To Study, Design & Develop A Small Scale Prototype Of Micro Hydro System With Automatic Valve Control.

UNIVERSITI TEKNIKAL MALAYSIA MELAKA (UTeM)
FAKULTI KEJURUTERAAN ELEKTRIK (FKE)

PROJEK SARJANA MUDA
BEKU 4933

TO STUDY, DESIGN & DEVELOP A SMALL SCALE PROTOTYPE
OF MICRO HYDRO SYSTEM WITH AUTOMATIC VALVE CONTROL

Tie Chin Ho

Bachelor of Electrical Engineering (Industrial Power)
July 2012

“I hereby declare that I have read through this report entitle “To Study, Design &
Develop A Small Scale Prototype Of Micro Hydro System With Automatic Valve Control”
and found that it has comply the partial fulfilment for awarding the degree of Bachelor of
Electrical Engineering (Industrial Power)”

Signature :
Supervisor’s name :

Date :

Khairul Anwar Bin Ibrahim
11 June 2012

TO STUDY, DESIGN & DEVELOP A SMALL SCALE PROTOTYPE OF MICRO
HYDRO SYSTEM WITH AUTOMATIC VALVE CONTROL

TIE CHIN HO

A report submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree
of Electrical Engineering (Industrial Power)

Faculty of Electrical Engineering

UNIVERSITI TEKNIKAL MALAYSIA MELAKA

2012

I declare that this report entitle “To Study, Design & Develop a Small Scale Prototype of

Micro Hydro System with Automatic Valve Control” is the result of my own research
except as cited in the references. The report has not been accepted for any degree and is not
concurrently submitted in candidature of any other degree.

Signature :
Name :
Date :

Tie Chin Ho
11 June 2012

To My Beloved Mother and Father

i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Mr. Khairul Anwar Bin
Ibrahim for guiding me in this project. The success of this PSM is highly influenced by his
information, suggestions and ideas. His willingness to assist me through his guidance,

advices, and continued support has been a great motivation for me to excel in my project.
My fellow undergraduate students should also be recognized for their support. My
sincere appreciation also extends to all my colleagues and others who have provided
assistance at various occasions. Their views and tips are useful indeed.
Last but not least, I would like to say a word thanks to my family members, especially
my parents for their constant supports and encouragement throughout the years.

ii

ABSTRACT

Micro hydropower system is one of the most environmental friendly energy
conversion methods. Unlike large scale hydropower plant, it will not bring big impact to the
environment [3]. Micro hydro power plant (MHPP) can continuously supply electrical power
and can help to supply much needed electricity to small communities and villages which
transmission line is expensive to reach there. Loads that connected to generator need uniform,
stable and uninterrupted supply energy. However, characteristic of micro hydro power plant
change with the consumption. So, the output supply voltage MHPP need to be controlled in
order to maintain the output supply voltage at the rated voltage [3]. This project is to study
micro hydro power plant and finally design & develop a small scale prototype of micro hydro

system with automatic valve control.The fundamentals and parameters of the micro
hydropower plant are being studied in this project. The micro hydropower plant consists of
penstock, pipeline, turbine and generator. Electric motor is used to act as governor in order to
regulate the flow rate to maintain the output supply of the generator at the rated voltage. One
prototype with the automatic valve is built and testing is carried out. The maximum
efficiency of this prototype is 6.6% and the automatic valve take 10 to 18 seconds to regulate
the flow rate of the water.

iii

ABSTRAK

Sistem mikro hidro adalah sejenis penukaran tenaga mesra alam sekitar. Tidak seperti
loji hidro yang besar, ia tidak membawa kesan yang besar kepada alam sekitar. Sistem mikro
hidro boleh menghasil kuasa elektrik secara berterusan dan menghasil elektrik kepada
komuniti yang kecil atau kampung-kampung di mana talian penghantaran mahal di bina.
Beban yang disambung kepada penjana elektrik memerlukan bekalan elektrik yang seragam,
stabil dan tidak diganggu. Akan tetapi, ciri-ciri loji kuasa mikro hidro berubah dengan
perubahan penggunaan elektrik. Jadi, voltan yang dihasilkan oleh system mikro hidro
hendaklah dikawal supaya sentiasa berada pada voltan diberi nilai. Projek ini adalah untuk

