Renewable energy concept

The renewable energy concept is basically associated to the following remarks:

Inexhaustible energetic sources, in spite of being limited or
conditioned;
Low polluted energy with small environmental impacts;
Relevant component of a sustainable development.
Nowadays, the policy in most of the countries is devoted to assure additional
generating energy from renewable, in particular with small hydropower schemes,
which can contribute with a cheap source, as well as to encourage internationally
competitive small industries across a wide range of new energy sources options
and technologies.
The hydraulic power is one of the oldest energy sources of the mankind,
namely for irrigation and industry. Nowadays, small hydro is one of the most
valuable answers to the question of how to offer to isolated rural communities the
benefits of electrification and the progress associated with it, as well as to improve
the quality of life. The hydroelectric power plant utilises a natural or artificial fall
ofa river. The water flow energy is used to turn the wheel of a turbine and returns
again to the river. This type of electricity production does not consume water, thus
it is usually considered a renewable energy source. The flow will continue to fall
downhill and the water will continue to be available as a resource for men and
environment needs, thanks to the natural hydrologic cycle.
The economic utilisation of renewable energies is now based on new
technologies and on environmental protection techniques. Small hydropower, with
its multiple advantages, as a decentralised, low-cost and reliable form of energy, is
in the forefront of many developing countries to achieve energy selfsufficiency.

Fig. 1.1 - Typical scheme of a renewable energy source based on the waterpower.

For environmental protection it must be considered, in each small hydro

project, the ecological or reserved flow in order to protect downstream the
wildlife habitats and to encourage or maintain the migration through fish-
passages. It will be enhanced the main advantages to develop small hydro
comparing with other electricity sources:
It saves consumption of fossil, fuel, and firewood.
It is self-sufficient without the need of fuel importation.
It does not contribute for environment damages by resettlement, as it
occurs with large dams and reservoirs.
It can be a good private capital investment in developing or developed
countries.
It offers a decentralised electrification at a low running cost and with
long life.
A small-scale project can also induce tourist activities and can benefit both rural
and small urban areas with a friendly water scenario.
There is no consensus in EU member states on the definition of small
hydropower: Some countries like Portugal, Spain, Ireland and now, Greece and
Belgium, accept 10 MW as the upper limit for installed capacity. In Italy the limit
is fixed at 3 MW (plants with larger installed power should sell their electricity at
lower prices) and in Sweden 1.5 MW. In France the limit has been recently
established at 12 MW, not as an explicit limit of SHP, but as the maximum value
of installed power for which the grid has the obligation to buy electricity from
renewable energy sources. In the UK 20MW is generally accepted as the threshold
for small hydro. For the purposes of this text any scheme with an installed
capacity of 10 MW or less will be considered as small.
The hydroelectricity production is an energy conversion process, in which the
water is the vehicle of transmission and transformation of the gravity potential
energy into mechanical and electric energy by the turbine-generator set installed
in the powerhouse. The water is led through pipes and/or canals to the turbine,
which turn the shaft of the generator to produce electric energy. From the
powerhouse, after a convenient voltage transformation, transmission lines carry
electricity out to communities or to the national grid. In a river, the available
potential energy or gross head (Hg) will be converted in a system through the
following components:
Reservoir: constitute a storage form of the available potential energy and
creates the conditions for water diversion through the intake.
Conveyance system, including the intake, conveyance canal, penstock,
galleries and tailrace or outlet where part of the available energy is converted
into kinetic energy; another part is transformed into reversible flow work
capacity (pressure head) and another part is dissipated in heat (by fluid
viscosity) resulting in the net or useful head.
Hydraulic turbine: where the net head is converted into rotor speed of the
turbomachine.
Generator rotor: the mechanical energy on the shaft maintain the speed of
the rotor and it is transformed in electric energy according to electromagnetic
laws.
Line to link to the grid: the electric energy is driven and transformed in
order to connect to the grid for transportation to long distances and
distribution.
 Fig.1.3 Small old hydroelectric scheme
(adapted from MACINTYRE, 1983).

