vol 496-500 ◽  
pp. 877-880
Author(s):  
Feng Xia Shi ◽  
Jun Hu Yang ◽  
Xiao Hui Wang
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Pressure Distribution ◽  
Flow Rate ◽  
Pressure Fluctuation ◽  
Pressure Pulsation ◽  
Guide Vane ◽  
Hydraulic Turbine ◽  
Design Flow ◽  
External Characteristic ◽  
Distribution Of Flow

Two models of hydraulic turbine based on pump in reversal were simulated. Pressure distribution of flow field in Variable conditions was analysed and external characteristic was forecasted for hydraulic turbine. It was shown: the head increased with flow increased, with increasing of flow rate, efficiency first increased and then decreased. Compared with the turbine with a guide vane, the head of two models was almost equal, but the disparity of efficiency was large, and the efficiency of hydraulic turbine with a guide vane above on the efficiency of hydraulic turbine without guide vane. Pressure pulsation was existent in runner inlet. From runner inlet to runner outlet, the pressure distributed evenly from high to low. Added with a guide vane, the pressure distribution was more evenly than before and the Amplitude of pressure fluctuation decreased.

Mitigation of Flow-Induced Pressure Fluctuations in a Francis Turbine Using Water Injection

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhannad Altimemy ◽  
Bashar Attiya ◽  
Cosan Daskiran ◽  
I-Han Liu ◽  
Alparslan Oztekin
Keyword(s):  
Power Generation ◽  
Turbulent Flow ◽  
Draft Tube ◽  
Pressure Fluctuations ◽  
Water Injection ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Francis Turbine ◽  
Partial Load ◽  
Flow Induced Vibrations ◽  
Dynamics Simulations

Abstract Computational fluid dynamics simulations are conducted to characterize the spatial and temporal characteristics of the turbulent flow fields inside Francis turbine operating at the design and partial load regimes. High-fidelity large eddy simulations turbulence model is applied to investigate the flow-induced vibrations in the draft tube of the unit. The water injection at 4% rate from the runner cone is implemented to control the flow-induced pressure fluctuations. The simulations are conducted at the turbine design point and two partial load operations with and without water injection. It has been demonstrated that the water injection has a profound influence in the turbulent flow structure and the pressure field inside the draft tube at the partial load operating conditions. To evaluate the effectiveness of the water injection techniques in mitigating flow-induced fluctuations, the probes at various locations along the wall of the draft tube are used to monitor the pressure signals. It appears to be a reduction in the level of pressure fluctuations by the water injection at both partial load operating regimes. However, we could not draw a firm conclusion about the level of mitigation of flow-induced vibrations. Simulations should be carried out for much longer flow time. Water injection hardly influenced the unit power generation. Hence water injection can be employed effectively without a major liability on the power generation.

Pressure Fluctuation Mitigation in a Francis Turbine With Water Injection: Computational Study

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhannad Altimemy ◽  
Cosan Daskiran ◽  
Bashar Attiya ◽  
I-Han Liu ◽  
Alparslan Oztekin
Keyword(s):  
Pressure Fluctuation ◽  
Draft Tube ◽  
Computational Study ◽  
Water Injection ◽  
Francis Turbine ◽  
Navier Stokes ◽  
Tube Surface ◽  
Vortex Rope ◽  
Central Vortex ◽  
Dynamics Simulations

Computational fluid dynamics simulations were performed on Francis turbine using Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) with k-ω SST turbulence model. Simulations were conducted at the turbine’s best efficiency point with a Reynolds number of 2.01 × 107. Water injection was admitted from the runner cone in the stream-wise direction. The aim of this process was to investigate the influence of water injection on the turbine performance and the pressure pulsation. The water injection did not affect the nominal value of the turbine’s power generation. Straight vortex rope was observed at the centerline of the draft tube. Moreover, helix-shaped vortex ropes were obtained near the draft tube surface. The water injection expands the central vortex rope, but it did not suppress or disrupt the helix-shaped peripheral vortex rope near the draft tube surface. The pressure fluctuation became less regular after the water injection, but the fluctuation level remained similar.

scholarly journals The Influence of Flow Rates on Pressure Fluctuation in the Pump Mode of Pump-Turbine with Splitter Blades

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (19) ◽  
pp. 6752
Author(s):  
Ping Huang ◽  
Yajing Xiao ◽  
Jinfeng Zhang ◽  
Haikun Cai ◽  
Haiqin Song
Keyword(s):  
Pressure Fluctuation ◽  
Draft Tube ◽  
Guide Vane ◽  
Pump Mode ◽  
Pump Turbine ◽  
Flow Rates ◽  
Guide Vanes ◽  
Rotor Stator Interaction ◽  
Computational Fluid Dynamics Cfd ◽  
The Stability

This paper takes a pump-turbine as the research subject and, based on the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) numerical method and combined with test data, investigates the pressure fluctuation characteristics in the pump mode and analyzes the pressure fluctuation characteristics at 0.75 Qd, 1.0 Qd and 1.25 Qd when the guide vane opening is 17.5°. The results showed that the protruding frequencies of pressure fluctuation in the bladeless region were mainly 5 fn, 10 fn and 20 fn, and the main frequencies in the runner area and near the outlet wall of the draft tube were 16 fn and 5 fn, respectively. At different heights for the guide vanes, the pressure fluctuation in the bladeless region had significant differences, and the pressure fluctuation near the bottom ring was the most intense. The amplitude of the rotor–stator interaction frequency continuously attenuates from the bladeless region to the outlet of the stay vanes, and the amplitude attenuation of each frequency is mainly concentrated in the area of the guide vanes. In this paper, the influence of different flow rates on the pressure fluctuation in the pump mode is analyzed, which provides a theoretical reference for the stability and further study of pump-turbines.

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