DESIGN OPTIMISATION AND TESTING OF

WATEROTOR

“FINAL YEAR PROJECT REPORT”

PRESENTED TO:

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING
RACHNA COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY,
GUJRANWALA
UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY, LAHORE
PAKISTAN

PROJECT ADVISOR:

DR. TARIQ NAWAZ

GROUP MEMBERS:

MR. GHULAM RASOOL 2017-ME-403

MR. M.SARFRAZ 2017-ME-410
MR. USAMA ABDUL QADEER 2017-ME-430
Problem Statement

The easily accessible and cost-effective electricity has global

challenge. Extensive researches are being carried out around the world for introducing alternate
renewable energy sources. Experts are expecting that the demand for
electricity for Pakistan could be 101.478 GW by 2035 [4]. In this way, Pakistan must check out
all conceivable energy alternates to conquer energy deficiencies in the country.
. Waterotor is another energy production which can generate a clean and green energy in a very
convenient way by utilizing the energy of horizontally flowing water.
Literature Review
2.1 Background
Hydro-kinetic turbines use the kinetic energy of the water which flows in the river or ocean.
They have advantageous in the sense that they do not require dams that can restrict the fish
passage,habitat loss problems, and many other related issues. There is a huge potential to
increase hydropower production largely by utilizing the water flowing in small canals, rivers,
and oceans.In recent years, researches are being made to implement this technology
commercially, however,developers and investors may not currently have the tools necessary to
determine the economic feasibility of such projects.Researchers have described the estimate of
power extraction and fluid dynamic load, as well as the method to scale up the power output to
larger and more numerous units. The techniques to mitigate the risks associated with such
turbines have been studied in laboratory testing [7].
Basic Principles
Although hydrokinetic turbines have many useful sites that can be easily used, the need for large
water currents to generate maximum practical power limits initial installations to a limited
number of sites. Hydrokinetic turbines are, in principle, similar to wind turbines. The differences
between the two are the high density of water, the need for waterproofing of the device, the need
to avoid installations in the navigation channels, and the need to consider wave forces at
hydrokinetic turbine installation sites. The earliest vertical axis wind turbine with several
cylindrical "cups" mounted close to each other was invented in 1925 by Savonius. Cylinders
with a concave side facing the flow have a higher drag coefficient (1.33) than the convex side
facing the flow (1.34), thus creating a net moment. Both wind turbines and hydrokinetic turbines
may be categorized based upon the orientation of the axis of rotation of the turbine rotor. The
effective force driving the turbine rotor may be either lift or drag or even both of them at the
same time.[7]
Prototype Design Parameters
Selection of Material
The most important part in designing of a hydrokinetic turbine is a material
selection that remains sustain in all conditions and does not change the
material properties concerning the changing environmental conditions. For
this purpose, the material which we have selected is polystyrene which has
good strength to weight ratio, easily available, low cost, having high tensile
strength, etc. Although the material selection is itself a whole research area
which includes material optimization, material selection, etc. In our project,
we aimed to design and fabricate Waterotor, so our focus was to select a
material that has high strength and low cost.
Mechanical properties of polystyrene

Thermal perpoties of polystyrene

Deflector Plate
A deflector plate has been used to provide head to the flowing water.it will
enhance the thrust on the curved blades. It will also increase the efficiency of
the Waterotor. A GI sheet deflector is used in our prototype as it has a good
strength to weight ratio

CAD Model

After completing the theoretical design of the prototype, we proceed to the

CAD design. The 3D Cad model of the Waterotor has been designed using
Solidworks 2018 version as per the design dimensions. Below is the complete
assembly of the prototype model. The green color side boxes are sealed
generators, blue color runner and brown is the deflector plate and sidewalls
for supporting the runner
Fabrication and Assembly
The main concern of this chapter is the fabrication of the project as a prototype. The fabrication
of this prototype project has classified into two major parts, one is the fabrication of individual
parts of the project and then assembled all those individual parts like blades of the runner into
assembly form and other part consists of the fabrication of the rest parts of an assembly including
the watersealed housing, shaft of the runner, etc. Some components of back assembly like
pulleys, bearings,belts, and generator bought according to project design requirements.
The main component of this project, the runner of the turbine has been fabricated by using the
latest technology 3D printing according to design parameters

Manufacturing of Turbine Runner:

The basic component of the project runner has been manufactured by using the material of
polystyrene. The manufacturing of runner as a new product is more complicated and complex in
shape so the suitable technique which is used in the manufacturing process of the runner was 3D
printing technology. 3D printing technology has been developed for the manufacturing of more
complex and complicated design geometry. Due to the complex shape of the runner, the blades
of runner cannot be manufactured of metal as it is very costly so that’s why we have preferred to
use the material for the blades of the runner as polystyrene. The basic purpose behind the
selection of material was it’s a good strength to weight ratio, easily available and low cost.

Assembly of Waterotor

The shaft was inserted into the runner hole. The shaft and runner are then placed and fixed to the
frames using two sealed bearings (6300) on both ends. The runner is supported by two
polystyrene
plates on both sides. The pulleys were attached to both ends of the shaft. Then, the pulleys were
connected to the motors using rubber bands as a driving belt. Finally, the generators were sealed
using transparent acrylic sheets.
Following are the components of the Waterotor:
• Driveshaft
• 2 x Bearings (6300)
• Frame or bed and Pulleys

• Back transparent plate

• 4 x V-Belts
• 8 x 12 V DC Motors
• Transparent Acrylic Sheets for Generator Housing
Why modal analysis is used?