mengaji loji elektrik mikro hidro dan akhirnya mereka dan membina suatu prototaip mikro
hidro yang mempuyai injap automatic. Asas dan parameter sistem mikro hidro telah dikenali
dalam projek ini. Loji mikro hidro terdiri daripada penstock, talian paip, turbin dan penjana
elektrik. Akan tetapi, ciri-ciri loji kuasa mikro hidro berubah dengan perubahan penggunaan
elektrik. Jadi, motor elektrik telah digunakan untuk bertindak sebagai gabenor yang akan
mengawal aliran air, seterusnya mengawal hasil voltan dari penjana elektrik kekal pada
voltan tertentu. Satu prototaip mikro hidro telah dibuat dalam projek ini. Analisis terhadap
sistem ini telah diadakan. Kecekapan maksimum prototaip ini adalah 6.6% dan injap
automatik memerlukan 10-18 saat untuk mengawal kadar aliran air untuk menghasilkan
voltan yang diperlukan.

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER

1

2


TITLE

PAGE

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

i

ABSTRACT

ii

ABSTRAK

iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

iv


LIST OF TABLE

vi

LIST OF FIGURES

viii

INTRODUCTION

1

1.1

Project Background

1

1.2


Problem Statement

2

1.3

Project objective

2

1.4

Scope of the Project

3

LITERATURE REVIEW

4


2.1

Micro Hydropower

4

2.2

Potential of MHPP in West Malaysia

5

2.3

Operation Principles Of Micro Hydropower

6

Generation

2.4

Elements of Micro Hydropower Plant

8

2.4.1

Site Layouts

9

2.4.2

Types of Micro Hydropower Plants’

