Scientific Bulletin of the The 6th International Conference on

Politehnica University of Timisoara Hydraulic Machinery and Hydrodynamics

Transactions on Mechanics Special issue Timisoara, Romania, October 21 - 22, 2004

ANALYSIS OF THE GAMM FRANCIS TURBINE DISTRIBUTOR 3D FLOW FOR THE

WHOLE OPERATING RANGE AND OPTIMIZATION OF THE GUIDE VANE AXIS
LOCATION

Sebastian MUNTEAN, PhD, Senior Researcher* Romeo F. SUSAN-RESIGA, PhD, Professor

Center of Advanced Research in Engineering Department of Hydraulic Machinery
Sciences “Politehnica” University of Timisoara
Romanian Academy - Timisoara Branch
Sandor BERNAD, PhD, Senior Researcher Ioan ANTON, PhD, Professor, Member of the
Center of Advanced Research in Engineering Romanian Academy
Sciences Department of Hydraulic Machinery
Romanian Academy - Timisoara Branch “Politehnica” University of Timisoara
*Corresponding author: Bv Mihai Viteazu 24, 300223, Timisoara, Romania
Tel.: (+40) 256 403692, Fax: (+40) 256 403700, Email: seby@acad-tim.tm.edu.ro

ABSTRACT NOMENCLATURE
Vr
The paper presents a numerical investigation of the 3D cr = [-] radial velocity coefficient
flow in the distributor (stay vanes and guide vanes) of 2 Eref
the GAMM Francis turbine. The domain corresponds Vu
to the distributor (stay vane and guide vane) interblade cu = [-] tangential velocity coefficient
2 Eref
channel. The distributor computational domain is
bounded upstream and downstream by cylindrical and Vz
ca = [-] axial velocity coefficient
conical patches, respectively. The first one corresponds 2 Eref
to the spiral casing outflow section, while the second
one is conventionally considered to be a conical patch cm = (cr )2 + (c z )2[-] meridian velocity coefficient
upstream the runner. On the distributor inlet section a M [Nm] torque
constant radial and circumferential velocity compo- g [m/s2] gravity
nents corresponding to an ideal spiral case, with zero
axial velocity. Since we assume a perfect spiral casing, Subscripts and Superscripts
the distributor inlet velocity field has no circumfer- r radial direction
ential variation. On the outlet section a measured u tangential direction
pressure profile is considered. The distributor domain z axial direction
is discretized using an unstructured mesh. There are
three main issues addressed in this paper: first, using ABBREVIATIONS
the numerical methodology presented above, the
ref reference section (draft tube inlet section)
distributor flow for several guide vane angle values
gv guide vane
is computed. As a result, the guide vane torque versus
in, out inlet section, outlet section
guide vane opening angle is computed for the actual
min, max minimum and maximum opening
position of the guide vane axis; second, we investigate
the flow for the whole range of the guide vane posi-
1. INTRODUCTION
tions, at four different locations of the guide vane axis.
The Francis turbine distributor, which includes two
KEYWORDS radial cascades in tandem, is an essential component
of the turbine. The stay vanes are fixed and unloaded,
Francis turbine distributor, guide vane axis
while the guide vanes have adjustable position in
optimization.
correlation with the turbine discharge. The guide

