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Design of a Pelton Turbine for a Specific Site in Malawi

Received: 18 September 2020     Accepted: 5 October 2020     Published: 22 October 2020
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Abstract

Malawi's poor electrification rate can be improved through the maximum utilization of available renewable energy resources. Malawi has several rivers which can be utilized for electricity generation. However, most rivers such as Lichenya are not utilized to its full capacity. This paper presents the theoretical designing of a pelton turbine for Lichenya River in Malawi for maximum generation of electricity. Hydropower plants can either be impoundment, diversion or pumped storage type. The turbine used for any type of plant depends on the available head and river flow rate. The hydraulic turbines are classified into impulse turbines and reaction turbines. Pelton turbine is under impulse turbines and are usually associated with very high head and low discharges with low specific speeds. Additionally, Pelton turbine is simple to manufacture, are relatively cheap, and have good efficiency and reliability. The river flow data for Lichenya River were collected from the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Development in Malawi. The design flow of 3.2 m3/s for the river was determined form the data. The river is within the catchment area of 62.3 km2 and gross head of 304 m. The calculation of dimensions were carried out with the aid of EES software and spreadsheet. The designed turbine can generate 8067 kW of power with a turbine hydraulic efficiency of 95.4%. The detailed dimensions of the bucket, runner, penstock, and nozzle are presented. Therefore, this study can be the best guideline for further energy developments on Lichenya River in Malawi.

Published in International Journal of Sustainable and Green Energy (Volume 9, Issue 3)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijrse.20200903.12
Page(s) 65-72
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Hydraulic Turbine, River Flow, Turbine Dimensions, Pelton Turbine, Head

References
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[2] S. W. Chisale, S. R. Chikabvumbwa, and L. Chisanu, “Assessment of Reservoir Based Hydropower System, a Case Study : Dwangwa River, Malawi,” J. Energy Res. Rev., vol. 5, no. 4, pp. 1–13, 2020, doi: 10.9734/JENRR/2020/v5i430151.
[3] MEGA, “MEGA’s Mini-Grid Technology.” Mulanje Electricity Generation Agency, 2020, (Online). Available: https://www.mega.mw/activities/technology.
[4] R. B. Alley, S. Blumsack, D. Bice, M. Feineman, and A. Millet, “Energy, Environment and our Future: Conventional Hydroelectric Dams.” The Pennsylvania State University, 2020, (Online). Available: https://www.e-education.psu.edu/earth104/node/1067#:~:text=There are three main types, river water in a reservoir.
[5] B. A. Nasir, “Design of high Efficiency Pelton Turbine for Micro-Hydropower Plant,” Int. J. Electr. Eng. Technol., vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 171–183, 2013.
[6] P. V. M. Prajapati, P. R. H. Patel, and P. K. H. Thakkar, “Design, Modeling & Analysis of Pelton Wheel Turbine Blade,” Int. J. Sci. Res. Dev., vol. 3, no. 10, pp. 159–163, 2015.
[7] A. K. Raja, A. P. Srivastava, and M. Dwivedi, Power Plant Engineering. New Delhi: New Age International (P) Ltd, 2006.
[8] A. K. Minn, H. H. Win, and N. A. San, “Design of 225kW Pelton Turbine,” Int. J. Sci. Eng. Technol. Res., vol. 03, no. 24, pp. 4836–4842, 2014.
[9] Z. M. Chan, “Design Calculation of Penstock and Nozzle for 5kW Pelton Turbine Micro Hydropower Plant,” Int. J. Trend Sci. Res. Dev., vol. 3, no. 5, pp. 1245–1247, 2019, (Online). Available: www.ijtsrd.com.
[10] F. A. Ishola, O. O. Kilanko, A. O. Inegbenebor, T. F. Sanni, adebiyi A. Adelakun, and D. Adegoke, “Design and Performance Analysis of a Model Pico Size Pelton Wheel Turbine,” Int. J. Civ. Eng. Technol., vol. 10, no. May, pp. 727–739, 2019, (Online). Available: http://www.iaeme.com/ijciet/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=10&IType=05.
[11] E. E. Mon, C. C. Khaing, and A. zaw Lynn, “Design, Construction and Performance Testing of 1 kW Pelton Turbine for Pico Hydro Power Plant,” Int. J. Sci. Eng. Appl., vol. 8, no. 07, pp. 192–196, 2019.
[12] L. K. Gudukeya and C. Mbohwa, “Improving the Efficiencies of Pelton Wheel in Micro- Hydro Power Plants,” in Proceedings of the International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Operations Management, 2017, pp. 1089–1100.
[13] J. L. Taulo, R. W. Mkandawire, and K. J. Gondwe, “Energy Policy Research Baseline Study for Mulanje and Phalombe Districts,” Mulanje, 2008.
[14] M. Prodanović, A. Miltenović, and M. Nikodijević1, “Determination of operating parameters of turbines for micro hydroelectric power plants for optimal use of hydropower,” IOP Conf. Ser. Mater. Sci. Eng., 2019, doi: doi:10.1088/1757-899X/659/1/012046.
[15] K. Theint and L. Myo, “Design of Speed Control System for Pelton Turbine,” Int. J. Sci. Res. Publ., vol. 8, no. 7, pp. 312–319, 2018, doi: 10.29322/IJSRP.8.7.2018. p 7950.
[16] Z. O. Than, N. Nyi, and C. C. Khaing, “Design Calculation of Pelton Turbine for 220 kW,” Int. J. Sci. Res. Publ., vol. 9, no. 7, pp. 218–224, 2019, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.29322/IJSRP.9.07.2019. P 9131.
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Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Sylvester William Chisale, Justice Stanley Mlatho, Egide Manirambona, Sylvester Richard Chikabvumbwa. (2020). Design of a Pelton Turbine for a Specific Site in Malawi. International Journal of Sustainable and Green Energy, 9(3), 65-72. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijrse.20200903.12

