THEORY

The Pelton Turbine is the most visually obvious example of an

impulsive machine. A spear valve directs a jet of water at a series of bucket
which mounted on periphery of a rotor. As the water exiting the spear valve
is at atmospheric pressure, the force exerted on the rotor is entirely due to
changes in the direction of the flow of water. The Pelton Turbine is therefore
associated with considerable changes of kinetic energy but little change in
pressure energy. The spear valve allows jet diameter to be varied which allow
the water flow rate to be varied with constant jet velocity. Large turbines
may include more than one spear valve around the periphery of the rotor. In
the case of the

FM32

single

valve

is

spear

installed.

Figure 4.0: Rotor and Nozzle arrangement of the FM32 Pelton Turbine.

The operating characteristics of a turbine are often conveniently shown

by plotting torque, T, brake power Pb, and turbine efficiency Et against
turbine rotational speed n, for a series of volume flow rate Qv. It is important
to note that the efficiency reaches a maximum and then falls, whilst the
torque falls constantly and linearly. In most cases a turbine is used to drive a
generator in the production of electricity. The speed of the generator is fixed
to produce a given frequency of electricity. The optimum conditions for
operation occur when the maximum turbine efficiency coincides with the
rotational speed of the generator. As the load on the generator increases
then the flow of water to the turbine must increase to maintain the required
operating speed.

Figure 4.1: Example characteristics of turbine at different flow rates.

The Armfield Capture unit is designed to allow students to determine
the

operating

characteristics

of

Pelton

Turbine

(FM32)

rapidly

and

meaningfully, using on-line data acquisition and analysis. Test results may
be displayed in tabular and graphical forms, and it is a simple matter to
repeat or add to the data to cover areas of the turbine performance of
particular interest.

At the conclusion of the work, students are asked a series of questions

on an interactive basis, to ensure that a true understanding of turbine
characteristics has been gained.

There are certain formula and parameters given to calculate the

variables in the FM32 Pelton Turbine experiment:
Cd . .d 2 . 2. . dPo
Qv=
(1)
4

Where

Hi=

Qv: Volume flow rate (m3/s)

Cd: Discharge coefficient (value: 0.63)
d: Orifice diameter (m) (value: 0.009 m)
: Water density (kg/m3) (value: 998.2 kg/m3)
dPo: Orifice differential pressure (Pa)

P1
(2)
g

Where

Hi: Input head to turbine (m)

P1: Turbine inlet pressure (Pa)
g: gravitational acceleration (m/s2) (value: 9.81 m/s2)

Ph=gHi .Qv (3)

Where:

Ph: Hydraulic power available to turbine (W)

T =Fb. r ( 4)

Where

T: Torque (Nm)
Fb: Brake force on turbine (N)
r: pulley radius (m) (value: 0.024 m)

Pb=2 n . T (5)
Where

Egr=

Where

Pb: Brake power (W)

Pb
100(6)
Ph
Egr: Overall Efficiency

There are two types of turbines, reaction and the impulse, the difference being the manner of
head conversion. In the reaction turbine, the fluid fills the blade passages, and the head change or
pressure drop occurs within the runner. An impulse turbine first converts the water head through
a nozzle into a high-velocity jet, which then strikes the buckets at one position as they pass by.
The runner passages are not fully filled, and the jet flow past the buckets is essentially at constant
pressure. Impulse turbines are ideally suited for high head and relatively low power. The Pelton
turbine used in this experiment is an impulse turbine. The Pelton turbine consists of three basic
components as shown in Figure 1: a stationary inlet nozzle, a runner and a casing. The runner
consists of multiple buckets mounted on a rotating wheel. The jet strikes the buckets and imparts
momentum. The buckets are shaped in a manner to divide the flow in half and turn its relative
velocity vector nearly 180.