Future perspective on the flow disturbances in Francis turbine caused by sediment particles and implementation of protection technique

Abstract

This study aims to propose an experimental and numerical framework to examine the sediment erosion in the two components of Francis turbine (FT) namely guide vanes and runner blades. This study presents a critical review on the problems in hydroturbines due to the flow of sediment particles. Initially, a comprehensive literature survey on various numerical studies on flow disturbances and erosion in FT has been presented. Based on the literature survey, a research methodology has been proposed which can be implemented to protect the FT. The experimental methodology can be used as a validation to the numerical model for sediment erosion testing. Experimental methodology includes the protection of guide vane and runner materials with the help of suitable thermal spray coating. Numerical methodology was proposed to test the sediment erosion efficiency of FT while guide vane and runner are protected with hard thermal spray coatings.