The hydraulic engineering intervention has a major contribution in these

types of projects, namely in the planning, conception, study, design, building and
exploitation phases of a project that involves multidisciplinary teams, with
technicians and experts in several domains: civil, mechanical, electric engineering
and specialists in geologic and environmental sciences, among others.
Adequate head and flow are necessary requirements for hydro generation. For
the head characterisation is necessary to consult available maps and confirm in
situ trough field visits and surveys about the potential sites. Typically, maps
information need to be complemented by field surveying along the hydraulic
circuit. Such maps are particular important for positioning the structural
components of the system. In what concerns the flow, a hydrologic study must be
carried out. After a first approach to power potential calculation, estimation of
energy output, identification of civil works and other critical issues (e.g.
environmental and social constraints), a technical-economic feasibility study must
be performed.
In small hydroelectricity, the hydraulic structures will be much less complex
than in large hydroelectricity. The hydraulic conveyance circuit can be integrated
in other components for multiple purposes (e.g. irrigation or water supply
schemes). Sometimes, small hydropower plants can be very unconventional both
in design concept and in components (e.g. the turbines can replace pressure
reducing valves or other types of localised dissipation of excess head). The small
hydroelectricity depends mainly upon the local and regional characteristics. It has
low environmental impacts but also a relatively less guaranteed energy production
due to the very small storage volume in the upstream reservoir.
The definitive project or scheme comes as the result of a complex and iterative
process, where consideration is given to the environmental impact and different
technological options. These are then costed and an economic evaluation carried
out. Although it is not easy to provide a detailed guide on how to evaluate a
scheme, it is possible to describe the fundamental steps to be followed, before
deciding if one should proceed to a detailed feasibility study or not. A list of the
studies that should be undertaken:-
Topography and geomorphology of the site.
Evaluation of the water resource and its generating potential
Site selection and basic layout
Hydraulic turbines and generators and their control
Environmental impact assessment and mitigation measures
Economic evaluation of the project and financing potential
Institutional framework and administrative procedures to attain the necessary
consents
Chapter 2 : All Components and equipments in Small Hydro Power Plant

Hydropower is the production of mechanical energy by passing water through a

hydraulic machine that is rotated by the action of water and the machine in turns
rotates an electrical generator to produce electrical energy (Wazed and Ahmed,
2008). In hydropower, the kinetic energy of the water depends on two aspects,
head and flow. The head refers to the vertical distance the water travels and the
flow refers to the volume of the water that passes through in the given amount of
time (Fig.8). Hydropower plant can be classified according to the power they
produce into the following large, medium, small, mini, micro and pico.

2.3.1 Small hydro power plant overview

There is no consensus definition on small hydro power plants. Some countries
accept 10MW as the upper limit for installed capacity (ESHA, 2004). For the sake
of this research small hydro power plant is any scheme which has a capacity of
generating electrical energy up to 10 MW. Small hydropower schemes combine
the advantages of large hydro on the one hand and a decentralized power supply,
on the other hand. They do not have many of the disadvantages, such as
environmental issues high cost of investment as in the case of large hydro power
plant. Moreover, the harnessing of small hydroresources, being of a decentralized
nature, lends itself to decentralized utilization. Local implementation and
management, making rural development possible basing on entrepreneurship and
the use of natural, local resources. Small hydro power plants can be connected to
national electricity grid. Most of them are run-of-river type; they do not have any
sizeable reservoir and produce electricity when water provided by the river flow is
available, when the river dries up generation ceases. The Efficiency of small
hydro units range from 60% to 90% while modern coal burning thermal power
stations are 43% to 60% efficient (Wazed and Ahmed, 2008)

Components of Small Hydro power plants

Small run-of-the-river hydropower systems consist of the following basic
components. Fig 9 (Boustani, 2009) :Small diversion dam ; water conveyance
channel ; fore bay ; pipeline, or pressurized pipeline (penstock); turbine
transforms the energy of flowing water into rotational energy; alternator or
generator transforms the rotational energy into electricity; regulator controls the
generator - wiring delivers the electricity; tail race; power house ; and switchyard.
 Figure 9: Layout of a typical small hydro scheme
Source: (Boustani, 2009)

