Removable Hydroelectric Turbine Assembly for Maintenance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current hydroelectric installations face significant challenges in maintaining turbines, particularly the speed multiplier, due to cramped access, safety hazards, and the need for extensive downtime and costly isolation procedures, which pose risks to personnel and increase maintenance time.
Innovation Solution
A hydroelectric installation design featuring a one-piece assembly of the turbine, alternator-multiplier system, and distributor that can be removably mounted on the main support, allowing for easy pivoting and lifting for maintenance, eliminating the need for cofferdams and ensuring a sealed connection through torque and hydraulic pressure, thereby reducing downtime and safety risks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If the turbine is mounted in a fixed position within the conduit system, then the structural stability is improved, but the maintenance complexity and downtime increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The turbine assembly is segmented from the main conduit system through removable connection means (flanges, bolts, clamps). This allows the turbine to be divided into a separable unit that can be removed for maintenance while the conduit system remains in place, resolving the contradiction between structural stability and maintenance ease.
Solution Approach 2:
The connection between the turbine and conduit system is made dynamic through removable mounting mechanisms. The turbine can be securely fixed during operation (providing stability) and easily removed when maintenance is needed (reducing downtime), transforming a static fixed mounting into a dynamic removable-one.
2Strength
If the turbine is accessed through a cramped duct, then the structural integrity is maintained, but the safety hazards and maintenance difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The turbine is extracted as a removable unit from the cramped duct environment. By making the turbine assembly detachable, maintenance personnel can remove it completely for servicing rather than working in the confined space, eliminating safety hazards while maintaining structural integrity through proper reinstallation.
Solution Approach 2:
Removable connection means (flanges, bolts, clamps) serve as intermediaries between the turbine and the conduit system. These intermediaries allow the turbine to be securely attached during operation and easily detached for maintenance, providing a safe transition point that eliminates the need for personnel to enter cramped ducts.
3Ease of repair
If the installation is completely isolated for major maintenance, then the maintenance quality is improved, but the downtime and operational loss increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system is segmented such that only the turbine assembly needs to be removed for maintenance, not the entire installation. This localized approach allows maintenance personnel to work on the turbine in isolation while the rest of the hydroelectric installation remains operational, significantly reducing downtime while maintaining high maintenance quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The turbine assembly is extracted as a separate removable unit. This allows maintenance to be performed on the extracted turbine without isolating the entire installation, enabling other turbines or sections to continue operating and thereby reducing overall downtime and operational loss.
4Ease of repair
If the turbine is mounted with removable connections, then the maintenance ease is improved, but the connection reliability and sealing performance may worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The removable connection means are designed to be self-sealing through the natural hydraulic pressure field and torque of the weight. The connection automatically maintains sealing performance without requiring additional active sealing mechanisms or constant monitoring, ensuring reliability while remaining easy to assemble and disassemble for maintenance.
Solution Approach 2:
The hydraulic pressure field is utilized to enhance the sealing of removable connections. The water pressure itself acts to seal the joint between the turbine and conduit system, compensating for the potential weaknesses of removable connections and ensuring reliable sealing without compromising maintenance ease.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design enables safer and more efficient maintenance by allowing the assembly to be removed and replaced without divers, reducing downtime, and ensuring a sealed connection without the need for bolts or clamps, thus minimizing operational disruptions and safety hazards.
Implementation Method 1
a good connection (substantially sealed) between the outlet duct or a face B or open end thereof and the turbine can be ensured by the thrust of the turbine on face B (see figure 6) due to the torque of the weight and/or due to the hydraulic pressure field
Implementation Method 2
a good connection (substantially sealed) between the outlet duct or a face B or open end thereof and the turbine can be ensured by the thrust of the turbine on face B (see figure 6) due to the torque of the weight and/or due to the hydraulic pressure field
Data Source
Figure 1~5
Figure 6~11
Figure 9~10
AI summary
The installation has an alternator-speed multiplier system (4) fixed with a shaft of a turbine (7). The turbine, the alternator-speed multiplier system and a distributor form an one-piece assembly (E), with a support piece (E1) mounted in a removable manner on a main support and pivotingly on the support between a first position permitting withdrawal of the assembly outside the support and a second position permitting maintenance of the assembly placed in a working position of the turbine in the support and preventing withdrawal of the assembly outside the support. An independent claim is also included for a method for maintaining a hydroelectric installation.