Modal analysis is a method of studying the dynamic features of a structure under vibrational
motion. The natural frequencies, the shape of the mode, and the vector of the structural mode can
be determined using modal analysis. High vibration occurs in natural frequencies that we often
try
to reduce .it also tells us how often the system is in danger of vibration.
The shape of the mode tells us how the structure is often unsettled in certain natural frequencies,
and it also tells us which region can meet the greatest force where it can affect the life of the
building’s fatigue.
Modal analysis was performed to determine whether the angular frequency at which the rotor is
expected to rotate is not equal to the natural frequency as this may cause the failure of the rotor.

Critical speed

Critical speed is the maximum rotational speed at which dynamic forces cause a machine part to
vibrate at its natural frequency and cause vibrations to resonate throughout the entire machine
and pump set. In short, the rotational speed of the rotor causes damage to the rotor and shaft of
the turbine.
Critical speed=ku=2 ∗ 𝜋 ∗ 𝐹𝑚𝑎𝑥
Where,
Fmax = Maximum mode frequency

Results and Discussions

we conclude that at Mode 8 with Mode frequency 450 Hz and the corresponding
rotational speed 2826 rpm and at this frequency 450 Hz the phenomena of resonance can occur
thus it is the critical speed of the turbine rotor. and the maximum deformation takes place and
blades of turbine deformed and would not be able to further rotate.
Rotational speed=W=2*pi*F Hence, Critical Speed = 2826 Rpm
Table 8 Mode Frequencies
Mode Frequency (Hz) Rotational speed (Rpm)
1 0 0
2 0.002 0.125
3 135 847
4 212 1331
5 295 1852
6 325 2041
7 423 2656
8 450 2826
For this rotor with the polystyrene material, operating speed should not be greater than 2826 to
avoid resonance. To operate the rotor greater than 450 Hz, design parameters like blade angle,
size
of the rotor, and material should be changed to get better results.

Power Calculations

Available Hydraulic Power=P = ½* ρ A V3

Ideal Power Extracted by Turbine =P= 112.54 D2 V3 [7]
GRAPHS
CHANNEL FOR WATER FLOW:

The length of this channel is 2m and height is 1.6m.

ANSYSAS WORK

DIY

Conclusions
The key conclusions of this work have been summarized below:
➢ As discussed in the Table -9, the proposed turbine design can deliver an estimated power
output
of 7.62 W at a minimum water velocity of 0.9m/s and 163.36 W at a water velocity 2.5 m/s.
➢ Designing a fully sealed bearing and sealed generator is quite a difficult task because if there
is no clearance between the rotor shaft and the bearing, then the coefficient of the friction will
be very high that the runner will not move freely.
➢ As shown in figures 4-3,4-4 and 4-5, the velocity of water at the inlet is less, and when it
strikes
the runner blades, its velocity at the outlet gets maximum due to thrust produced by the blade
tip on water.
➢ We concluded that our designed runner can operate at a speed below 2826 Rpm that is the
critical speed of the rotor. Above this limit can cause the failure of the rotor.
➢ When we analyzed the maximum load-bearing capacity of the runner, we found that it can
withstand a maximum of 40N force on its blades.
➢ The power output from micro-hydropower plants such as Waterotor is quite low compared to
other renewable energy sources. However, it can be compensated by using multiple turbines
in parallel to get higher output.
➢ Various factors like betz limit, generator coefficient, rotor coefficient, and bearing coefficient
minimize the turbine efficiency.

Economic Benefits

The Waterotor project would be a big boost to the power need of remote areas of Gilgit Baltistan
and other far-flung areas that have no access to the main electricity grid. The electricity would be
available throughout the year cheaply. The Hydrokinetic Power Waterotor was found to be
suitable
for improving the quality of life of people in remote areas in many ways.
➢ First, it offers a wide variety of services such as advanced lighting, entertainment,
communication, and functions of a variety of devices.

Secondly, Micro-scale hydropower reduces hazardous impacts on climate through green

energy. It can replace conventional electricity production using harmful gasoline products.
➢ Thirdly, It can reduce the energy shortfall of the national grid, which will ultimately add to
the economical development of the country

REFERENCES:

“Ministry of Energy and Hydrocarbon Development Initiative of Pakistan.” .

[1] F. U. Qureshi and B. Akıntug, “Hydropower Potential in Pakistan,” IEEE 11th Int. Congr.
Adv. Civ. Eng., no. November, pp. 1–6, 2014, doi: 10.13140/2.1.3285.2160.
[2] M. Kugelman and R. M. Hathaway, Powering Pakistan : meeting Pakistan’s energy needs
in the 21st century. Oxford University Press, 2009.
[3] B. Principles, “How to Evaluate Hydrokinetic Turbine Performance and Loads.”
[4] “Wind energy | Open Energy Information.” https://openei.org/wiki/Wind_energy
(accessed Jul. 19, 2020).
[5] “Cite This Page - Wikipedia.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:CiteThisPage&page=Solar_power&id
=964931350&wpFormIdentifier=titleform (accessed Jul. 19, 2020).
[6] “biofuel | Definition, Types, & Pros and Cons | Britannica.”
https://www.britannica.com/technology/biofuel (accessed Jul. 19, 2020).