Designing and building mini and micro hydro power schemes : a practical guide

Small hydro power installations have the potential to provide a renewable supply of energy to people in remote, hilly communities, far from the national gird. This book is based on the authors' considerable experience of installing hydroelectric schemes that produce up to 500kW for powering small communities. The book describes not only the electro-mechanical equipment and how it is installed, but also the correct setting of the installation and how to design and build the channels leading up to the turbine so as to optimize performance. These civil works can be carried out by local manpower, using materials that are usually available locally. Chapters cover the main components of small hydroelectric plants from the intake and the headrace channel, via the conveyance channel, to the forebay tank, penstock, turbine, and generator. This practical manual is a major new addition to the resources available for micro-hydro power project and programme managers worldwide and represents excellent value for such a detailed technical reference handbook.

Author Notes

Luis Rodrguez is a civil engineer with extensive experience designing and installing micro hydro systems in Peru and Central America, working for Practical Action since 1992, as well as the Peruvian Government and other organizations.
Teodoro Snchez is the Technology and Policy Adviser for Energy, Practical Action. He is a mechanical engineer with 20 years' expedience with Practical Action in Peru and Britain.

Figures, tables and photographs	p. ix
Preface	p. xxi
1 Introduction	p. 1
Rural electrification problems	p. 1
Development and promotion of renewable energies in developing countries	p. 3
Hydropower and its social development potential	p. 4
Designing a project for a hydroelectric plant	p. 7
The hydroelectric plant	p. 13
2 Intake	p. 15
Intake weir with stop planks	p. 18
Tyrolean type intake	p. 22
Design of the main components	p. 27
Intake construction procedures	p. 32
Technical specifications	p. 40
3 Headrace channel	p. 45
Channel	p. 45
Spillway	p. 49
4 Coarse settling basin	p. 53
Design	p. 54
Construction procedure	p. 55
Technical specifications	p. 56
5 Conveyance channel	p. 59
Design of the channel	p. 61
Conveyance channel construction process	p. 67
Technical specifications	p. 76
Works to complement the conveyance channel	p. 77
6 Silt basin	p. 85
Description and characteristics of the silt basin elements	p. 85
Design of the silt basin and complementary works	p. 88
Silt basin construction process	p. 89
Technical specifications	p. 96
7 Forebay tank	p. 97
Design of the forebay tank	p. 98
Construction process	p. 105
Technical specifications	p. 105
8 Penstock	p. 109
Penstock materials	p. 109
Penstock design	p. 113
Supports	p. 121
Anchors	p. 126
Construction process	p. 135
Repairing PVC penstock	p. 141
Technical specifications	p. 142
9 Electromechanical equipment	p. 149
Hydropower turbines	p. 149
Hydropower turbine sizing	p. 158
Electric generators	p. 165
Control of hydroelectric plants	p. 168
Examples of the selection of electromechanical equipment	p. 168
Electricity transmission and distribution	p. 172
10 Powerhouse building	p. 173
Design	p. 173
Technical specifications	p. 180
Procedure for building the powerhouse	p. 183
11 Foundation for the electromechanical equipment	p. 189
Foundation for the horizontal shaft Pelton turbine	p. 189
Foundation for the vertical shaft Pelton turbine	p. 197
Foundation for the Michell-Banki turbine	p. 207
Foundation for the axial turbine with a vertical shaft	p. 209
12 Assembly of the turbine and generator	p. 219
Assembly of the horizontal shaft Pelton turbine with two jets	p. 219
Assembly of the vertical shaft Pelton turbine with three jets	p. 225
Assembly of the Michell-Banki turbine	p. 228
Assembly of the axial turbine	p. 230
Cable connections	p. 232
13 Tailrace channel	p. 235
Design of the tailrace channel	p. 235
Construction process	p. 236
Technical specifications	p. 237
14 Commissioning	p. 239
Hydraulic tests on civil works	p. 239
Protocol for operating tests of the electromechanical equipment in the powerhouse	p. 243
Acceptance certificate	p. 244
15 Staff training	p. 247
Basic knowledge	p. 247
Training in the operation of the hydroelectric system	p. 248
Basic preventive maintenance of the hydroelectric power system	p. 248
Additional specialized training	p. 248
References and bibliography	p. 249
Annexes
Example 1 Calculation of a mixed-intake	p. 251
Example 2 Calculation of a Tyrolean type intake	p. 277
Example 3 Calculation of the spillway for the headrace channel	p. 282
Example 4 Calculations for a coarse settling basin	p. 284
Example 5 Calculatons for an open channel	p. 288
Example 6 Calculation of an enclosed channel (pipe channel)	p. 292
Example 7 Calculations for the silt basin	p. 293
Example 8 Calculations for the forebay tank	p. 297
Example 9 Calculations for the PVC penstock	p. 301
Example 10 Design of the RU PVC and steel pipe	p. 308
Example 11 Calculation of props or supports	p. 316
Example 12 Calculations for the anchor	p. 326
Example 13 Calculation of the foundation of a horizontal shaft Pelton turbine and generator	p. 345
Example 14 Calculation of the foundation for a vertical shaft Pelton turbine and generator	p. 349
Example 15 Non-contact hydraulic seals for small micro and mini hydro turbines	p. 354

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Author Notes

Table of Contents