Overview of the experimental tests in prototype

Experimental tests in prototype are necessary to understand the dynamic behaviour of the machine during different operating points. Hydraulic phenomena as well as its effect on the structure need to be studied in o rder to avoid instabilities during operation and to extend the life - time of the different components. For this purpose, a complete experimental study of a large Francis turbine prototype has been performed installing several sensors along the machine. Pres sure sensors were installed in the penstock, spiral case, runner and draft tube, strain gauges were installed in the runner, vibration sensors were used in the stationary parts and different electrical and operational parameters were also measured. All the se signals were acquired simultaneously for different operating points of the turbine.Postprint (published version

Detection of hydraulic phenomena in francis turbines with different sensors

Nowadays, hydropower is demanded to provide flexibility and fast response into the electrical grid in order to compensate the non-constant electricity generation of other renewable sources. Hydraulic turbines are therefore demanded to work under o -design conditions more frequently, where di erent complex hydraulic phenomena appear, a ecting the machine stability as well as reducing the useful life of its components. Hence, it is desirable to detect in real-time these hydraulic phenomena to assess the operation of the machine. In this paper, a large medium-head Francis turbine was selected for this purpose. This prototype is instrumented with several sensors such as accelerometers, proximity probes, strain gauges, pressure sensors and a microphone. Results presented in this paper permit knowing which hydraulic phenomenon is detected with every sensor and which signal analysis technique is necessary to use. With this information, monitoring systems can be optimized with the most convenient sensors, locations and signal analysis techniquesPostprint (published version

Experimental measurements of the natural frequencies and mode shapes of rotating disk-blades-disk assemblies from the stationary frame

Determining the natural frequencies and mode shapes of rotating turbomachinery components from both rotating and stationary reference frames is of paramount importance to avoid resonance problems that could affect the normal operation of the machine, or even cause critical damages in these components. Due to their similarity to real engineering cases, this topic has been experimentally analyzed in the past for disk-shaft assemblies and rotor disk-blades assemblies (bladed-disk or blisk). The same topic is less analyzed for disk-blades-disk assemblies, although such configurations are widely used in centrifugal closed impellers of compressors, hydraulic pumps, pump-turbines, and runners of high head Francis turbines. In this paper, experimental measurements, varying the rotating speed of a disk-blade-disk assembly and exciting the first natural frequencies of the rotating frame, have been performed. The rotating structure is excited and measured by means of PZT patches from the rotating frame and with a Laser Doppler Vibrometer (LDV). In order to interpret the experimental results obtained from the stationary frame, a method to decompose the diametrical mode shapes of the structure in simple diametrical components (which define the diametrical mode shapes of a simple disk) has been proposed. It is concluded that the resonant frequencies detected with a stationary sensor correspond to the ones predicted with the decomposition method. Finally, a means to obtain equivalent results with numerical simulation methods is shown.Postprint (published version

Sensor-based optimized control of the full load instability in large hydraulic turbines

Hydropower plants are of paramount importance for the integration of intermittent renewable energy sources in the power grid. In order to match the energy generated and consumed, Large hydraulic turbines have to work under off-design conditions, which may lead to dangerous unstable operating points involving the hydraulic, mechanical and electrical system. Under these conditions, the stability of the grid and the safety of the power plant itself can be compromised. For many Francis Turbines one of these critical points, that usually limits the maximum output power, is the full load instability. Therefore, these machines usually work far away from this unstable point, reducing the effective operating range of the unit. In order to extend the operating range of the machine, working closer to this point with a reasonable safety margin, it is of paramount importance to monitor and to control relevant parameters of the unit, which have to be obtained with an accurate sensor acquisition strategy. Within the framework of a large EU project, field tests in a large Francis Turbine located in Canada (rated power of 444 MW) have been performed. Many different sensors were used to monitor several working parameters of the unit for all its operating range. Particularly for these tests, more than 80 signals, including ten type of different sensors and several operating signals that define the operating point of the unit, were simultaneously acquired. The present study, focuses on the optimization of the acquisition strategy, which includes type, number, location, acquisition frequency of the sensors and corresponding signal analysis to detect the full load instability and to prevent the unit from reaching this point. A systematic approach to determine this strategy has been followed. It has been found that some indicators obtained with different types of sensors are linearly correlated with the oscillating power. The optimized strategy has been determined based on the correlation characteristics (linearity, sensitivity and reactivity), the simplicity of the installation and the acquisition frequency necessary. Finally, an economic and easy implementable protection system based on the resulting optimized acquisition strategy is proposed. This system, which can be used in a generic Francis turbine with a similar full load instability, permits one to extend the operating range of the unit by working close to the instability with a reasonable safety margin.Postprint (published version

Influence of the boundary conditions on the natural frequencies of a Francis turbine

Natural frequencies estimation of Francis turbines is of paramount importance in the stage of design in order to avoid vibration and resonance problems especially during transient events. Francis turbine runners are submerged in water and confined with small axial and radial gaps which considerably decrease their natural frequencies in comparison to the same structure in the air. Acoustic-structural FSI simulations have been used to evaluate the influence of these gaps. This model considers an entire prototype of a Francis turbine, including generator, shaft, runner and surrounding water. The radial gap between the runner and the static parts has been changed from the real configuration (about 0.04% the runner diameter) to 1% of the runner diameter to evaluate its influence on the machine natural frequencies. Mode-shapes and natural frequencies of the whole machine are discussed for all the boundary conditions testedPostprint (published version

