Steam Turbines

Turbine is a prime mover that converts power of steam

into mechanical energy

Impulse Turbine

Reaction Turbine
Reaction Turbine
Impulse Turbine
Relative velocities for a moving blade
 Simple Impulse Turbine

Inlet velocity diagram Outlet velocity diagram

Optimum operating conditions from the blade velocity diagrams

For the fixed angle

Optimum blade speed ratio
 𝟐𝑪𝒃
𝒄𝒐𝒔 ∝𝟏 =
𝑪𝒂𝒊

Diagram efficiency vs blade speed ratio

Pressure and velocity compounded impulse steam turbine

Pressure compounding (the Rateau turbine)

Velocity Compounding (the Curtis turbine)

Work done in the first row = 𝒎𝑪

ሶ 𝒃 ∆𝑪𝒘𝟏
Work done in the second row = 𝒎𝑪
ሶ 𝒃 ∆𝑪𝒘𝟐 )

Total work done on the wheel = 𝒎𝑪

ሶ 𝒃 (∆𝑪𝒘𝟏 + ∆𝑪𝒘𝟐 )

𝑪𝒃 𝒄𝒐𝒔𝜶𝒊𝟏
=
𝑪𝒂𝒊𝟏 𝟒

𝟐
Maximum diagram efficiency = 𝒄𝒐𝒔𝜶𝒊𝟏

Rate of doing work per unit mass flow rate =8 𝐶𝑏2

Diagram efficiency vs blade speed ratio
 Turbine Blade height

Diagram
n is the length of the arc covered by the nozzle showing
blade
passage
width
nozzle plane area in the exit plane= nl

Blade channel exit area=

Diagram
showing
Number of blade channels accepting steam = n/ρ
length for
impulse
blading
For the nozzles and wheel of previous example, the steam flow is 5 kg/s and the
nozzle height is 25 mm. The specific volume of the steam leaving the nozzles is
0.375 kg/m3. Neglecting the wall thickness between the nozzles, and assuming
that all blades have a pitch of 25 mm and exit tip thickness of 0.5 mm, calculate:

(i) the length of the nozzle arc;

(ii) the blade height at exit from each row.
 Axial flow Reaction Turbine

Reaction turbine consists of a set of stationary guide vanes, or fixed blades, followed by a set of
moving blades attached to the rotor.
With simple impulse turbine the value of Cre would be given by AD but in reaction turbine
this velocity is increased to AC.
 Reaction Effect (Λ)

For the Person type of blading, which has the same

Simple impulse turbine Λ=0 section for both the fixed and moving blades Λ= ½ =0.5
 Also = 𝛽𝑖 =𝛼𝑒

Using steady flow for the fixed blade

Similarly for the moving blade

Fro the diagram above, Cri= Cae and Cre= Cai

therefore
 or

we know for this case

Energy input to the moving blade =

the above becomes Cre= Cai

using the diagram from the previous slide

𝐶 2 𝑟𝑖 = 𝐶 2 𝑎𝑖 + 𝐶 2 𝑏 − 2𝐶𝑎𝑖 𝐶𝑏 cos 𝛼
 2 𝐶 2 𝑟𝑖 = 𝐶 2 𝑎𝑖 +𝐶 2 𝑏 −2𝐶𝑎𝑖 𝐶𝑏 cos 𝛼
Energy input =𝐶𝑎𝑖 −
2

=
The diagram efficiency for the 50% reaction turbine is given by
For the optimum blade speed ration a blade velocity diagram
as shown in the figure above is obtained (i.e )