AQFlow Inc.

CFD Modeling for Hydro Power Plants

Provide insights into flow conditions by extending physical measurements and modeling, thus saving time and money.

Hydro Applications of CFD Modeling:

• Model flow conditions in intakes, penstocks, turbines, draft tubes
• Optimize design
• Predict head losses
• Predict turbine cavitation
• Spillway structures.

CFD modeling has been used successfully to optimize hydro turbine designs for many years. In fact, CFD has now become an indispensable tool in the design of entire hydro installations, from intakes to draft tubes, and from forebays to tailraces. Equipment improvements are built and installed with minimal plant downtime.

Based on direct field velocity and turbulence measurements in combination with the CFD modeling, ASL AQFlow has gained better understanding of fluid physics in the short intakes of low-head plants. ASL AQFlow uses its proprietary ASFM Advantage™ to measure velocities, but velocities obtained by other methods could be utilized.

CFD offers better understanding of fluid physics, which would be very difficult and expensive or even impossible to obtain physically, while the ASFM and other physical field measurements validate CFD results.

CFD modeling for spillways:

• "What if?" scenarios for designing spillways
• For existing spillways, we can develop rating curves based on CFD models.

CFD Examples at Hydro Power Plants:

• Lagrande 1 Power Plant (Quebec, Canada)
• Stave Falls Power Plant (BC, Canada)
• Lower Monumental Power Plant (Washington, US)
• Hydro Kennebec Power Plant (Maine, US)
• Spillway Structures
• Applying CFD Analysis to Predicting ASFM Bias in Low Head intakes with
  difficult hydraulic conditions.

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