131
vanes open synchronously modified by an appropriate
rotation around axes parallel to the machine axis.
The corresponding guide vane loading is transmitted
to the vane axis as a force and torque. The position
of the force vector support with respect to the guide
vane axis influences the torque magnitude. The
maximum torque magnitude influences the mechanical
design of the turbine regulating system, and it is
preferable to minimize this value. The present paper
addresses this issue, by examining the variation of
the torque in the guide vane axis at variable guide
vane opening. As a result, an optimization criterion
is proposed and used in order to minimize the loading
of the turbine regulating system.
Figure 1. The three-dimensional cut through the
GAMM Francis turbine.
Figure 1 shows a three-dimensional view of the
GAMM Francis turbine considered in the present
study, [7,8]. One can easily observe the typical configu-
ration of a Francis turbine distributor, and the regulating
mechanism. Although the stay vane and guide vane
radial cascades can be analysed using a simplified
2D inviscid flow model, in the present study we are
employing a full 3D flow computation to obtain an
accurate evaluation of the guide vane loading and
torque. This choice is motivated by observing that
3D flow affects are significant in the neighbourhood
of the guide vane trailing edge, as one can infer from
the meridional cut shown in Figure 2. This is generally
the case for medium/large specific speed Francis
turbines.
Since the flow in the turbine distributor is acceler-
ated, there are practically no flow detachments on the
guide vanes for the whole operating range. As a result,
as far as the blade loading is concerned, viscous
effects can be neglected for the present analysis and
optimization procedure. Moreover, the flow can be
considered steady, since no sources of unsteadiness
are present in the spiral case or further upstream.
In conclusion, in this paper we consider a 3D
steady Euler flow in the Francis turbine distributor.
132
Figure 2. Meridional cross section through the
GAMM Francis turbine model [7,8]
Section 2 presents the 3D computational domain
and the boundary conditions. The parametric study
performed in this paper requires the modification of
the domain geometry according to variable guide
vane opening angle. In Section 3 we first compute a
least squares approximation of the discharge versus
guide vane opening correlation, at constant head, from
the turbine hillchart. Then, the variation of the torque
in the guide vane axis is computed versus the guide
vane opening angle, considering the original guide
vane axis location. Moreover, the distributor discharge-
pressure drop characteristic curve is computed, and
later used to define equivalent guide vane openings
as the guide vane axis location is modified. Section 4
presents a parametric study of the turbine distributor,
by modifying the guide vane axis location. For each
axis position considered, a momentum versus opening
angle curve is computed, and the extremum torque
values are obtained. We define the optimum axis
position by imposing the equality of the magnitudes
of torque extremum values. As a result, a new location
of the guide vane axis is identified, with a minimum
torque value and a minimum loading of the regulating
mechanism. This result is particularly important for
large hydraulic turbines, where the torque magnitude
reaches very large values. The paper conclusions are
summarized in the last section
2. COMPUTATIONAL DOMAIN AND
BOUNDARY CONDITIONS
Figure 3 presents a top view of the GAMM Francis
turbine distributor, with the actual stay vane and guide
vane geometry [7].
The guide vane is shown for several positions, rang-
ing from completely closed ( α gv = 0 ) to maximum
opening ( α gv = 35o ). The computational domain is
bounded by two angular periodic lateral surfaces that
are able to include the guide vane for all opening angle
values, as shown in Fig. 3 bottom. This choice allows
the minimum change in the computational domain
geometry, as well as a rapid re-meshing for each guide
vane position under consideration.
Adjusting guide vane
(24 blades)
Distributor
inlet section
Distributor
outlet section
Stay vane
(24 blades)
Displacement of the guide vane blade at:
Maximum opening αgv =35
Nominal opening αgv =25
Minimum opening αgv =0
Figure 3. Top view of the GAMM Francis distributor
and computational domain.
Figure 4 shows the full 3D computational domain
for the distributor flow computation. It corresponds
to a 3D channel which includes one stay vane and one
guide vane. Besides the periodic lateral surfaces, the
channel is bounded by the upper and lower distributor
rings. The inlet section corresponds to the spiral case
outlet. The velocity field here has a negligible com-
ponent parallel to the machine axis ( ca = 0 ). The
radial and tangential inlet velocity components are
computed for each discharge value, while keeping
the inlet angle constant (corresponding to the spiral
case geometry).
The outlet section for the distributor domain in
Figure 4 corresponds to a conical patch upstream the
runner (see BB’ in Figure 2). On this section pressure
conditions must be imposed. Since the present study
does not deal with a coupled flow distributor-runner, an
experimental pressure profile, measured on the survey
axis BB’ form Fig. 2, is considered in the present
investigation. This is not a rigorous boundary condition,
since the pressure profile is changing with variable
discharge. However, the influence on the guide vane
torque is unlikely to be significantly affected by the
details of the outlet condition.
Figure 4. Three-dimensional computational domain
for the GAMM Francis turbine distributor.
3. DISTRIBUTOR FLOW ANALYSIS
Using the above computational domain and boundary
conditions, we compute the steady 3D Euler flow in
the Francis turbine distributor.
First, we compute the correlation between the dis-
charge and the guide vane opening angle, Q = f ( α ) .
In doing so, we are considering the experimental
data from the turbine hillchart, for constant nominal
head, as shown in Figure 5. Two hillcharts were
available for the GAMM turbine, one of them being
the conventional one, and the second one being
computed without taking into consideration the draft
tube. The differences are quite small, as one can see
from Fig. 5. An analytical representation for the
experimental data is obtained using a polynomial
least squares fit. It has been concluded, see Fig. 5,
that a parabolic representation of the Q = f ( α )
dependence is accurate enough, and can be further
used for the parametric study.
Once the discharge known at each guide vane
opening, the 3D flow simulation is performed, and
the torque in the guide vane axis is computed using
the pressure distribution on the guide vane.
Figure 6 shows the variation of the torque for twelve
guide vane openings, including the completely closed
position. A polynomial least squares fit (solid line) is
used to interpolate the numerical values, and to deter-
mine the extremum values. It can be seen that there
are two extrema: the minimum (negative) value cor-
responds to the completely closed position, while the
maximum (positive) torque corresponds to an opening
smaller than the value at best efficiency point ( α = 25o ).
Of course, when designing the turbine regulating
system, the maximum absolute value of the torque is to
133
be considered for the structural analysis. An optimum c
design will first minimize the loading, and this can
be accomplished by an appropriate choice of the axis
location. l1
l
l2

