To prevent lifetime shortening and premature failure in turbine runners, it is of paramount importance to analyse and understand its dynamic response and determine the factors that affect it. In this paper, the dynamic response of a Kaplan runner is analysed in air by numerical and experimental methods. First, to start the analysis of Kaplan runner mode shapes, its geometry is simplified and modelled as a bladed disk. Bladed disks with different blade numbers are investigated, by numerical simulation, in order to understand the influence of this parameter on its modal characteristics. Then, mode shapes extracted are characterized and a classification is proposed. Second, an existing Kaplan runner is simulated by Finite Elements Method (FEM) and its mode shapes are extracted. The obtained results are contrasted with the bladed disks mode shapes, in order to validate the classification proposed. The simulated Kaplan runner is also experimentally studied. A numerical modal analysis is carried out in the real runner. Different, global and local, mode shapes are identified. The global mode shapes extracted by numerical and experimental modal analysis are compared and discussed. Finally, the local mode shapes identified are commented and explained by means of numerical simulation.

The natural frequencies of a turbine can be calculated from numerical methods. By comparing these natural frequencies with excitation sources, one can know the danger of a resonance and a possible failure in a component of the turbine. Therefore, it is often very important to have an accurate numerical model of the turbine to determine these natural frequencies. There are not many publications on the determination of the natural frequencies of reduced-scale models of Kaplan turbines. More papers exist for pump turbines or Francis turbines. For real Kaplan turbines, very few experiments can be found to determine mode shapes and natural frequencies. In this paper a Kaplan turbine of 37MW (maximum power), 12.5m (maximum head) and 50 m3/s (maximum flowrate) was tested. The turbine was equipped to determine the natural frequencies of the runner in air. For this purpose, one accelerometer in each blade of the runner was installed and a total of 16 impacts were done in each blade. Frequencies and mode shapes were obtained. In parallel, a numerical model was obtained. Numerical and experimental results were compared and an accurate numerical model is presented. With this numerical model the natural frequencies of the runner in water were calculated.

In order to satisfy the power demand in the electrical grid, hydraulic turbine units frequently work under off-design operation conditions and pass through transient events. These operation conditions can lead to high vibration amplitudes in the turbine runners, decreasing their useful life, and in some cases to premature failures. To determine and to understand the behaviour of the fluid damping is a relevant topic, because this parameter limits the maximum amplitude in resonance conditions. The runner of some types of turbines, such as reversible pump-turbine and high head Francis turbine, can be modelled as a disk-like structure, due to their similar mode shapes. Because of this, in this work, the fluid damping of a vibrating disk was studied. The disk was submerged in water and was put in a resonant state at different vibration amplitudes. Moreover, this structure was excited at different distances to a rigid surface, in order to analyse the effects of the distance between the runner and the casing. The main effects on the fluid damping were determined and characterized, showing a dependency of the fluid damping ratio on the different parameters.