10

Turbines
2.5


Electrical System in Micro Hydropower Plant

12

2.5.1

Regulation on Voltage and frequency in the system

13

v

3

4

METHODOLOGY

15

3.1

Introduction

15

3.2

Literature Review

16

3.3

Design and Prototyping

16

3.3.1

Water source

16

3.3.2

Turbine

18

3.3.3

Generator

19

3.3.4

Governor System

21

3.4

Testing

30

3.5

Discussion on Result

31

3.6

Report Writing

31

RESULT & DISCUSSION
4.1

4.2
5

REFERENCE

Result

32
32

4.1.1

Pump performance

32

4.1.2

Generator

35

4.1.3

Generator Load Performance

39

4.1.4

Governor performance

41

Discussion

CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATION

43
45

5.1

Conclusion

45

5.2

Recommendation

46
47

vi

LIST OF TABLE

TABLE

TITLE

PAGE

2.1

Micro Hydro Potential Sites by State

5

2.2

Different type of turbine

11

2.3

Comparison between conventional governor controller and electronic

14

load controller
3.1

Electrical specification of Ginlong GL-PMG-500A

19

3.2

Mechanical specification of Ginlong GL-PMG-500A

19

4.1

Flow rate of water and cross section area for different numbers of nozzle

32

4.2

Summary of hydraulic power produced with different number of nozzle

34

4.3

Open circuit voltage of generator with 1 nozzle

35

4.4

Open circuit voltage of generator with 2 nozzles

37

4.5

Open circuit voltage of generator with 3 nozzles

38

4.6

The electrical performance of the generator by using 1 nozzle

40

4.7

The electrical performance of the generator by using 2 nozzles

40

4.8

The electrical performance of the generator by using 3 nozzles

40

4.9

Overall system efficiency

43

vii

LIST OF FIGURE

FIGURE

TITLE

PAGE

2.1

Energy conversion of micro hydropower generation

6

2.2

Basic scheme of a micro hydropower plant

8

2.3

Four most common layouts for MHPP

9

2.4

Pelton Propeller

10

2.5

2 example of Francis propeller; (a) open-flume francis, (b) spiral-

11

case francis
2.6

Submersible-propeller turbine

11

2.7

Typical micro-hydropower plant’s electric components

12

3.1

Flow Chart Of Methodology

15

3.2

Centrifugal pump and pressure tank

16

3.3

Water flow system

17

3.4

The piping system of the project

17

3.5

Impulse turbine

18

3.6

Voltage (V) vs Rotation Speed (RPM) of Ginlong GL-PMG-

19

500A
3.7

Physical appearance of the Ginlong GL-PMG-500A

20

3.8

Water pump system + Generator + Turbine

20

3.9

Close-Loop System Of The Governor System

21

3.10

Flow chart of operation of governor system

22

3.11

Layout of PIC16F877A

23

3.12

Circuit for signal process before feed in to PIC 16F877A

23

3.13

DC geared motor with the valve

24

3.14

Pulley system to trigger the limit switch

24

3.15

Actual view of pulley system

25

viii

3.16

Circuit diagram of motor controlled by relays

25

3.17

Overall circuit of the governor system

26

3.18

Program that written by MikroC and burnt in PIC16F877A

27

3.19

Circuit of governor system

29

3.20

Appearance of the controller of governor system

29

3.21

The testing load circuit

30

3.22

Fluke 43B power quality analyser

30

4.1

Pressure of water when the pump operate

33

4.2

Hydraulic power produced (W) Vs Number of nozzles

35

4.3

Open circuit voltage of generator with 1 nozzle

38

4.4

Open circuit voltage of generator with 2 nozzles

37

4.5

Open circuit voltage of generator with 3 nozzles

38

4.6

Summary of open circuit voltage versus the RPM with different

39

numbers of nozzle
4.7

The testing load circuit

39

4.8

Power supported vs number of bulb connected

41

4.9

Response of governor system when the load varying (1 nozzle)

41

4.10

Response of governor system when the load varying (2 nozzle)

42

4.11

Response of governor system when the load varying (3 nozzle)

42

1

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION
1.1

Project Background

Renewable energy has become a hot issue now in nowadays due to climate
change concerns, coupled with high oil prices increasing government support. Renewable
energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, water, tides,
and geothermal heat, which can naturally replenished [1].
Water has been used as an energy source for thousands of years, since ancient
civilizations using water to drive mills through the use of water wheels. Technology has
been improved from time to time, and the potential for water as a power source continues
to be important. Large-scale example such as the Three Gorges Dam in China is used to
power large-scale projects [2].
Modern times are calling for a clean, efficient renewable energy source. One of the
possible solutions is the implementation of micro hydro power systems. Micro hydropower
systems used in harvesting the kinetic energy of steaming waters that produce electrical
energy on a small scale. Micro hydro power systems are able to generate electricity by
using the movement of water from small streams to rotate a turbine in order to spin a shaft
which used to power an alternator to generate electricity [2].

2

1.2

Problem Statement

Normally, micro hydro system is designed with the fixed flow water to push the
turbine of the alternator. However, this design will cause problem when few situation
happen:


When the load in system increases, the speed of alternator will drop, causing the
voltage and frequency of the power supply to also drop.



During raining day, the flow or pressure of water to the turbine will increase. This
cause the voltage and frequency of the alternator will increase. This will damage
the device in the system as well. Current solution is to switch on the dumping load
when higher voltage produced is noticed.

1.3

Project Objective



To study, to design a micro hydro system and the parameter that need to be
considered to make the system to success.



To develop a small scale prototype of micro hydro system with automatic valve
control.



To carry out simulation on the automatic valve system.

3

1.4

Scope of The Project



Develop a small scale prototype of micro hydro system with automatic valve
control which can control the flow rate of the water that entering to the turbine.



The system should supply 12V alternating current (ac) constantly even though the
load of the generator is varying.

4

CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1

Micro Hydropower
Micro hydropower is a renewable energy which harvests the kinetic energy from

streaming waters, then converts to electrical energy on a small scale. Generally, a moving
stream of water turns turbine blades which are connected to a shaft that spins a generator to
produce electricity [4]. It is a green energy with zero carbon emission during the operation.
MHPP convert potential energy from falling water into electric energy. Water is
channelized from a higher level to a lower level which the resulting potential energy of
water is used to do work. The water head is used to move a mechanical component (turbine)
then that movement involves the conversion of the potential energy of the water into
kinetic energy to spin the turbine. The turbine is connected to a shaft that spins a generator
[5].
MHPP operate in isolated mode and supplying the electricity in the local rural area
where the population is very small and the extension of grid system is a high cost
investment for transmission line [6].Micro hydropower plants can be defined as hydro
power plant with capacity less than 100 kilowatts (kW) [6].

