Flow Simulation & Static Structure Analysis (FEA) of a Radial Turbine

Turbine is the most critical component in hydropower plants as it affects the cost as well as overall performance of the plant. Hence, for the cost effective design of any hydropower project, it is very important to predict the hydraulic behavior and efficiency of hydro turbines before they are used. Experimental approach of predicting the performance of hydro turbine is costly and time consuming compared to CFD approach. This research work describes the fluid flow conditions and flow parameters within a radial turbine with regards to each part of the turbine. Fluid flow conditions and flow characteristics within the turbine are obtained by Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation with the help of ANSYS software. The flow behavior is observed inside the turbine at different guide vane angles and maximum hydraulic efficiency is obtained for all cases and comparison is done between theoretical and experimental (CFD) efficiency. For all the different guide vane angles characteristic curves are verified. For every case inlet velocity is changed as 10m/s, 7m/s, 4m/s in sequence. CFD simulation is done with K-(SST) model and SIMPLEC algorithm.