The increasing demand for energy and the concerns regarding environmental protection have been driving forces toward the exploitation of renewable energy sources as a better alternative compared to conventional energy sources. Furthermore, renewable energy sources enable an independent energy supply for isolated locations or communities that lack access to the main electricity grid, and additionally, they offer the possibility to use available energy sources for beneficial individual purposes. Considering these statements, the use of micro hydropower plants represents a convenient and advantageous option to implement. A micro hydro Turgo turbine is used for analysis in this paper, due to its simple design, structure, easy production and low installation cost.In this manner, this paper deals with the use of Euler equations in detailed analysis in designing and implementation of a micro hydro Turgo turbine. The presented methodology will be based on numerical calculations of micro hydro Turgo turbine characteristic parameters in various operating regimes. The obtained results from numerical calculation will be compared to the current performance of the real existing Turgo turbine. Accordingly, based on obtained results, recommendations for improving the performance of micro hydro Turgo turbines will be presented.

No abstract

No abstract

Decentralized electricity production from small hydropower plants used for domestic and ancillary services has been established among the most reliable renewable energy sources for isolated locations. However, many factors impact the energy efficiency and the production capacity of such hydropower plants, one of these factors being the order configuration of the connected turbines. Hence, this research presents a performance evaluation of a small hydropower plant consisting of three francis turbines, and it elicits the optimal order configuration of the connected operating turbines, that yields the highest power output under varying conditions. Three scenarios with different order configurations of turbines are presented and compared in a “run-of-the-river” setting, installed in the Lepenci River, in south-eastern Kosovo. Numerical analyses are used to evaluate the performance of each scenario. The results show that the order configuration of the operating turbines based on their connection order has a significant impact on the electricity production.