Chapre-Charkhil Hydropower Project Team Consultants

Design Criteria Mechanical

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Chapre-Charkhil Hydropower Project Team Consultants

1 Introduction

The availability of perennial flow, appropriate hydraulic head and favorable topographic
and geological conditions offer opportunities for the development of hydropower
projects. The province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (“KPK”) and more specifically the
district Kurram is abundantly blessed with a number of sites which are identified to offer
viable and feasible prospects of small, medium and large hydropower projects. Most of
the small and medium hydropower projects are concentrated in tributaries of main
rivers. The layout of projects generally comprises of flow diversion structure / weir,
intake, approach channel, desilting chamber, headrace tunnel, pressure shaft / tunnel /
penstock pipe, forebay, powerhouse, tailrace tunnel / channel and the access roads,
etc. These structures need to be designed and constructed for optimal performance
under the prescribed / required technical specifications. This report, therefore, provides
the technical basis for setting out the specifications and works out the hydraulic and
structural designs of the entire civil works as well as works related to equipment &
machinery of Chapre-Charkhil Hydropower Project (the “Project”) located at Kurram
river.

Topographic and Hydrographical Surveying was carried out for preparing basic site plan
and contour mapping of the project area. Mapping was used for project planning,
quantity estimates, construction cost estimates and preparation of concept design
documents for the Chapre-Charkhil Hydro Electric power project cross sectional
surveying was carried out to record the bed level and water depth in the canal.

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2 Applicable Standards

2.1 General

All equipment and parts related to engineering design concerning choice of materials,
main dimensions and function should conform to latest international standards.

2.2 Applicable Standards for Mechanical Parts

 ISO 898-1 Mechanical properties of fasteners Part 1

 ISO 898-1 Mechanical properties of fasteners Part 2
 ISO 2768 General tolerances for linear and angular dimensions.
 ISO7452 (EN 10029 Class B) Hot rolled structural steel plates – Tolerances on
Dimensions and shape.
 ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC).
 AWS (American welding society) Standards
 FEM Rules for the design of hoisting appliances.
 GB/T 8564-2003 Specification Installation of Hydraulic Turbine Generator Units.
 IEC 61116-1992 Electromechanical equipment guide for small hydroelectric
installations.
 IEC 60041 International Code for Field Acceptance Tests of Hydraulic Turbines.
 IEC 60193-1993 Hydraulic Turbines, storage pumps and pump turbines – Model
acceptance tests.
 IEC 60308 International Code for Testing of Speed Governing of Hydraulic
Turbines.
 IEC 60362 Guide to Specification of Hydraulic Turbine Control Systems.
 IEEE 1207-2004 Guide for application of Turbine governing system for
hydroelectric generating units.
 IEC 60609-1 Cavitation Pitting Evaluation in Hydraulic turbines, Storage Pumps
and Pump Turbines.
 DL/T5070-1997 Technological guide for assembly and welding of metal spiral
case of turbine.
 ASCE 79-1993 Steel Penstocks
 DIN 19704 Hydraulic steel structures
 DL/T 5017-2007 Specifications for manufacture installation and acceptance of
steel penstocks
 NFPA 851-2010 Recommended Practice for Fire Protection for Hydroelectric
generating plants

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3 Materials

3.1 General
All materials incorporated in the equipment should be new, suitable for purpose and
conform to the latest issue of specified standards.
All components should be designed for a minimum lifetime of 50 years.

3.2 Material Working Stress

Working stress should be designed as following.

3.2.1 Maximum Allowable stress

A reasonable safety factor should be available in designing especially for
components withstanding alternating stress, shock, pulse or vibration. The material
stress under rated operating conditions will be limited in following table.
Maximum Allowable Stress
Material
Tensile Compression
Gray cast iron 1/10 UTS 7/107 N/m2
1/5 UTS or 1/5 UTS or
Normal Steel Casting
1/3 YS 1/3 YS
Carbon forged steel plate 1/3 YS 1/3 YS
Steel Plate (for critical
1/4 YS 1/4 YS
stressed components)
High Strength Steel Plate (for
1/3 YS 1/3YS
high stress components)
1/5 UTS or 1/5 UTS or
Other Material
1/3 YS 1/3 YS
Note: UTS-Ultimate tensile strength, YS-Yield Strength

