JElj 4 ;) tq37 A PROGRESS REPORT ON

TI DOE'S ADVANCED HYDROPOWER TURBINE SYSTEMS PRO

M. J. Sale G. F. Cadal,B. E. Rinehart2, and G. L. Sommers2, andP. A. Brookshier3

Ab&& Recent hydropower research within the U.S. Department of- (DOE) has focused on the developrnentofnew~inedesignsthatcanproducehydroelectnicitywi~~suchadverseenviroMlentalaffects as fish entrainment/ imphgementordegradationof waterq-. I n ~ p w i t h t h e h y d q o w e r ~ , DOE'S admnced turbine program issued a Reqgestfor Proposats for comptual designs in October 1994. Two contracts were awarded for this initial program phase, work on which wil l be complete this year. A technical advisory c o m m i t t e e w i t h ~ ~ v e s h i n d u s h y , regdatoq ageacks, andnat.udresourceagencieswas also formed to guide the DOE turbine mearch The lack of quantitative biological performance criteria was identified by the committee asa critical knowledge gap. To fill this need, a new literatUte review was completed onthe mechanismsdfishmortalityduring~~pascsagt(e.g.,~~,,,pressurechange,etc.),waysthat fishbehavior affects their location and orientation inturbhes, and how tbese turbine passage stresses canbe meamred. This year, new laborato~~tests willbe conducted on fish response to shear, the least-well understood mechanism of stress. Additional testing of conceptual W i n e designs depends on the level of federal funding for this Program.

BACKGROUND

The U.S. Department &Energy (DOE) has been supportrng * research and development on hydm9ectt-i~ energy for more than 20 years. A major emphasis ofDOE's efforts has been finding ways to make hydropower more environmentally acceptable, so that this important source of renewable enefgy can ooexist with other water fesource uses and remain a significant contributor to the nation's energy portfolio. Recent products of these efforts have included two Environmen tal Mitigation Study reports (Sale et. al. 1991; FrankEii et al. 1994). The Department's contributions are summanzed in regular biennial reports (e.g., Rimhart et at. 1995).

Beginningin 1994,DOE'shydropoweractivitiesbegantofocusonthedevelopmentdanewgenerationdturb~ technology that would reduce environmental impacts (Brookshier et al. 1995). Fish passage had been identified by various sources as one of hydropower's most constdnhg environmental issues W c e 1991; Sale et al. 1991; HCI 1992; and the Hydro Working Group ofthe Electric Power Research Institute's o]. The intent of this new initiative is to enable development ofturbines that wil l make the hydropower industry more environmentally acceptable and thdore more competitive. Advanced Hydropower Turbine Systems (AETS) were envisioned as any ''black box" replacing traditional turbine-generator units and having one or more &the following qualities:

reduce or eliminate the mortality and injury offish passing through the unit, ~thedi~~oxygen@o)concentrationinwaterdischargedftomtheunit, produce hydroeldcity efficiently over a wide range offlows (e.g., variable speeds), be constructed h m durable, lightweight, cavitation--resistant materials, and reduce contaminants by employing greaseless bearings or other measures.

Oak Ridge National Labomtory, managed by Lockheed Martin Energy Research CoIporation under contract DE ACO5-%OR22464 with the U.S. De@IIId O f Energy. Questions this pa~er c ~ n be Sent to Michael J. sale, O m , P.O. Box 2008, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 378316036; 423/574-7305, telefax. 423/576-8543, or email: jon@d.gov.

* Idaho National Engineering and Environmentai Labaratmy, managed by Lo&heed Martin Idaho Technologies, Inc., under cantract DEACO7-MID13223 with the US. Department Of Energy.

DISCLAIMER

This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, make any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liabili- ty or mponsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, appa- ratus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessar- ily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof.

Portions of this document may be illegible in dectronic imRge products. Images are praduced from the best available original document.

PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT

The original concept for advanced turbine development arose from a meeting ofDOE, EPRI, and the Research and Development Committee ofthe National Hydropower Association (NHA) in Denver in February 1993. Shortly thereafter,,fo~a~n~~or~oncalledtheHydrapowerResearchFoundation,Inc. (HRFX)to support this kind ofresearch. Later in 1993, NHA and HRFI assembled financial contributions from nine utility members and the Electric Power Research Institute into S500,OOO to support joint research on advanced turbines. DOE agreed to matchthese industry contributions, producing a $1 million fund to supportthefjrstphase of advaned turbine development.

