Numerical Study on the Flow Characteristics of the Francis Turbine With Various Blade Profiles

Abstract

The Francis turbine is a kind of reaction turbines, which means that the potential energy of water converted to rotational kinetic energy. In this study, the flow characteristics have been investigated numerically in a Francis turbine on the 15 MW hydropower generation with various blade profiles (NACA 65 and NACA 16 series) and discharge angles (14°, 15°, 17°, and 18°), using the commercial code, ANSYS CFX. The k-ω SST turbulence model is employed in the Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes equations. The computing domain includes the spiral casing, guide vanes, and draft tube, which are discretized with a full three-dimensional mesh system of unstructured tetrahedral shapes. The results showed that the change of blade profiles and discharge angles significantly influenced the performance of the Francis turbine.

Effect of Blade Leading and Trailing Edge Configurations on the Performance of a Micro Tubular Propeller Turbine Using Response Surface Methodology

“…The cases of applying a NACA airfoil to the hydro turbine can support the results of this study. For instance, a NACA airfoil is applied to the guide vane in the Francis turbine [51,52], and also to the runner blade [53]. In addition, there are examples of applications to the axis tidal turbine [54,55].…”