Table 1: Maximum allowable design stress criteria for different materials

3.2.2 The maximum shear stress for cast steel should not be more than 21 MPA under
normal operating conditions and maximum shear stress for other ferrous metal
will not be more than 70% of allowable tensile stress. But for main shaft and
guide vane journal shear stress should be limited to 50% allowable tensile stress.
3.2.3 The maximum allowable stress for material of each part should not exceed 50%
of yield strength at maximum water head when transient overload is more than
maximum output of turbine.
3.2.4 The working stress shall not be more than 2/3 of yield strength under abnormal
operating conditions, such as maximum runaway speed or when conducting
hydraulic test.
3.2.5 The maximum stress value shall not be more than 50% of yield strength for guide
vane, gate guide vane journal, ring, regulating lever.

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3.2.6 Due consideration should be made to dynamic stresses. Stress level under worst
possible loading conditions should not exceed 50% of allowable stresses. The
effects of corrosion, stress concentrations, notches, erosions etc. should be duly
considered.

4 Design of Mechanical Equipment

4.1 General
The scope of mechanical part mainly comprises of following.
 Three sets of horizontal Francis turbine each 4.47 MW, with rated head 4.2m,
rated flow of 8.33 m3/s complete with all auxiliary equipment including spiral
case, guide vanes, distributor, thrust and guide bearings. The diameter of
runner is 1.198 meters. The turbine must be set 2m below TWL level.
 Spherical valve for each turbine with complete auxiliaries.
 Three sets of digital electro hydraulic governors with PID control and complete
with oil pressure unit.
 One set power house bridge crane able to lift the heaviest part in the power
house. The design of crane should be as per FEM guidelines.
 The auxiliary system must comprise of but not limited to:
- Cooling water system (closed loop type)
- Drainage system
- Dewatering system
- Lube oil system
- Compressed air system
- Firefighting system
- Oil handling system
- Venting and air conditioning system
- Monitoring system
- Workshop

4.2 Design Criteria

The basic data for the layout of the mechanical turbine equipment has been developed
as a result of the hydrological study and calculations performed. The results of each
investigation are described in the previous chapters in detail and are not repeated in this
chapter.

Those design aspects with major impact on the turbine design are:

- Weir and reservoir data;

- Flow duration curve;
- Head losses in the power waterways as function of the discharge;
- Properties of the water;
- Chemical analysis of water;
- Sediment transport and grain size distribution as function of the river discharge.

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4.3 Selection of Turbines

The application diagram of hydraulic turbines shows that for the available net heads
(marginally changing) and the variable flows, Francis turbines are best suited, therefore
selected for this project. As regards to the number and size of units; considering the
transport limits and Francis turbine operational range, three units of Francis turbines are
selected.

The basic consideration for the selection of number and capacity of units comprises the
availability of flow throughout the year. It is always desirable to operate the turbines with
the highest possible efficiency for all ranges of flows and head. For highly variable
flows, a larger number of units may permit this. However, costs of civil works and
equipment increases with increasing number of units.

The size of the units is affected by the diameter of the turbine runner. This is influenced
in turn by the rotating speed of the runner. A basic criterion is normally to select the
runner diameter for the highest possible speed in order to reduce the size of the turbine
equipment.

Characteristics Unit Intake/

Powerhouse
PMF m3/sec 926(100yrs)
FSL (Full Supply Level) m asl 865.5
Turbine Centreline m asl 795
Hgross (range) m 70.5
HL (3 unit operation / 25 m3/s) m 10.3
Qplant (maximum design discharge) m³/s 25
Qunit m³/s 8.33
Table 2: Main hydraulic data of turbine layout

The size of the tailrace channel is determined/calculated together with the other
components of the turbine such as runner distributer, turbine pit, etc. as shown
hereafter, using in house worksheets. The depth of the water at one-unit discharge from
the runner centreline is kept such a way to avoid cavitation and or negative pressure.
The outlet structure of the turbine tailrace spills into the riverbed at riverbed level of 93.1
masl.