The program was e m i s i d as aphased effort with three parts tobe completed over multiple years: PhaseI-~conceptualdesign(completedbyApril1997) Phase II- detailed design and mDBel testing (1996-1998) . Phase III - conshuction and testing of prototypes (1998-2OO4)

The program is jointly managedby DOE, npresentedbythe Idaho Operations office, andHRFI. Aunique aspect ofthe AIiTS Programis the collaborative management sbucturethat hasbeen setup. AU program activities am averseenbyaninteragencyTechnimlcommitteecomp~dengineersandenvironmentalscientistsrepresenting a wide range ofintenxts. The Committee currently includes eight hydropower industry rep- ‘ves and pers0melfromtheU.S. ArmyCorpsofEngineerStheBureauof~ ’on, the us. Geological survey, Bonneville Power ‘on, the National Marirze Fisheries Servioe, and the Nez Perce Indian Tribe. Staff fiomIdabgNatio~EngineeringandEnvironmentalLaboratoryandoalrRidgeNationalLaboratoryserveaser oficio members ofthe Codt tee and provide other supportto DOE. The Committee draftsRequestsfor

structure reflects DOE’S commitment to independent peer review and interagency cooperation in all ofits research and development activities.

Proposals (RFPS), evaluatesRFP responses, andprovi- g u i a a n c e t o p r o g r a m ~ The committee

An RFP for Phase I work, funded jointly by DOE and the HRFI contributions, was issued on October 21,1994 (Brookshier et al. 1995).

PHASE IRESULTS

Responses to the Phase I RFP were received in February 1995, and two awards were made in October 1995. The winning proposals came from: (1) a team of Alden Research Labommy and Northern Research and Engineering Corporation, and (2) a team lead by Voith Hydro Inc., including Harm, the Tennessee Valley Authority, RMC Environmental Services, and Georgia Institute of Tecblogy. These winning proposals took two very different approaches to the AHTS goals. The Alden proposal planned to develop a completely new turbine design, beginning with a commercially available Hidrostal pump impeller. The Voith proposal took as its starting point existing technology and planned to make incremental improvements on three Merent designs.

A final report on the Alden team’s coIlceptual design has been completed (Cook et al. 1997). It represents an excellent example dthe spirit of AHTS program (Le., identification of biological design criteria, followed by new conceptual design of hydroelectric generating equipment aimed at operating within those constraints). Alden’s

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Table 1. Biological criteria used by Alden Reserueh Laboratory in their conceptual design of an advanced hydropower turbine system (Cook et al. 1997).

cziterion Goal

velocity ofrunner tip Lessthan4oft/sec

Minimumpressure Greaterthanlopsia

Pressure gradient Lesstbaa8opsi/sec

Velocity gradient Lessthan15ft/sedinch

Clearance within flow passage Lessthan2mm

Flow passage width

NumberAengthofrunnerblades

first step was to identify biological performance goals that would avoid adverse effects to fish (Table 1). Using th~des igncr i~and~genera lHidros ta l impe l l ershape ,Aldenthenappl i edaser ie sdco~~~f l~ dynamic (CF'D) modelsto evaluate changes inrunnergeomet~~. The end result is a 2-bladedrunnerdesignthat promises to pmduce hydroelectricity at a competitive efficiency (40%) and mhimize the stresses to fish that pass throughthe turbine.

The Voithproject is more broad than the Alden project, but a f b l report is not available at the time oftbis workshop. This work has beenoqanizxi into four tadrs: (1) a study ofenvironmental issues and tmbine applications acmss the U.S. to identify three specific ateas of turbine design for further study; (2) an exammt~ 'on of the most current information on fish response to turbine passage to see where performance canbe i m p r m (3) applicationofcm) modeling to explm turbine modifications that canbe made, and (4) specification ofthree new designcollceptsfor~turbines.

The three design concepts that the Voithteam is working on are:

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impmemen@ to Kaplan turbines for improved fish suryiyability improvements to Francis turbines for improved fish SuIVivability augmentation ofD0 in Francis turbines

AuthreeoftheseobjeCtivesareorientedatre~~~onofexiStingturbineswithheadsof1Oto5Ofeet. The Voith ef€orts will also examine how ach.anced instrumentation and control systems canbe used to improve operation for both hydraulic and environmental performance. A final report is expected by the time ofthis workshop.

