OPERATING CHARACTERISTICS OF HYDRAULIC TURBINES WITH SERVICE LIFE EXCEEDING THE STANDART ONE

Domestic hydraulic power engineering developed during the Soviet years according to a diff erent concept than at the present time. The task was set to make cheaper and faster hydraulic power construction, while today the hydraulic power industry is focused on obtaining maximum energy production from the passing volume of water. The article investigates the dependence of energy, cavitation and reliability parameters of hydraulic turbines on the concept of hydraulic power development. The work is based on the generalization of experience in the design and operation of turbines with an extremely long service life.

Unlike the existing point of view of many experts, the article shows that the equipment of operating hydroelectric power plants created 50 – 60 years ago preserve high reliability up to the present time. This conclusion is the result of analysis of availability factors of hydraulic units on 20 hydroelectric power plants and the study of the condition of resource-determining units of turbines. Such situation is connected with two reasons. Design installed capacity of hydroelectric power plant was selected by the Hydroproject based on the condition that it exceeded fi rm capacity 80 – 90 % of the time per year. Appeared power reserve allows turbines to operate under generating condition only 50 – 70 % of the calendar time. The second factor is increased specifi c quantity of metal of the Soviet equipment by 1.5 and more times in comparison with modern units.

On the other hand the level of efficiency of the turbines with long service life is much lower than today’s. This is due not only to moral and physical ageing of the equipment but because of Soviet concept of hydraulic power engineering: installation of runners into «squeezed» in size hydraulic units; forcing of water flow; manufacturing of turbine flow path from materials with low cavitation resistance. Other factors of low efficiency of water course use at operating hydroelectric power plants include discrepancy between design parameters of hydraulic turbines and the actual operating conditions of the equipment. Bringing the parameters of new hydraulic turbines in optimum correspondence with the actual operating conditions at modernized hydroelectric power plants is the main factor ensuring the increase in the efficiency of use water course at hydroelectric power plant.

The materials of the article are of practical importance both for the justification of equipment modernization at operating hydroelectric power plants with service life longer than the standard one and selection of parameters for new turbines. 

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