Following are the basic characteristics of the turbines selected of the alternatives
considered:

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Characteristic Unit Data

Type - Francis
Number of Units - 3
P at maximum design Q (three units MW 13.6
operational)
H rated m 60.2
Q maximum design m3/s 25
Runner diameter mm 1198
Setting m asl -
Rated speed rpm 428.6
P max. (one unit operational only) MW 4.53
Installed capacity MW 13.6

Table 3: Main parameters of turbine layout (capacity given ex turbine unit)

The units are supposed to be operated mainly as run-off-river plant. Therefore, the main
operating level was set at the full supply level and it will be maintained for the most of
the time.

The turbine is selected to operate continuously under part load conditions for all mean
monthly inflows. The primary operation mode for this run-off-river plant will be level
regulation.

In the present feasibility design provision are made for black-start and isolated grid
operation.

4.4 Design of Francis Turbine Equipment

4.4.1 Runner

The Francis turbine runner shall be integrally cast and finished as one piece of stainless
steel containing 16% chromium ,5% nickel and 0.5% Molybdenum and suitable for field
weld repair.
The design and manufacture of the runner shall be robust in size and strength to
withstand safely the centrifugal forces and hydraulic jet forces on the buckets under the
severe operating conditions without exceeding the allowable stresses and undue
vibrations.

4.4.2 Turbine Shaft

The turbine shaft shall be made of open-hearth carbon or alloy steel with integrally
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forged upper and lower flanges for bolting to the generator shaft and the runner
respectively. The shaft shall be subject to careful heat treatment after the forging
process.
The shaft shall have a center hole, not less than 150 mm in diameter, bored axially
throughout the entire length. The machining of this hole shall be sufficiently smooth to
permit visual inspection of the metal in the interior of the shaft.
4.4.3 Turbine Guide Bearing

The turbine guide bearing shall be of the multi-shoe(segments) babbit-lined, self-aligned

and self-contained lubricating type capable of operating continuously at any speed from
50% to 110% of rated speed & for 30 minutes at any speed from 110% of rated to
maximum runaway speed. In addition, the bearing shall be guaranteed for correct
operation during 15 minutes operation without cooling water supply and for 5 minutes
without oil circulation.
Cooling shall be accomplished by circulating the oil through external oil/water heat
exchangers either by self-pumping or using two (2) circulating pumps, one as the
service pump and the other one as a standby pump.

4.4.4 Spiral Case

The spiral case distributing the turbine flow shall be designed in accordance with the
ASME Boiler & Pressure Vessel Code, Section VIII. It shall be welded, quenched and
tempered fine grain plate steel ASTM 572 Gr. 50, Normalized or equal. The Spiral
intake should be below the runner axis.

4.4.5 Operation Requirements

The distributor controls shall be designed so that the wicket gates in service operate
simultaneously and in equal increments. Provisions shall be made for operation under
low load operating conditions (starting, synchronizing, etc.).

4.4.6 Governor System

The francis turbines require regulation of flow with wicket gates. Each governor system
shall be composed of a digital governor, governor actuator, pressure oil system and
associated control instruments. The oil/air accumulators of the three (3) pressure oil
systems shall be replenished from a common compressed air system. Alternately,
nitrogen/oil accumulator of the piston type shall be considered.
The speed signals shall be obtained from a voltage transformer located on the output
terminals of the generator and from a toothed wheel on the turbine shaft operating with
proximity transducers.

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The signal for power control shall be obtained from the generator instrumentation.
The digital governor shall allow the following control modes:
 Speed control (PID)
 Power-frequency control (PID)
 Opening control (PID)
 Flow control
 Water level control (measuring equipment, signal transmission and water
level governor shall be provided by the Contractor)
 Fault processing of measured signals in the control system
 Turbine protection
 Emergency shutdown interlocking

4.4.7 Mechanical Auxiliaries

The mechanical auxiliaries consist of following sub-systems:

4.4.8 Lubrication oil supply system for bearing

Each turbine will be equipped with one joint oil supply system for supply of bearings.
The oil will be transported with the aid of one of two electrically driven oil supply pumps,
which are backed up by a high pressure start-up-pump, to supply the generator axial
bearing during start-up.