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    ACS Style

    Sylvester William Chisale; Justice Stanley Mlatho; Egide Manirambona; Sylvester Richard Chikabvumbwa. Design of a Pelton Turbine for a Specific Site in Malawi. Int. J. Sustain. Green Energy 2020, 9(3), 65-72. doi: 10.11648/j.ijrse.20200903.12

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    AMA Style

    Sylvester William Chisale, Justice Stanley Mlatho, Egide Manirambona, Sylvester Richard Chikabvumbwa. Design of a Pelton Turbine for a Specific Site in Malawi. Int J Sustain Green Energy. 2020;9(3):65-72. doi: 10.11648/j.ijrse.20200903.12

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijrse.20200903.12,
      author = {Sylvester William Chisale and Justice Stanley Mlatho and Egide Manirambona and Sylvester Richard Chikabvumbwa},
      title = {Design of a Pelton Turbine for a Specific Site in Malawi},
      journal = {International Journal of Sustainable and Green Energy},
      volume = {9},
      number = {3},
      pages = {65-72},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijrse.20200903.12},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijrse.20200903.12},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijrse.20200903.12},
      abstract = {Malawi's poor electrification rate can be improved through the maximum utilization of available renewable energy resources. Malawi has several rivers which can be utilized for electricity generation. However, most rivers such as Lichenya are not utilized to its full capacity. This paper presents the theoretical designing of a pelton turbine for Lichenya River in Malawi for maximum generation of electricity. Hydropower plants can either be impoundment, diversion or pumped storage type. The turbine used for any type of plant depends on the available head and river flow rate. The hydraulic turbines are classified into impulse turbines and reaction turbines. Pelton turbine is under impulse turbines and are usually associated with very high head and low discharges with low specific speeds. Additionally, Pelton turbine is simple to manufacture, are relatively cheap, and have good efficiency and reliability. The river flow data for Lichenya River were collected from the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Development in Malawi. The design flow of 3.2 m3/s for the river was determined form the data. The river is within the catchment area of 62.3 km2 and gross head of 304 m. The calculation of dimensions were carried out with the aid of EES software and spreadsheet. The designed turbine can generate 8067 kW of power with a turbine hydraulic efficiency of 95.4%. The detailed dimensions of the bucket, runner, penstock, and nozzle are presented. Therefore, this study can be the best guideline for further energy developments on Lichenya River in Malawi.},
     year = {2020}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Design of a Pelton Turbine for a Specific Site in Malawi
    AU  - Sylvester William Chisale
    AU  - Justice Stanley Mlatho
    AU  - Egide Manirambona
    AU  - Sylvester Richard Chikabvumbwa
    Y1  - 2020/10/22
    PY  - 2020
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijrse.20200903.12
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ijrse.20200903.12
    T2  - International Journal of Sustainable and Green Energy
    JF  - International Journal of Sustainable and Green Energy
    JO  - International Journal of Sustainable and Green Energy
    SP  - 65
    EP  - 72
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2575-1549
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijrse.20200903.12
    AB  - Malawi's poor electrification rate can be improved through the maximum utilization of available renewable energy resources. Malawi has several rivers which can be utilized for electricity generation. However, most rivers such as Lichenya are not utilized to its full capacity. This paper presents the theoretical designing of a pelton turbine for Lichenya River in Malawi for maximum generation of electricity. Hydropower plants can either be impoundment, diversion or pumped storage type. The turbine used for any type of plant depends on the available head and river flow rate. The hydraulic turbines are classified into impulse turbines and reaction turbines. Pelton turbine is under impulse turbines and are usually associated with very high head and low discharges with low specific speeds. Additionally, Pelton turbine is simple to manufacture, are relatively cheap, and have good efficiency and reliability. The river flow data for Lichenya River were collected from the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Development in Malawi. The design flow of 3.2 m3/s for the river was determined form the data. The river is within the catchment area of 62.3 km2 and gross head of 304 m. The calculation of dimensions were carried out with the aid of EES software and spreadsheet. The designed turbine can generate 8067 kW of power with a turbine hydraulic efficiency of 95.4%. The detailed dimensions of the bucket, runner, penstock, and nozzle are presented. Therefore, this study can be the best guideline for further energy developments on Lichenya River in Malawi.
    VL  - 9
    IS  - 3
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Department of Applied Studies, Malawi University of Science and Technology, Thyolo, Malawi

  • Department of Physics, University of Malawi, Chancellor College, Zomba, Malawi

  • Faculty of Engineering Sciences, University of Burundi, Bujumbura, Burundi

  • Department of Civil Engineering, University of Malawi, The Polytechnic, Blantyre, Malawi

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