a0 e a

gv
gv

l 01
R

l0
l 02
b

gv
O

Figure 7. Guide vane geometrical parameters.

One can easily see that by changing the guide
vane axis position, practically the whole radial
Figure 5. The correlation between the turbine
cascade geometry is modified. As a result, one
discharge and the guide vane opening angle.
question to be answered is how can one define
equivalent guide vane openings, since the
Q = f ( α ) dependence shown in Fig. 5 is no longer
valid for other eccentricity values. Traditionally, this
equivalence can be established using various
geometrical considerations, without any reference to
the actual flow field. However, we are proposing
here a new approach, based on the results of the
numerical simulation.
When computing the flow field at variable guide
vane opening, one obtains the distributor pressure
drop ∆p = f1 (α ) . Such a curve is shown in Fig. 8,
where the numerical data were approximated quite
well by a third degree polynomial least squares fit.
This curve is computed for the original guide vane
axis position.
Figure 6. Guide vane torque versus guide vane angle
for the GAMM distributor at n0 = 0.07208
(e = 0, i.e. actual GAMM Francis turbine design).
The results shown in Fig. 6 correspond to the actual
GAMM Francis turbine design, i.e. the original guide
vane axis location. Figure 7 presents the geometrical
parameters used to define the axis position with
respect to the symmetrical guide vane chordline.
The eccentricity e is the distance from the axis
position to the guide vane mid-chord point. The
original design considers e = 0 . The dimensionless
eccentricity n0 is defined as,
l −l
n0 = 01 02 ,
2 ⋅ l0
where the segments l0 , l01 , and l02 are defined in
Figure 8. Pressure drop versus guide vane angle for
Figure 7. the GAMM distributor.

134
After eliminating the guide vane opening angle
between Q = f (α ) (from Fig. 5) and ∆p = f1 (α )
(from Fig. 8), one obtains the hydraulic character-
istic curve for the distributor, ∆p = f 2 (Q ) shown in
Fig. 9.