Types of Hydro-Electric Schemes

There are three types of hydropower plants which are impoundment, diversion,
and pumped storage.
2.7.1 Diversion schemes
These plants use little, if any, stored water to provide water flow through the
turbines. Although some plants store a day or week's worth of water, weather
changes especially seasonal changes cause run-of-river plants to experience
significant fluctuations in power output. The schemes do not include any
significant water storage, and therefore make use of whatever water is flowing in
the river.
2.7.2 Storage schemes
Hydro schemes may also be based on the construction of a large dam to store
water and to provide sufficient head for the turbine. Schemes have enough storage
capacity to offset seasonal fluctuations in water flow and provide a constant
supply of electricity throughout the year. Large dams can store several years
worth of water.
2.7.3 Pumped Storage
Pumped storage hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric power generation used
by some power plants for load balancing. The method stores energy in the form of
water, pumped from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation. During
periods of high electrical demand, the stored water is released through turbines.

6.1- Type of turbines

The choice of standardised turbines for small hydro schemes depends upon the
main system characteristics: net head, unit discharge and unit power. Hydraulic
turbines convert hydropower energy into rotating mechanical energy. The main
different types of turbines depend upon the way the water acts in the runner:
 a free jet at atmospheric pressure - impulse turbines;
a pressurised flow - reaction turbines.
Impulse turbines are more efficient for high heads. The Pelton turbine is the
most known model of this type and is composed by a runner and one or more
nozzles. The runner has blades with the shape of a double spoon (Figure 6.1).
The jet coming from the nozzle hits the blades of the runner, transforming the
flow kinetic energy into rotational mechanical energy. Each nozzle has a
movable needle to control the discharge. The maximum number of nozzles is
two, for horizontal shaft, or six for vertical shaft. The nozzle has a deflector,
which is a device to control the flow whenever a load rejection occurs,
provoking a deviation of the jet enabling its slow closing, controlling the
overpressure in the penstock and avoiding the overspeed of the runner.
Hydraulic or water turbines are the machines which use the energy of water
(hydropower) and convert into mechanical energy (ESHA, 2004). In general there
are two types of turbines which are: Impulse turbines which comprises of pelton,
Turgo and cross flow turbines, and Reaction turbines which comprises of Francis
Propeller, Kaplan and Bulb turbines .

2.8.1 Francis Turbines

Francis turbines are reaction turbines with fixed runner blades and adjustable
guide vanes used for medium heads (Fig 10). They can be used for the head from
25 to 350 m (ESHA, 2004). The Francis turbines may be divided in two groups;
horizontal and vertical shaft. In practice turbines with comparatively small
dimensions are arranged with horizontal shaft, while larger turbines have vertical
shaft. Francis turbines can either be volute-cased or open-flume machines. The
spiral casing is tapered to distribute water uniformly around the entire perimeter
of the runner and the guide vanes feed the water into the runner at the correct
angle. The Francis turbine is generally fitted with adjustable guide vanes. The
runner blades are profiled in a complex manner and direct the water so that it exits
axially from the centre of the runner. In doing so the water imparts most of its
pressure energy to the runner before leaving the turbine via a draft tube

2.11 Hydro Power Generation

2.11.1 Conversion of Water Power to Electricity
The hydro electric plants work by converting the kinetic energy from water falling
into electric energy. This is achieved from water powering a turbine, and using the
rotation movement to transfer energy through a shaft to an electric generator
(Fig12).
Hydroelectricity eliminates the flue gas emissions from fossil fuel combustion,
including pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitric oxide, carbon monoxide, dust,
and mercury in the coal. Compared to the nuclear power plant, hydroelectricity
generates no nuclear waste, nor nuclear leaks.

Figure. 12: Hydraulic turbine and electrical generator

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydroelectricity.(2010)

2.11.2 Preliminary power and energy calculation

The amount of energy that can be produced at a site is directly proportional to the
amount of water (flow) and the difference in elevation between the impoundment
27 surface and the turbine (head). A simple calculation using the power equation
allows one to estimate the amount of energy that can be produced at an assumed
design flow :
P = gQoH
Where:
= hydraulic efficiency of turbine;
= density of water (kg/m3);
g = acceleration due to gravity (m/s2);
Qo = Design flow (m3/s);
H = Head effective pressure of water flowing into the turbine (m) (net head);
and
P = Electrical power (W).
2.11.3 Design Flow
It is not promising to have a scheme that uses significantly more than the mean
river flow (Qmean) since it will not be environmentally acceptable or
economically attractive. Therefore the turbine design flow for a run-of river
scheme (a scheme operating with no appreciable water storage) will not normally
be greater than Qmean. The greater the chosen value of the design flow, the
smaller proportion of the year that the system will be operating on full power, i.e.
it will have a lower Capacity factor. So in order to have a full power the design
flow should be less than the mean flow.

