PELTON TURBINE

An Impulse Type of Water Turbine

 History
• It was invented by Lester Allan Pelton in the 1870s.
• An American Inventor
• The Pelton wheel was first used at the Mayflower mine in
Nevada city California in 1878.
• In 1880 Pelton was granted a patent with the following text.
• "Pelton water turbine or wheel is a rotor driven by the impulse
of a jet of water upon curved buckets fixed to its periphery;
each bucket is divided in half by a splitter edge that divides the
water into two streams. The buckets have a two-curved section
which completely reverses the direction of the water jet
striking them."
 Construction working

Construction of pelton wheel turbine is as shown in figure

 Working Principle
• When a high speed water jet injected through
a nozzle hits buckets of Pelton wheel; it
induces an impulsive force. This force makes
the turbine rotate. The rotating shaft runs a
generator and produces electricity
• In short, Pelton turbine transforms kinetic
energy of water jet to rotational energy
• Pelton wheel derives rotation from impulse
force produced by the water jet
Components

Nozzle with spear arrangement

Runner with buckets Bucket

 Construction working
• Components of pelton turbine are nozzle, runner, casing.

NOZZLE

• The function of nozzle of pelton wheel is to convert

pressure energy into kinetic energy in the form of jet
• To control the flow through nozzle governing mechanism by
using spear
• The movement of spear inside nozzle changes area of flow
through it, thus varying discharge
• The nozzle is usually made of either cast iron or cast steel
 Construction working
• RUNNER
• The runner of Pelton turbine consists double cupped buckets and
sharp edge at centre called splitter
• The jet strikes bucket at this splitter and is divided into two sides
avoiding any unbalanced thrust on shaft
• CASING
• It is made up of cast iron or fabricated steel plates
• The casing Does not perform any hydraulic function
• It is a large circular transparent window kept at front for visual
inspection
• A breaking jet is used to reduce the speed of runner or to change
its speed
Components
 Recent Development
• Number of jets may be increased usually up to
4 , but never more than 6 because higher
number of jets make governing complicated
 Recent Development
• The double runner pelton wheel is used for
production of more energy
 Applications
• Pelton wheels are preferred turbines for hydro
power when the available water source has
high hydraulic head at low flow rates
• The smallest Pelton are only few inches across
and can be used to tap power from mountain
streams having flows of few liters per minute
 Pelton Wheel (Pelton turbine)…

4 November 2010
Pelton Turbine Runner
www.bookspar.com | Website for
Students | VTU NOTES | QUESTION
PAPERS 13
 Pelton Wheel (Pelton turbine)…

4 November 2010