VISAYAS STATE UNIVERSITY

College Of Engineering
Department Of Mechanical Engineering
Visca, Baybay City, Leyte

Design, Fabrication and Testing of a

Pico-Hydro Kaplan Turbine Generator

A Class Project presented to Engr. Jake Ernest P. Binueza

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements in ESci129 – AC and DC Machinery
Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering

Abstract electronic parts for converting ACinto DC,

and a power-screw-operated sluice gate for
Mini water turbine is becoming
the control of the water flow.The selected
popular today forproviding electricity in
site consists of a channel of water stream
small communities that are far from the
with low head and high flow located near
power grid lines.However, there are some
the Department of Food Technology. During
limitations on its production such as the
the testing phase, the water stream was
design complexity and the upfront cost.The
only capable of providing a reasonable
primary objective of this project was to
amount of power with a maximum output of
construct a prototype of a Kaplan Turbine
9Vand 80 mA which is equivalent to 0.72
that produces hydroelectric powerwhich is
watts.
economical, portable and relatively easy to
fabricate. The prototype was primarily
composed of a volute casing and a runner
1. Introduction
with 4 bladeswhich is connected to a
permanent magnet alternator viaa rigid The demand for renewable source of
coupling. It was made up of a marine energy nowadays is rapidly increasing due
plyboard for the penstock flooring, a curved to the fact that our current energy sources
steel plate for the stream pathway,mild steel are diminishing and Climate Change is
angle bars for theframe structure, filament inevitably destroying our planet.  These
materials for printing 3D objects, various energy sources are solar, wind, hydrogen
fuel cells, geothermal, hydroelectric and power network to produce much larger
tidal energy which contributes roughly one- output.
fifths of the world’s electrical energy The Design and Construction of the
consumption (source by REN21 global Micro Kaplan-type Turbine involves several
report 2017) as of 2017.  Among these, principles in Fluid Mechanics, Structural
hydroelectric source is also feasible to Mechanics, Material Science, and Electrical
implement as long as enough supply of Engineering and Electronics. Since the
water is present in a location of interest. working substance is water (fluid), the
        Hydroelectric Power Plant (HEPP) is dynamics of fluid flow is analyzed in order to
also famous in some parts of the world such achieve maximum efficiency of the
as the world's largest ever built Dam (cap. system.One of it is the Turbomachinery
22500 MW), “The Three Gorges Dam” that principle, which is used instead of
rest within the Yangtze River in China and Computational Fluid Dynamics due to its
also in the Philippines, the HEPP built near simplicity and ease. To make the set-up
Maria Cristina Falls in the southern region. robust, proper selection of structural
Despite these huge energy producing material is employed and structural analysis
plants, it cannot still provide all demands of (Force distribution) for each part is resolved
electrical energy for the consumers due to in order to eliminate weak points that might
water source fluctuations. Moreover, the crumble the system. Finally, since one of
initial cost also hinders some Companies to the major goals for this project is to produce
invest such kind of project. power by using generator, knowledge of
        To overcome this problem, Small-scale magnetisms and control system
Hydroelectric Plants (SHP) were employed optimization is also applied.
in this project, a micro Kaplan-type Turbine Experimental Results and Analyses
