Author(s): Angel V. Mercedes; Francisco-Javier Sanchez-Romero; P. Amparo Lopez-Jimenez; Modesto Perez-Sanchez

Linked Author(s): Modesto Pérez Sánchez

Keywords: Sustainable development goals; Sustainable indicators; Pump working as turbine; Water nexus sustainability

Abstract: Power generation directly through hydropower machinery is well known today. Hydroelectric power is a well-proven and mature technology, relying on a non-polluting, renewable resource that is already naturally integrated into all distribution networks. China alone has more than 85,000 micro-hydropowers and micro-hydropower and it is playing an increasingly important role in the economic development of remote areas in these types of countries. Thus, these micro hydro systems can provide energy for industrial, agricultural and domestic uses, either by direct harnessing or by coupling the turbine to a generator to produce electricity. When the water cycle is analysed, there is great potential for energy recovery. Besides, the use of these renewable energies, which are applied to water systems enables an increase in the sustainable development and their incorporation into the systems will enable the reach of the different targets of the sustainable development goals. One of these hydraulic machines used on micro-hydropower is the pump working as turbines (PAT). The PAT selection is similar to a pump when the operation point is known. However, the PAT characteristic curves, which for pumps are available for all companies, are not available for use as a PAT and, therefore, the user does not have information that allows the selection of such a machine. To do this, the user must resort to empirical methods that estimate the best efficient operating point of a machine operating as a turbine from its pump mode. This action adds uncertainty to the selection process, particularly when the efficiency is estimated. The following research shows a strategy, which enables the estimation of the characteristic curves using the best efficiency point of the machine when it operates as pump. This methodology estimates the best efficiency point of the machine as turbine, and it enables the definition of the characteristic curve of the machine when the geometric dimensions are known. The characteristic curves are defined for a nominal rotational speed and the methodology enables the estimation of the different operational curves when the machine operates under variable rotational speed. The methodology used a database of 181 pumps working as turbines, which allow definig the analytical expressions to estimate the different characteristic curves

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3850/IAHR-39WC252171192022976

Year: 2022