BIOLOGICAL DESIGN CRZTERIA

As work progressed on the Phase I work, we began a parallel activity to evaluate the quality ofbiological design criteria applicable to hydropower turbines. The results ofthis literatun review were released in March (Cada et al. 1997). Phases I and II ofthe AHTS Program wil l involve considerable CFD modeling and engineering design studies to develop novel designs for fish-fiiendly turbines, i.e., turbines in which mortality of entrained fish is small. To accomplish this, the designers need quantitative criteria for biological damages as input. That is, the engineem need specification of several hydrodynamc and fluid flow parameters that define a "safety zone" for fish.

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If one of these injury medmwns * has Over-liding importance compareai to others, the designers could focus their effortsto "design out" this stress inthe new generation ofturbines. Because the relative importancedeachof these stresseg is dif6dt to discern hmfield stubs, a critical review ofbiological and engirseeringliteraaue was needed. publislaed labomtoqbioassays and similar studies ofthe responses offish tothe component stresses of turbine passage wem reviewed, with the goal of deriving biological critaia for the turbine designers. In many cases there were few or no data to suppofi qu&itative biological criteria, so laboratory and field expimental techniquesthatcouldbeusedto~gapsin~~o~onwemaddressedinthisreview. Thepublished literature on fish behavior was also examined to detmmme - exhibit predictable, directed mommmts at the turbine intake that might subsequentlyinfluence their position or orientation as they pass through the turbine. This knowledge needs to be incorporated into the CFD models and in turbinedesign.

WhetlKxpaltiClllar species of sizes offish are likelyto

The most important conclusions that were reached in this literature review are the following: ofthemajorinjurymehmsms @resrure,cavitation,shear/~~andmechanical~),Shear andturbul-are the leastwell- - labo&qievel studies neededto quantify fish response to shearstresresandtounderstandtherelative contributionsofthese effects compared to other injwymechanisms; indirect mortality, such as increased susceptibilityto predation or disease followingturbine passage, have

StresrleVelS~~alSOaffed not been studied quantitatively and warrant hrther evaluatioq pmemshng observedmortalityratesinturbines; the fmt priority for a fish-fiiendly turbine system on rivers with anadromous fish should be designs that direct as many downstream-mgrating fish as possible along their natml, surfaceoriented path, not throughdeepturbineintakes,

. .

CFDmodelingcanbeavaluabletoolforudzmdmg * thedynamicsdfishpassagethroughturbines; simulation of most non-salmoides as passive objects within the tuxbine system is acceptable, but the &&As of buoyancy and active orientation should be exmined, at least with sendivity analysis; and more work is needed to describe and understand the distriiution and orientation of fish as they enter tubineintakes,usinghydmaamsticand~photography.

FUTURE DIRECTIONS

Thene~stepinthePro~wasin~tobemorecompleteengineeringdesignaedmodeltestingofconcepts generated inphase I. We are currently ttyingto work out funding arrangements to continue prototype testing of the conceptual designs -Phase I. DOEfundingfor the program hasbeen relativelyflat at around $1 million for the past few years. This level offunding is not bigh enough to support the full Phase II work as originally planned. No new indushy funding has been available h m HRFI beyond their original contribution. We are looking for Creative ways of leveraging existhgfunds, including coordinated research with programs such as the CorpsofEngineers and EPRI, but them are no firm plans as yet Progmss on subsequent phases is being influencedbyavailabletkkmlfunding.

Additional work is being planned on biological performance criteria for advancd turbine designs. Our l i t e m review (Caaa et al. 1997) concluded that among the injury mechanisms Bssociated with turbine passage (water pressure changes, cavitation, shear, turbulence, strike and grinding), the effeds of shear and turbulence were least understood. The contribution ofthe other injury mechanisms to fish passage mortality are at least roughly predictable based on past studies and knowledge ofthe turbine design and fish characteristics. In addition, effects ofpresrurechangeswi~theturbinepassagesarep~~beingstudiedbyotherorganizato~incoordination with the DOE AHTS Program. However, because ofthe lack of both existhg information and ongoing/planned studies h m other groups, collection of experimental data on shear ef€ects has been judged a high priority for the continued development of advanced turbine designs.

