Turbomachines Exercises

Hydraulic Turbine

Exercise 1

A Francis turbine operates at its maximum efficiency point at = 0.94, corresponding

to a power specific speed of 0.9rad. The effective head across the turbine is 160 m
and the speed required for electrical generation is 750 rev/min. The runner tip speed
is 0.7 times the spouting velocity, the absolute flow angle at runner entry is 72 deg
from the radial direction and the absolute flow at runner exit is without swirl.
Assuming there are no losses in the guide vanes and the mechanical efficiency is
100%, determine

1. the turbine power and the volume flow rate ;

2. the runner diameter ;
3. the magnitude of the tangential component of the absolute velocity at runner
inlet ;
4. the axial length of the runner vanes at inlet.
5. the NPSH for the turbine, given that the atmospheric pressure is 1 atm and
the water is at 25 C ;
6. whether cavitation is likely to occur using Thomas coefficient and what
would be the critical turbine elevation.

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