Installation and practical operation of the first micro hydro power system in Taiwan using irrigation water in an agriculture canal

Abstract

This paper presents the design, installation, and field-measurement results of the first micro hydro power (MHP) generation system in Taiwan. This MHP prototype employs the irrigation water flowing in one of the irrigation canals of Yunlin irrigation association of Taiwan. Since the primary function of the irrigation canal is to distribute irrigation water to farmlands, the designed MHP must meet the canal conditions such as depth, width, water flow rate, etc. The designed MHP unit consists of a water wheel containing 16 blades, a mechanical shaft, two bearings, a gear box, a three-phase permanent-magnet generator (PMG), an AC-to-DC converter, and a DC-to-AC inverter. A PLC-based monitoring and control system for the MHP unit is also properly designed. The low rotational speed of the water wheel can be speeded up to the required rotational speed of the PMG through the designed gear box. The employed irrigation canal taking irrigation water from a large nearby stream has adjustable maximum water flow rate of around 6 m <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sup> /s. After proper reinforced mechanical installations and fundamental electrical-loading test procedures, this prototype MHP set exhibits a very stable mechanical strength to withstand severe water fluctuations and random water flow rates. The future work of this prototype can be extended to install multiple identical MHP sets using the same irrigation canal. The larger electrical power generated by the multiple MHP sets can be delivered to a neighboring distribution system in order to achieve energy saving and take the advantage of renewable green power.