Research of Turbine Efficiency Test by Current-Meter Method in Circular Pipe

Abstract

For absolute discharge and efficiency measurement of turbine with medium and low water head, the current-meter method has high precision, good reliability, and wide application range. For rectangle flow channel, it is easy to lift down a gate frame with current meters to measure the flow velocity, but for circular pipe, due to the high stress, possible deformation, and strict safety requirement, the design, installation, and implementation of the support bracket is the key to the measurement by current-meter method. In this paper, we made the research of key technology for current-meter method in circular pipe. By building a numerical model for circular pressure pipe and flow measuring bracket, we analysed the influence of meters arrangement, the force and deformation of support pole with CFD, and fluid-solid coupling method, Finally, an optimized reinforcement bracket is proposed, with combined smooth and stress calculation, the measuring bracket is verified it can withstand the flow stress and has good safety characteristics, which can provide a reference for other similar turbine efficiency tests.