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Pelton wheel

The Pelton wheel is a water impulse turbine. The Pelton wheel extracts energy from the impulse of moving water. Pelton's paddle geometry was designed so that when the rim runs at the speed of the water jet, the water leaves the wheel with very little speed, extracting almost all of its energy

Function
The water flows along the tangent to the path of the runner. Nozzles direct forceful streams of water against a series of spoon-shaped buckets mounted around the edge of a wheel. As water flows into the bucket, the direction of the water velocity changes to follow the contour of the bucket. When the water-jet contacts the bucket, the water exerts pressure on the bucket and the water is decelerated as it does a "u-turn" and flows out the other side of the bucket at low velocity. In the process, the water's momentum is transferred to the turbine. This "impulse" does work on the turbine. For maximum power and efficiency, the turbine system is designed such that the water-jet velocity is twice the velocity of the bucket. A very small percentage of the water's original kinetic energy will still remain in the water; however, this allows the bucket to be emptied at the same rate it is filled

CONSTRUCTION: -

Figure 1: Layout of pelton turbine

1. NOZZLE AND FLOW REGULATING ARRANGEMENT The amount of water striking the buckets is controlled by providing a spear in the nozzle. The spear is a conical needle operated in the axial direction depending up on the size of the unit. When the spear is pushed forward, the amount of water striking the runner is reduced and when the spear is pushed back, the amount of water striking the runner increases. 2. RUNNER AND BUCKETS Runner consists of a circular disc on the periphery of which a number of buckets evenly spaced are fixed. The space of the buckets is of a double hemispherical cup or bowl. Each bucket is divided into two symmetrical parts by dividing wall which is known as Splitter. The Splitter divides the jet into two equal parts. The buckets are shaped in such a way that the jet gets deflected through 160 or 170. The buckets are made of cast iron, cast steel bronze or stainless steel depending upon the head at the inlet of the turbine.

Figure 2: top view of the turbine blade (bucket)

3. CASING The function of water is to prevent the splashing of water and to discharge water to tail race. The casing of Pelton Wheel does not perform any Hydraulic function. 4. BREAKING JET When the nozzle is completely closed by moving the spear in the forward direction, the amount of water striking the runner reduces to zero. But the runner due to inertia goes on revolving for a long time. To stop the runner in a short time, a small nozzle is provided which directs the jet of water on the back of vanes. This jet of water is called Breaking Jet.

Applications
Pelton wheels are the preferred turbine for hydro-power, when the available water source has relatively high hydraulic head at low flow rates, where the Pelton wheel is most efficient. Pelton wheels are made in all sizes. The largest units can be up to 200 megawatts. The smallest Pelton wheels are only a few inches across, and can be used to tap power from mountain streams having flows of a few gallons per minute. Depending on water flow and design, Pelton wheels operate best with heads from 15 meters to 1,800 meters, although there is no theoretical limit.

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