4.4.9 Cooling water system

A cooling water system will be provided for each unit with provision of standby system
to ensure uninterrupted cooling water supply to turbine-generator units, the
transformers, hydraulic governors, lubrication oil system, compressors, air conditioning
system and any other equipment installed, which requires cooling capacity. Cooling
water to each unit shall be supplied from the common header to facilitate maintenance
of the system and operation during part-load operation within the winter season.

The cooling water system shall be closed loop system with its inlet from the tail-water
and heat exchanger placed in the tailrace channel.

4.4.10 Shaft seal water supply filter system

The water for the shaft seal will be taken from the downstream side of the cooling water
filter system, passed through a fine-filter and then transferred to the shaft seal for
cooling.

4.4.11 Drainage system

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A drainage system comprising of two (2) drainage pumps together with piping, fitting,
valves, floats, panels etc. shall be provided for safe operation of the system.
Each drainage pump will be assigned to collect the following liquids:
 Ground water seepage.
 Leakage of water and oil from various components.
 Water of the turbine pits, provided the dewatering system is also
connected with the drainage system due to some reasons.
The leakages shall be collected through gutters and conduits of the powerhouse
structure to the drainage pit/sump. In case the dewatering system is connected to the
drainage system then, each turbine pit shall be equipped with a dewatering pipe and a
hand-operated valve to release water from the pit towards the adjacent drainage
pit/sump.

4.4.12 Spherical valve inlet

Three spherical inlet valves and expansion/dismantling pipe, one for each unit shall be
installed immediately upstream of the turbines. The valves shall be operated during
normal starting and stopping to isolate the turbine whenever there is shut down. The
valves shall further operate as shut-off valves in case of turbine breakdown and to
permit dewatering of the turbines for inspection and maintenance by means of a T-Off in
the bypass.
The spherical valves can be controlled in local mode, but shall normally be incorporated
in the turbine automatic control sequence. The spherical valve rotor rotation shall be
pressure oil operated independent from the governor oil system. The service seals shall
be operated by pressure water.
Each spherical valve shall be equipped with a bypass line for the purpose of filling and /
or balancing the water pressure of the turbine manifold before opening of the spherical
valve.

4.5 Turbine Layout

Basic Data:

Weir top level 865.5m

Maximum Tail water level 797 m
Minimum Tail water level 796 m
Forebay nominal water level -----
Forebay overflow level -----
Type of turbine Horizontal shaft Francis Turbine
Rated output of turbine 4533 KW
Rated Net Head 60.207m
Maximum Net Head 70.5m

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Minimum Net head 56.3m

Design Flow 8.33 m3/s
Rated speed of turbine 428.6 r/min
Rated efficiency of turbine 94%
Maximum Runaway speed 812 r/min

Figure 1: Dimensions of Runner

Figure 2: Spiral case and draft tube arrangement

5 Balance of Plant

5.1 Ventilation & air conditioning

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The air conditioning and ventilation system will provide sufficient flow of air to all areas
of the power station to control temperature and humidity so that equipment can operate
as reliably as possible and at the same time, a safe working environment is provided for
people working there.

The air conditioning and ventilation system must function as an integral part of the
overall fire protection and evacuation plan for the power station complex.

The central control room will be air-conditioned by means of equipment which should be
installed in the roof of the control block. In the control room the minimum temperature
should not be less than 18°C and the maximum temperature should not exceed 28°C,
with a maximum relative humidity of 50%.

5.2 Fire Fighting System

The firefighting equipment shall comprise the following components and sub-systems:

 Fire hydrant system for the power station.

 Automatic high velocity water spray system for the generator transformers.
 Raw water distribution network
 Microprocessor based fire detection and alarm system.
 Portable and mobile type chemical fire extinguishers.

FM-200 must be used for generator fire protection.

Sprinkler system should be used for fire protection of transformer and firewall shoul be
provided between transformers (NFPA 850 & 851)

5.3 Oil Treatment Plant

The facilities will include a mobile oil filtration plant for purifying the transformer oil
system. The mobile high vacuum oil treatment plant will be equipped with evacuation
pumps, vacuum pumps, degasifying, heaters, filters, connecting rubber hoses etc. and
any other items required for conditioning of the oil to maintain its dielectric properties.
Further one mobile transformer oil tank of sufficient capacity is included to store oil of
one main single phase transformer, with lifting lugs for lifting the tank completely filled
with oil.