Failure investigation of a solar tracker due to wind-induced torsional galloping

Solar power installations are increasing every year due to the decarbonization policy established around the world. Photovoltaic (PV) systems and specifically one-axis solar trackers are the most used type of installations in solar power plants. Those solar trackers are slender structures installed in open-air areas sometimes subjected to high speed winds. During the last years, failures in these structures are starting to appear, and most of them are related to a dynamic phenomenon called torsional galloping. The torsional galloping is an aeroelastic instability that presents very high deformation amplitudes and can be triggered at certain wind speeds and tilt angles of the solar tracker. In this paper, a failure investigation of a solar tracker due to torsional galloping is carried out. The broken structure has been analyzed in the field and a numerical model of the structure has been built up. The numerical model is used to identify the natural frequencies of the structure as well as the maximum stresses in the different pieces of the solar tracker. The numerical investigation confirmed that the cause of the failure was torsional galloping occurring for high speed winds and with a tilt angle of the solar tracker of 0 degrees.Postprint (updated version

Condition monitoring of a prototype turbine. Description of the system and main results

The fast change in new renewable energy is affecting directly the required operating range of hydropower plants. According to the present demand of electricity, it is necessary to generate different levels of power. Because of its ease to regulate and its huge storage capacity of energy, hydropower is the unique energy source that can adapt to the demand. Today, the required operating range of turbine units is expected to extend from part load to overload. These extreme operations points can cause several pressure pulsations, cavitation and vibrations in different parts of the machine. To determine the effects on the machine, vibration measurements are necessary in actual machines. Vibrations can be used for machinery protection and to identify problems in the machine (diagnosis). In this paper, some results obtained in a hydropower plant are presented. The variation of global levels and vibratory signatures has been analysed as function as gross head, transducer location and operating points.Postprint (published version

Hybridization in Kaplan turbines. Wear and tear assessment

In the current energy market, hydraulic turbines are increasingly demanded to work in Frequency containment reserve (FCR) mode to compensate the constant frequency fluctuations in the electrical grid. To do so, hydraulic turbines change their generating power continuously which implies to regulate the flow rate. Kaplan turbines are double regulated machines that change the position of both guide vanes and runner blades to regulate the flow rate maximizing their efficiency. Therefore, guide vanes and runner blades are continuously moving when they provide FCR, leading to high wear and tear of the regulation system components. Within the frame of the European project XFLEX Hydro, a new technology to reduce the wear and tear of the regulation system in FRC have been implemented. This technology consists in the hybridization of the unit with a battery system. In that way, the battery is the one in charge of providing part of the power fluctuations to the grid, reducing the movements of guide vanes and runner blades of the turbine. The battery system was successfully installed in August 2021 in one unit of the Vogelgrun powerplant, in France. Since that moment, the unit has been working in hybrid mode. A monitoring system was installed in the power plant in two different units, the one hybridized and another without hybrid system. Several sensors were installed and different parameters were measured simultaneously to calculate the wear and tear of the different components. In this paper, a comparison between the hybrid mode and the standard mode (non-hybrid) is performed in terms of mileage and wear and tear of the guide vanes and runner blades servomotors.The authors would like to acknowledge the XFLEX project and the partners involved in WP9. Special thanks to EDF for their implication during the installation of the monitoring system and the tests. David Valentín and Alexandre Presas would like to acknowledge the Serra Húnter program too.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Numerical study on the dynamic behavior of a francis turbine runner model with a crack

Crack appearance in the blade is the most common type of fatigue damage in Francis turbines. However, it is sometimes difficult to detect cracks in time using the current monitoring system, even when they are very large. To better monitor cracks, it is imperative to research the effect of a crack on the dynamic behavior of a Francis turbine. In this paper, the dynamic behavior of a Francis turbine runner model with a crack has been researched numerically. The intact numerical model was first validated by the experimental data available. Then, a crack was created at the intersection line between one blade and the crown. The change in dynamic behavior with increasing crack length has been investigated. Crack-induced vibration localization theory has been used to explain the dynamic behavior changes due to the crack. Modal analysis showed that the adopted theory could basically explain the modal behavior change due to the crack. The FFT results of the modal shapes and the localization factors (LF) has been used to explain the forced response changes due to the crack. Based on the above analysis, the challenge of crack monitoring has been analyzed. This research provides some references for more advanced monitoring technologies.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

CFD study of the effects of ingested bodies on the RSI of hydraulic turbines

The ingestion of large bodies in hydraulic turbines can produce blockage in the runner and/or the distributor, modifying the amplitude and uniformity of pressure pulsations and generating large unbalanced forces. These unwanted effects can lead to reduced efficiency and increased vibration levels, which can produce significant mechanical damage. In this work, we present a characterization of the effects of flow blockages due to ingested bodies on the rotor-stator interaction (RSI) of hydraulic turbines by means of computational fluid dynamics (CFD). For this, a reduced-scale model of a pump turbine was implemented using Ansys® CFX v16.2, and numerical simulations were run for normal operation and blockage operation. Studied blockages included rotor and distributor blockages. Pressure pulsations in rotor and distributor were recorded in order to characterize the effect of the blockage on the RSI of the machine.Postprint (published version