2.11.4 Capacity Factor

The Capacity factor is a ratio summarizing how hard a turbine is working,

expressed as follows:

A Table 2 below shows how Capacity factor varies with design flow as given as
follows:
Table 2: Variation of capacity factor with design flow
Design Flow QO Capacity Factor

2.11.5 Rated Power

The peak power P can be estimated from the design flow Q0 and head H as
follows:
P =7xQoxH
P = Electrical power in (kW);
Qo = Design flow (m3/s); and
H = Head (m)
2.11.6 Energy Output
The annual energy output is then estimated using the Capacity Factor (CF) as
follows:
E = P xCF x8760
E = Energy (kWh/year)
P = Electrical Power (kW)
8760 = Hours per year
The objective of a hydropower scheme is to convert the potential energy of a mass of
water, flowing in a stream with a certain fall to the turbine (termed the "head"), into
electric energy at the lower end of the scheme, where the powerhouse is located. The
power output from the scheme is proportional to the flow and to the head.
Schemes are generally classified according to the Head:-
High head: 100-m and above
Medium head: 30 - 100 m
Low head: 2 - 30 m

These ranges are not rigid but are merely means of categorizing sites.
Schemes can also be defined as:-
Run-of-river schemes
Schemes with the powerhouse located at the base of a dam
Schemes integrated on a canal or in a water supply pipe

1. Run-of-river schemes

Run-of-river schemes are where the turbine generates electricity as and when the
water is available and provided by the river. When the river dries up and the flow falls
below some predetermined amount or the minimum technical flow for the turbine,
generation
ceases.
Medium and high head schemes use weirs to divert water to the intake, it is then
conveyed to the turbines via a pressure pipe or penstock. Penstocks are expensive and
consequently this design is usually uneconomic. An alternative (figure 1.1) is to
convey the water by a low-slope canal, running alongside the river to the pressure
intake or forebay and then in a short penstock to the turbines. If the topography and
morphology of the terrain does not permit the easy layout of a canal a low pressure
pipe, can be an economical option. At the outlet of the turbines, the water is
discharged to the river via a tailrace.
Figure 1-1 High head scheme
Occasionally a small reservoir, storing enough water to operate only on peak hours,
when prices for electricity are higher, can be created by the weir, or a similarly sized
pond can be built in the forebay.

Figure 1-2 Low head scheme with penstock

Low head schemes are typically built in river valleys. Two
technological options can be selected. Either the water is diverted
to a power intake with a short penstock (figure 1.2), as in the high
head schemes, or the head is created by a small dam, provided with
sector gates and an integrated intake (figure 1.3), powerhouse and
fish ladder.
Figure 1-3 Low head scheme integrated in the dam

1.3.2 Schemes with the powerhouse at the base of a dam

A small hydropower scheme cannot afford a large reservoir to operate the plant
when it is most convenient, the cost of a relatively large dam and its hydraulic
appurtenances would be too high to make it economically viable. But if the
reservoir has already been built for other purposes, such as flood control,
irrigation, water abstraction for a big city, recreation area, etc, - it may be possible
to generate electricity using the discharge compatible with its fundamental use or
the ecological flow of the reservoir. The main issue is how to link headwater and
tail water by a waterway and how to fit the turbine in this waterway. If the dam
already has a bottom outlet, see figure 1.4, for a possible solution.

Figure 1-4 Low head scheme using an existing dam

Provided the dam is not too high, a siphon intake can be installed. Integral siphon
intakes (figure 1.5) provide an elegant solution in schemes, generally, with heads
up to 10 metres and for units up to about 1000 kW, although there are examples of
siphon intakes with an installed power up to 11 MW (Sweden) and heads up to
30.5 meters (USA). The turbine can be located either on top of the dam or on the
downstream side. The unit can be delivered pre-packaged from the works, and
installed without major modifications to the dam.

Figure 1-5 Low head scheme siphon intake