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Further mfhement ofadvamxd turbine designs depends on the development of reliable biological criteria, i.e., the quantitative description of maximum allowable levels of injury that a fish can sustain from specific sources without irreparable damage or loss dlife. The objective ofthese currentlyplanned experhem willbe to quantify the responses ofdish to levels ofturtwlence and shear in a complex3dime~~iodve10~i@field repmentame - inside ofa hydroelectric turbine, draft tube, and tailback.

ofthe

Thenewlaboratorytestingwillbeco~undercontrolledcondito~andwillbecoupledwithphysical modeling that wi l l relate test conditions to levels of shear stress encountered within a hydropower turbine's water

createq~leandreproducibleamMlnCsofshearthatarerep~~ofdthoseencounteredinahydnpower turbk, (2) expose a variety offish species and sizes to those levels of-, (3) as appropriate, record the

tissue damage, and susceptibilitytopredalio~~ The independentviuiablestobe shrdiedinthesetestsinclude maximum shear, average shear, minimum shear, and representative exposwe histories of shear over time. Test

shear-rekd mortality offish in old and new turbine designs.

passage. I n o r d e r t o a c c o m p l i s h t h i s , a n ~ apparatus willbe designed and constfllcted which can: (1)

behavioral responSe offish to Shear fOrceS duringthe and (4) &OWfbthe pOat-teSt V of&-

results will be used to develop specific biological design criteria for ach.anced turbines and to derive estimates of

CONCLUSIONS

DOE'S contributions to the hydropower idustry are continuing through the A€lTS program. This work is a valuable complement to the fish passage research being conductedby other federal agencies and utilities. We have organizedaninformalcoordinatingcommitteeoffederalandn-federalhydropower~~(separate~m the AHTS committee) to facilitate cooperation (INEL 1997). Given today's limited budgets ami pressures of dereglllatioq collabmatrve * researchactivib suchas the ARTS programare more important thanever.

REFERENCES CITED

B m U e r , P. A, J. V. Flynn, and R R Loose. 1995. 21" CentUIy advanced hydropower turbine system. Pp. 2003-2008, IN Waterpower '95, Americau Society of Civil Engineers, New York, New York.

Cada, G. F., C. C. Coutant, and R R Whitney. 1997. Development of biological c r i d for design of ach.anced hydropower turbines. DOWID-10578. U.S. Department ofEnergy Idaho ope?.ations OlEce, Idaho Falls, Idaho.

Cook, T. C., G. E. m r , It B. Faulkner, and W. Jansen. 1997. Development ofa more fish tolerant turbine runner. ARL Report No. 13-97M63F for the U.S. Department of Energy, Idaho Operations Oflice. Alden Research Laboratory, Inc., Holden, Massachusem.

Francfort, J. E., G. F. Cada, D. D. Dauble, R T. Hunt, D. W. Jones, B. N. Rinehart, G. L Sommers, and R J. costello. 1994. Environmental mitigation at hydroelectric projects, Vol. II. Benefits and costs offish passage and protection. DOWID-l0360(W). U. S. Department of Energy Idaho Operations OlEce, Idaho Falls, Idaho.

HCI (HCI Publications). 1992. Repowering hydro through research and development: Viewpoints ofthe U.S. hydroelectric indushy. Report to the U.S. Department of Energy. HCI publications, Kansas City, Missouri.

INEL (Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory). 1997. Hydropower fesearch and development. DOWID-10575. Report for the U.S. Department ofEnergy, Idaho Operations OlEce, Idaho Falls, Idaho.

Mattice, J. S. 1991. Ecological effects of hydropower facilties. Cbapt. 8 In J. S. Gulliver andR E. A Amdt (eds.), Hydropower Engineering Handbook, McGraw-Hill, Inc., New Yo& New York.

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Rinehart, B. N., G. F. Cada, J. E. Francfort, M J. Sale, and G. L. Sommers. 1995. DOE hrampaWer program, biennial report, 1994-1995. DOEm)-10510, U.S. Depaament &Energy, Idaho Operations OlEce, Idaho Falls, Idaho.

Sale,M. J.,G.F. Cada,L.H. Chang, S. W. Cbri&meq J. E. Francfort, B. N. Rinekt, S. F. Rd&ack, and G. L.

needs, dissolved oxygen, and fish passage. DOEm)-10360. U.S. Department crf Energy, Idaho Falls, Idatto. Sommem. 1991. Environmental mitigation at hydroelectric projects. Vol. I. Current practices for instream flow

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