5

2.2

Potential of MHPP in West Malaysia

Malaysia is a tropical country with average rainfall of 2540 millimetre (mm) in
Peninsula and blessed with richly supplied streams and rivers flowing from the highland
areas [7]. Some researches had been done and found out that West Malaysia has the
potential to implement micro hydropower plant to generate electricity with total estimated
available power is 20407.3 kW [7] . Table 2.1 show about potential micro hydropower
plant side by state:
Table 2.1: Micro Hydro Potential Sites by State[7]

6

2.3

Operation Principles Of Micro Hydropower Generation

Basically, micro hydropower generation is converting one form of energy to
electrical energy. The most common convertion of energy at micro hydropower plant is as
shown in Figure 2.1:

Potential Energy

Kinetic Energy

Electric Energy

Figure 2.1: Energy conversion of micro hydropower generation

The potential energy is the energy stored in the water due to its position. When the
water flows from higher position to lower position, the energy is converted from the
potential energy to kinetic energy. When the water hit the turbine and spins the generator,
the generator converts the kinetic energy to electric energy. The equation of the energy
conversion is as per Equation 2.1:

E (energy release in joules) = mgh [4]

(2.1)

m = mass of the water
g = gravitational acceleration = 9.81m/s2
h = vertical distance h, or the head

Head, h is defined as the elevation difference between the water source and the
turbine. The mass of the water, m also can be defined as water density, r times its volume v,
where the water density is 1000 kg/m3. When substituted to Eq. 2.1, the energy release
equals to as Equation 2.2:
E (joules) = vrgh[4]

(2.2)

7

Power, P is defined as energy per second (P = E/s), the energy of water entering the
hydroelectric turbine is as per Equation 2.3:
P (J/s) = rvgh/s W (J/s = W) [4]

(2.3)

R = 1000 kg/m3
v/s = flow rate, Q

Flow is the volumetric measure of moving water, in cubic meter per second. One
method which can measure water flow is called the container method, in which water is
collected in a bucket for certain duration of time. The amount of collected water in the
container is divided by the time it takes to fill the bucket [4]. So, energy contain in the flow
of water is as per Equation 2.4
Pnet = e × Q × 9.8×h kW [4]

(2.4)

Where, e = efficiency

For practical purposes, the formula applied becomes as in Equation 2.5
Pnet = 0.5 × Q × 10 × h kW [4]
where the efficiency, e is 50%.

(2.5)

8

2.4

Elements of Micro Hydropower Plant

The scheme of a micro hydropower plant is shown in Figure 2.2 can be summarised
as follows [8]:


Water is taken from the river by through an intake at a weir.



Before water flow to the turbine, the water passes through a forebay tank where the
water is slowed down sufficiently for suspended particles to be filtered out.



Penstock will convey the water from the forebay tank to the turbine, which is
enclosed in the powerhouse together with the generator and control equipment.



Finally, the water will release back to the river.

Figure 2.2: Basic scheme of a micro hydropower plant

9

2.4.1

Site Layouts

In practice, sites for micro hydropower plant vary greatly depend on the landscape.
They might need to build at mountain area where there are fast-flowing mountain streams
or lowland areas with wide rivers. The four most common layouts for a micro hydropower
plant are shown in Figure 2.3:

Figure 2.3: Four most common layouts for MHPP

10

2.4.2

Types of Micro Hydropower Plants’ Turbines

Turbines are used to convert the energy contained in a continuous flow of fluid into
rotational mechanical energy of a shaft. In micro hydropower plant, turbines are used to
connect with the shaft of the generator to spin to generate electricity. There are few types
of turbines use in micro hydropower plant, which are impulse-type turbine, reaction-type
turbine and submersible-propeller turbines [4].
For impulse-type turbine, which is shown in Figure 2.4, water strikes the turbine
runner and pushes it to rotate like the water mills. These types of water-propelled electrical
generators work best in sites with high head. The best known impulse-type propeller is
called Pelton propeller [4]. Impulse-type propeller will be used as turbine in this project.

Figure 2.4: Pelton Propeller[8]

Reaction-type turbine is suitable used at water source that have low head but high
flow rate. The runner of reaction-type turbine is immersed in water, where the water exits
the housing through the turbine, turning the generator as it drops through the runner blades.
The best known impulse-type propeller is called Francis propeller [4] which is shown at
Figure 2.5.