(MKT), a type of SHP was proposed. Small- were carried out by using several crude
scale Hydroelectric Plants usually output methods. For Kaplan blade design
5KW to 100 KW of energy enough to power selection, SolidWorks, Computer Aided
small communities and facilities. This Design (CAD) software is used by varying
method is powerful since it mostly replaces its diameter and blade angle until a desired
solar Photovoltaic Power System during value for each parameter is achieved. To
cloudy conditions or winter season as long map the efficiency of the system, on-the-
as water flow is present. Additionally, the spot data acquisition is done during the
initial cost is relatively cheaper and this PKT’s testing on a particular location. This
system can also be connected as electric may result in some errors from the
theoretical assumptions but still, practical
experiment would be preferable since this is
where the system is used to be. For the
generator assembly, a crude method for
measuring the rotative speed and power
output is done such as a simple tachometer
setup out from multimeter and solenoid.
Although this project meets several
challenges, the best deals for it are to
promote clean energy and to provide power
for isolated communities as well as small
electric-powered equipment or facilities
where the National Power Grid is not
reachable. Since the project was just a
prototype, ongoing research and
modification of design are still being studied
such as using CFD to track the flow vector
instantaneously, Feedback Control System
for fluid flow control and the Integration of
both Kaplan blade and Generator
Assemblies for compactness.
2.WORKING PRINCIPLE
2.1. The Pico Kaplan Turbine
The Pico Kaplan Turbine (PKT) will
generate power through an alternator or an
induction generator that produces AC
current. In order for the alternator to provide
power into DC devices or charge a battery,
DC current and voltage is required. The
alternator will be connected into a full-wave
bridge rectifier that produces DC current
that could be connected into a battery.
2.2. AC Generator Working Theory
An alternator is an electrical
generator that converts mechanical energy
to electrical energy in the form of alternating
current. Most alternators use a rotating
magnetic field with stationary armature. It is
also known as synchronous generator.
2.3. Faraday’s Law of Electromagnetic
Induction
The working principle of alternator
depends upon Faraday's law of
electromagnetic induction which says that a
current is induced in the conductor inside a
magnetic field when there is a relative
motion between that conductor and the
magnetic field.
This basic law, due to the genius of
the great English chemist andphysicist
Michael Faraday (1791–1867), presents
itself in two different forms:
1. A moving conductor cutting the lines of
force (flux) of a constant magnetic field has
a voltage induced in it.
2. A changing magnetic flux inside a loop
made from a conductor material will induce
a voltage in the loop.
Whenever a conductor is placed in a
varying magnetic field, an EMF is induced
across the conductor (called as induced
EMF), and if the conductor is a closed
circuit then induced current flows through it.
Magnetic field can be varied by various
methods: (1) by moving magnet; (2) by
moving the coil; and (3) by rotating the coil
relative to a magnetic field.
3. CONSTRUCTION
3.1. Design Criteria
3.1.1. Alternator Parts and Design
The alternator used was a 45W AC
electric fan motor, rewound and repurposed.
The alternator consists, mainly, of a stator
and a rotor. Stator is the stationary part and
contains the armature windings –and for this
case a 1-phase armature winding was used.
The stator core was made of a
silicon steel lamination to reduce current