A separate bearing and governor oil purifying system is foreseen. Both oil treatment
plants will be capable of the following functions:

 Filtration, dehydration and degassing of oil supplied in drums or in a tanker before

filling into transformers, respectively into the bearing or governing systems;
 Processing of oil after long periods of use;
 Regeneration of oil after long periods of use to restore loss factor, surface tension,
saponification, acidity factor etc. to values approaching those of new oil;
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 Addition of inhibitor.

5.4 Workshop

The maintenance and repair work to be performed will include basic machining like
turning, milling, drilling, grinding, welding, etc.

A suitable mechanical workshop shall be fully equipped with machine tools, equipment
and tools necessary for normal maintenance and small repair of the turbines,
generators and auxiliary equipment installed in the power station, switchyard, de-sander
and at the power intake.

5.5 Service/Low Pressure Air System

The service air system will supply pressurized air at working pressure of 8 bar to various
consumers in the power station, e.g. such as inflatable standstill and maintenance seals
on the turbine shaft and main inlet valves, generator brakes and service air take-off
points located throughout the power station structure for air supply to pneumatic tools
and other equipment used during maintenance.

The low pressure compressed air will mainly consist of two motor driven screw type
compressors, one as stand-by. The compressors will deliver the air to a main air
receiver with app. 6 m3 capacity. The compressors and the main receiver will be
installed at the level of the erection bay floor elevation. From the main receiver the air
will be distributed to various consumption points in the power station via a network of
steel pipes.

The low pressure compressed air system shall be designed for automatic operation with
the possibility of local manual control of the individual compressors from the local
control panel.

The air receiver and the pressure accumulators shall be designed for normal working
pressure of 10 bar in compliance with ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section
Vlll; Division 1 or equivalent.

5.6 Compressed High Pressure Air System

The high pressure compressed air system will supply pressurized air for the hydraulic
governing and other consumers in the power station, if so required. Its main purpose will
be to supply sufficient high compressed air volume to close the nozzles servomotors
and the main inlet valve under emergency conditions. The working pressure has to be
defined together with the hydraulic pressure unit of the turbine governor.

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The high pressure compressed air will consist of two motor driven screw type
compressors per unit, with one compressor in stand-by. The compressors will deliver
the air to a main air/oil receiver of sufficient capacity for emergency closing. The
compressors and the main receiver will be installed at the level of the hydraulic
governor.

The compressed air system shall be designed for automatic operation with the
possibility of local manual control. The air receiver and the pressure accumulators shall
be designed in compliance with ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section Vlll;
Division 1 or equivalent.

6 Hydraulic Steel Structures

The material used for hydraulic steel structures is ASTM A-36 for skin plates of gates
and penstock. Nuts and bolts of any kind should be made of A-307 or/and ASTM A-325.
The hydraulic steel structures shall be designed as following:

6.1 Penstock
The penstock of Chapre-Charkhil Hydropower Project shall start from forebay and
installed till Main inlet valve (MIV). The thickness of Penstock should be minimum
16mm. Following conditions shall be considered during penstock design but not limited
to:
 Water hammeing
 Sudden Pressure rise
 Deflection due to weight of water and saddles
 Joint efficiency of 95% must be ensured for welded joints.

6.2 Hydraulic Gates

Hydraulic gate is an operation group of equipment required for and sufficient to close
one opening of hydraulic structure which may contain one or multiple gates. A gate unit
normally includes one gate leaf with hoisting deck, one set of embedded parts, access
ladders and all required appurtenances. Gates shall be installed at undersluices, head
regulator, sand trap and tail race. Fixed hoisting arrangements shall be provided for
service gates and Overhead rail mounted movable hoist shall be provided for stoplogs.
Rubber seals for gates must be oil resistant. Following considerations shall be made
during gate design but not limited to:
 Hydrostatic & hydrodynamic forces at normal and unusual water levels
 Wind loads
 Temperature effects

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