Figure 10. Guide vane torque variation versus the

guide vane opening, for several values of the axis
eccentricity.
We are now in position to state an optimization
criterion, as follows: the optimum guide vane axis
Figure 9. Pressure drop versus discharge for the location is the one that gives equal magnitudes of
GAMM distributor at n0=0.07208 (e=0). the torque extrema. It is easy to see that in this case,
Using the distributor characteristic curve above, we the torque extrema has also a minimum value in
can introduce a hydraulic equivalence criterion as comparison to other configurations, thus answering
follows: two guide vane radial cascade configurations to the original requirement of minimizing the turbine
are said to be equivalent if for the same discharge regulating system loading.
values the corresponding pressure drop values are
equal. In other words, two hydraulically equivalent
cascade regimes should coincide on the characteristic
curve from Fig. 9. Obviously, at different eccentricity
values, the corresponding opening angles will be
different, and the constant opening lines on the turbine
hillchart will be slightly shifted. However, the above
criterion will insure the same runner inlet flow con-
ditions at a give discharge, no matter the guide vane
eccentricity.

4. OPTIMIZATION OF THE GUIDE VANE AXIS

LOCATION
Using the methodology described in Section 3, we
are performing a parametric study of the guide vane
torque for several axis eccentricity values. The torque
variation is shown in Figure 10, for three additional
guide vane axis position (besides the original one,
which corresponds to the solid curve):
♦ for n0 = -0.00247 (e = -5 mm),
• for n0 = 0.07208 (e = 0),
■ for n0 = 0.14508 (e = +5 mm),
▲ for n0 = 0.21656 (e = +10 mm).
The dashed curves correspond to the third order
polynomial least squares fits.
It is easy to see from Fig. 10 that the torque extremum
values are largely influenced by the axis position. These
extrema are plotted versus the eccentricity in Figure 11.
Figure 11. Guide vane torque extrema versus the
guide vane shaft axis eccentricity.
The optimum shaft position corresponds to the
intersection of the torque extreme value lines, i.e. the
maximum value (M )gv max and the value at the closing
position of the guide vane - (M )gv
o . According to the
criterion defined above the optimum eccentricity for
GAMM distributor is eopt = −2.697mm. In other words,
the minimum guide vane torque (M)gv
min = 0.8165 Nm
is obtained by moving the guide vane shaft by

135
2.697 mm toward the trailing edge of the guide vane
blade from its actual position.
Figure 12. The original (solid line) and optimum
(dashed line) torque variation versus guide vane
angle for the GAMM turbine.
Figure 12 presents the original (solid line) and
optimum (dashed line) torque distribution for the
whole range of the GAMM guide vane opening. It
can be seen that the optimized location leads to a
more rational loading of the regulating mechanism.
According to the dimensionless eccentricity defini-
tion n0, the optimum position of the guide vane shaft
is obtained at n0 = 0.032. The literature recommends
for the guide vane that contains 24 blades and sym-
metric profile n0 = 0.040, [6, p324]. One can see that
the value found through the present analysis is 20%
smaller, but has a robust justification.
5. CONCLUSIONS
The paper addresses a design optimization problem
for the location of the guide vane rotation axis
position. Although the particular example presented
in detail corresponds to the GAMM Francis turbine
model, it is quite obvious that both the methodology,
as well as the optimization criterion, are valid for
any Francis or Kaplan turbines.
The optimization criterion considered in this paper
is the minimization of the mechanical loading of the
turbine regulating system. This means that the extre-
mum value of the torque appplied to the guide vane
shaft has to be minimized. The designed parameter
to be optimized is the location of the guide vane
shaft axis along the guide vane chordline.
Our methodology employs rigorous hydrodynamic
considerations, rather than geometric arguments. Al-
though the methodology seems to be quite laborious,
since it involves a series of 3D flow simulation, the
result clearly shows an improvement over the original
design.
136
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The present work has been supported from the
National University Research Council Grant (CNCSIS)
109/2002-2004 and 220/2003-2004. Numerical com-
putations have been performed at the Numerical
Simulation and Parallel Computing Laboratory from
the “Politehnica” University of Timisoara, National
Center for Engineering of Systems with Complex
Fluids.
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