The following criteria are the design losses. The laminations were allocated with

considerations of the prototype: slots on its inner periphery and packed

tightly together by a cast iron frame.The
i. The overall size of the turbine should
windings were placed in these slots and
not exceed the dimensions within
served as the field windings of the
the site;
alternator, with the lead wires attached into
ii. The dimensions of the couplings,
alligator clips.
runner blades, converging and
The rotor is rotating part of the
propeller ducts should not
alternator. In most alternators, the rotor is  a
exceedover 20cm by 20cm;
winding which is supplied with DC current
iii. The overall prototype should
through two slip rings by a separate DC
accommodate high flow and low
source (exciter), turning into an
head water stream;
electromagnet providing the needed
iv. A power screw mechanism should
magnetic field. But in this alternator design,
be implemented during construction
4 permanent Neodymium (Nd) magnets - ½
of the sluice gate for precise flow
inch3 in size were used instead.
control;
These parts were housed in a 3D
v. Vibration in the shafts should be
printed Acrylonitrile butadiene
minimized; and
styrene (ABS) plastic rotor, design to
vi. There should be a sufficient head
specification, fitted onto the shaft.The
room for the discharge outlet of the
magnets are placed inside the rotor flush,
turbine.
cleared from interfering with the stator core.
The use of permanent magnets simplifies
the design; minimize the connection and
number of moving parts involved in the
design, increasing its overall robustness
and reducing its points of failure, which is
welcome especially in an outdoor setting
exposed to elements, specifically water.
3.1.2. Rectifier Circuit
To build an AC-DC machine, the
generator was connected to an output of DC
voltage and current from an AC source and
in order to achieve this, a rectifier circuit
was used. A full wave bridge rectifier circuit
was placed and directly connected in
parallel to the output. The rectifier circuit
consists of 4 1N540X diodes arranged in a
bridge rectifier configuration, a DIY filter
inductor made from a toroid core with low
gauge wire with thick insulation wound
around once to help smoothen the output
currentand 50 V with 1000 μF filter capacitor
to help smoothen the output voltage and a
pair of wire with alligator clips for good
measure.
3.1.3. Generator Assembly
The alternator and rectifier circuit
were placed on a piece of a plyboard acting
as the base of the generator assembly. The
alternator was secured with four wood
screws, with the aid of a fastening bracket
and a foam inserted in between which acts
as a cushion to allocated space for any
movementsof the alternatorduring any
swaying due to minor misalignments with
the alternator spindle and the turbine shaft.
        The whole assembly was placed on
top of the frame of the volute casing and
wassecured with a few bolts. An acrylic box
cover served as a protection for the
electronic parts, especially from the
splashes of the water and to avoid physical
contact at most. The generator was coupled
to the turbine with a 3D printed coupling
joined together with the alternator spindle
and the turbine shaft.
3.1.4. Turbine Assembly
The fabrication and assembly of the
Kaplan Turbine project are as follows:
i. The runners, converging ducts, and
propeller ducts of the Kaplan turbine
were fabricated using a 3D printer
machine;
ii. The volute casing was fabricated
with a marine plywood for the
flooring and a curvedsteel plate for
the stream guide;
iii. The sluice gate was fabricated using
a marine plyboard and mild steel.
Threading of the power screw was
done through a lathe machine;
iv. The frame structure were fabricated
by using mild steel angle barsof
which the volute casing are
mounted;
 v. The generator was connected to the
runner via shafting and rigid
coupling; and
vi. The roller bearing was installed in
the middle portion of the shaft
tominimize lateral vibrations.
4. Experimental Results and Discussion
The prototype was tested in a small
dam. With the use of a digital multimeter,
the generator transmitted a maximum
voltage output of 9 VDC, and a current flow
of 80 mA, equivalent to a maximum power
output of around 0.72 watts. The power
output generated designates this
hydroelectric generator under the Pico-
hydro power category, which are turbines
that generate under 10kW. These turbines
are not fit for power grid or large scale
consumption, but can be helpful for small
power loads or independent workshops.
The power generated resulted with the
sluice gate for the turbine opened to the
ideal flow fit for the turbine, the rotative
speed was not measured due to the
unavailability of a tachometer, but it was
guesstimated to be around 2 revolutions per
second equivalent to 120 RPM. The sluice
gate was lifted in different openings, letting
in stream from low flow rate to a high flow
rate but didn’t had a significant difference in
the rotative speed and total output of the
generator.
At low flow rates estimated at 50%
of the opening, the turbine didn’t turn mainly
because of the resistance given by the
Neodymium magnets in the alternator,
which makes it prone to stopping. With the
sluice gate slightly lifted at around 75% of
the opening, the turbine started to turn but
still needed a nudge to keep the turbine
turning. While with the full opening, the
turbine seemed to be the same as the
rotative speed and output voltage as in 75%
of the opening although showed the
maximum potential of the turbine. The
volute casing and the turbine itself is at a
certain size being only able to divert some
water. The sluice gate at full opening
resulted to water overflow through the upper
edge of the casing, while the turbine being
relatively small isn’t able to produce a faster
spin and provide larger amount of water
power as opposed to a 75% opening.
The whole turbine is relatively small
mainly because of the limited size of the 3D
printer can only print, and therefore was not
able to fully capture and effectively utilize
the amount of power transmitted in the
flowing water. With the small penstock and
volute casing only allowing a relatively small
amount of water, resulted in the very poor
power output. This is a demonstrative of the
limited hydroelectric generator and how
much less of the site itself and how it was
only able to generate a small amount of
power based on the design.
5. Problems Encountered
The unavailability of measuring
instrumentwere the biggest problem
encounteredduring the testing since it would
be very hard to determine the performance
of the turbine.Without a tachometer or
flowmeter, it would be impossible
determine the volumetric flow rate of the
feedwater and the rotative speed of the
shaft.Due to this, it was impossible to
determine the correlation of the flow rate of
the feedwater and the generated power
output. Not yet even mentioning the velocity
head, static head and pressure head. Also,
estimation on the opening of the sluice gate
was deemed impractical, thus, an interval
with indications in the openings could help
validify the flow rate easily.
6. Conclusion
The maximum power generated by
the prototype turbine generator is 0.72 watts
which limits the potential of practical uses
for the generator since it will not be able to
power the myriad of common household
appliances, let alone power tools for a
workshop. At a peak voltage of 9VDC and
80 mA it is comparable to a 9V battery, only
capable of lighting up single LED bulb at
most; this leaves the generator at lost of
practical uses.
The prototype was only small-scale,
but proved that the design was sufficient
enough to produce power, however, did not
able to meet the reasonable output.
7. Recommendations
to
The recommendations listed below
were based from the observations during
the design, fabrication and testing. This
project serves as a basis for initial
improvements of a prototype of the pico-
hydro turbine generator.
7.1. Design
The major recommendation is to
bring the design into a bigger scale such as
widening the penstock, increasing the volute
curve and discharge outlet, and increasing
the size of the turbine blades and the height
of the stream guide, in order to produce a
relatively higher power output.
7.1.1. Runner Design
The size limitation of the 3D printing
machine was only able to provide a small
dimension for the runner. It is recommended
to use different method of fabricating the
runner that should be capable of producing
a bigger runner.
7.1.2. Conduit
Once a bigger runner was made, a
bigger conduit should also be fabricated to
accommodate a much higher capacity of
water flow.
7.1.3. Alternator
The alternator should be increased.
It is preferable if the alternator operates with
an electromagnet instead of permanent
magnets. The number of coils may be
increased to also produce a higher output.
7.2. Materials
If the prototype will be upgraded in a
larger scale, the materials should also be
reinforced.
7.2.1. Volute Casing
The steel plate may be a good
option for the stream guide but the marine
plyboard flooring may not withstand in a
long-term use. It is recommended that the
whole volute casing including the flooring
and stream guide should be, ideally, made
of concrete. Since the fluid handled is water,
concrete would be the best material choice
for the volute casing.
7.2.2. Turbine Blades
The turbine blades should
specially fabricated and not 3D printed since
3D printing is casually directed
demonstrative applications.
7.3 Testing and Analysis
The system should be tested at
different flow conditions and its correlation
to the output voltage and volumetric flow
rate could be made.
During design, the alternator should
have been tested first and its characteristics
determined; that is, its output versus rotor
speeds. Having this, it would be possible to
determine the most suitable or optimal
dimension of the volute curve and conduit
capable of accommodating the required flow
capacity necessary to produce the sought
output.
8. References
http://xn--drmstrre-64ad.dk/wp-
content/wind/miller/windpower
%20web/en/tour/wtrb/syncgen.html
Parth Patel, et al. “Alternator.” 6 May 2016.
about alternators
Handbook Of Large Turbo-generator
Operation and Maintenance
Geoff Klempner-Isidor Kerszenbaum - John
Wiley and Sons, Inc. – 2018
Faraday's Law and Lenz's Law Of
Electromagnetic Induction
be
https://www.electricaleasy.com/2014/02/fara
days-law-and-lenzs-law-of.html
for
https://energypedia.info/wiki/Pico_Hydro_Po
wer
https://www.daftlogic.com/information-
appliance-power-consumption.html