Chapter -9

POWER HOUSE PLANNING

9.1 General The powerhouse is the conspicuous and vital part of
hydroelectric development.
The basic objective of the powerhouse planning is to house all
the equipment suitably in structural complex, which call as the
powerhouse.
The basic requirement of the powerhouse is its functional
efficiency coupled with aesthetic beauty therefore,
harmonization with the surrounding is very necessary.
The option of setting a power house whether it was surface or
underground power house is dictated by the relative merits of
the possibilities have to be weighed before the choice is made.
In addition, the choice largely dictates by economic and
geologic considerations.
• 9.2 Preliminary Power Assessment and Hydraulic
Design Before any power plant contemplated, it is
essential to assess the inherent power available from
the discharge of the river and the head available at
the site.
• 9.2.1 Available Head
• A/ The gross head it is the vertical distance that the
water falls through the generating power that is
between normal pool level and the tailrace level.
• Hg=NPL-TWL=1320.1217−1238=82.1217 Where Hg=
Gross head
• NPL =Normal pool level
• TWL= Tail water level
• B/ The net head it is the gross head minus the sum of all the
losses arising from trash racks, pipe friction, bends and valves.
The net head is the available head to drive turbines.
• Hn= Hg−∑loss =82.1217−4=78.1217
• Where = Net head.
• 9.3 Determination of Plant Capacity The total amount of
hydroelectric power which can be generated depends up on
the rate of the flow the head possessed by the flowing water.
• Hydraulically available power to the turbine (P) is the product
of available head, discharge and unit weight of water.
P=9810×1.6923×78.1217=1.297 Mwatt where ꝩ= unit weight
of water
• Q = the mean discharge
• H= available head
• 9.4 Hydraulic Turbines and Electromechanical
Equipments The hydraulic motor of waterpower
development, which converts water energy in to
mechanical energy, the shaft power developed is
used in running electricity generators directly
coupled to the shaft of the turbine, thus producing
electrical power.
• Turbines fall in to two categories.
• o Reaction turbine
• o Impulse turbine
• 9.4.1 Turbine Characteristics I Specific speed The
specific speed, Ns, of a turbine is the most important
characteristic, & is part of paramount importance in
design. It is defined as the speed at which geometrically
similar runner would rotate if it were so proportioned
that it would develop 1 KW when operating under a
head of 1 meter, and is given by
• Ns=N√P/ H^5/4 PN
• Where: NS= specific speed
• N = rotational speed (rpm)
• P = power developed (Kw)
• H = effective head (m)
•  Low specific speed turbine 11-43rpm
• DESIGN OF MINI HYDROPOWER PROJECT ON HARE RIVER
•  Medium specific speed turbine 57-450rpm
•  High specific speed turbine 230-860 The specific of turbines can
be calculated with the help of number of Empirical Formulas as
shown below:
• o R.W Abett`s formula
• Ns=1700/√H =1700/√78.1217 =192.4
• o P.C Nag & K. madras formula
• Ns=1640/√H =185.5
• o Moody formula
• 6780/H+8.75 +(83.6=161.6
• o U.S.B.R formula (for Francis turbines)
• Ns=1540/√H =174.2
• o W.L. Vourduin`s formula Ns=1980/Hc^0.55 =190.9
• Where Hc= critical head=0.9H=70.3
• Therefore taking the average of above values NS=181.5
II Turbine synchronous speed
turbines and generators are fixed, the rated speed of the turbine is the
same as synchronous speed of the generator.
III Number of units installed
Normally, it is most cost effective to have a minimum no of units at a given
installation.
Draft Tube:- is a conduit discharging water in the runner to the
tail race, and has two purpose o To recover as much as possible of
the velocity energy of the water leaving the runner, thus increasing
the dynamic draft head. o To utilize the vertical distance between
the turbine exit and the tail water level, called static draft head .
Turbine Alignment:- The turbine generator layout can
be either a horizontal shaft lay out or vertical shaft
layout.
Cavitations and Turbine Setting
Capitation is formation of voids with in a body of moving liquid (or around a
body moving in a liquid) when the local pressure is lower than vapor
pressure.

Electrical and Mechanical Equipment

There is obviously a great deal of mechanical and electrical
equipments in a hydropower stations. The major of these can be
listed as below:
 Electrical equipments
- Generator
- Exciter and voltage - Regulator
Transformer - Control room equipment including switch
 Mechanical equipments - Shaft, bearings, coup lings, etc for the
generator - The oil circuits and pumps - Compressors and pumps - Cranes and
other lifting equipments.
Generator
The generator is an electrical machine coupled to the turbine shaft.
The mechanical energy produced by the turbine is changed in to electrical
energy by the generator.

Power House Planning

Types of power house planning
Types of powerhouse may be classified as surface powerhouse and
underground powerhouse based on location.

 Surface power house The best choice when sufficient area is

available to accommodate the powerhouse within economical and
convenient excavation

Underground power house: In this type of powerhouse the

powerhouse carven, tunnels and shafts for water conduits system, access
tunnels and ventilation shafts are located inside the mountain.
• Selection of Site for Powerhouse Planning The site
selection for the powerhouse is based on the
following criteria:
•  To provide maximum available head
• To minimize cost of construction and excavation
•  To get easy access to the power plant
• Power House Dimensions
• The dimension of the generating units determines the dimensions of the plant.
The powerhouse dimensions are governed by
• - Arrangement of shaft
• - Overhead erection crane and its minimum requirement
• - The dimensions of individual units
• - Dimension of erection bay
• - The number of units .
• The three essential constituents of powerhouse are
• o Unit bays housing the main turbine and generator.
• o Control bays housing the main control and their equipments.
• o Service and erection bays provided for handling erection and maintains of main
machines.
 CHAPTER 10
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA)
• 10.1 General
• EIA is the process of predicting the consequence and ways of
human development by planning appropriate measures to
eliminate or reduce the adverse effect of any project. It also
identifies the potential problems and outlines the ways to
improve the project suitability for the proposed site.
• Generally, EIA predicts problem, find the ways to avoid them
or reduce it and enhance the positive effects of the project by
providing a unique opportunity to demonstrate ways in which
the environment may be improved on apart of development
process.
• Physical impact
• The implementation of hydropower project affect some of environmental
conditions such as water quality, ground water, microclimate dam breach
and transport of nutrient etc. impact on this condition are termed as
positive impacts.

Land escapes impact

Due to the increment of civilization, most rural countries loss a considerable
amount of land, which has a long-term historical importance to the public?
Most of the time aesthetical aspect of the environment has a remarkable
significance to the peoples.

Water quality
The quality of natural water varies considerably and this contribute to
the diversity of species in to habitat found in fresh water when human
activity modify the chemical environment to the extent that strays out
to the side the natural range for the river damage to a fresh water
community is most likely to occur.
• Ground water
• The change and the variation of the water level by the reservoir operation
will change the ground water in the surrounding area. The change in flow
on dam stream watercourse may also lead to ground water changes. The
change in ground water may influence the supply of drinking water.
• Increase risk of erosion
• Every hydraulic structure projects will eradicate the natural vegetation and
top soil particularly on the steeper slopes increasing the potential for
erosion
• Impact on hydrology Hydropower projects have a little impact on the
total available water. But some detrimental effects on the distribution of
water in terms of space and time
Impacts on biological environment
i) Terrestrial ecology
Hare hydropower cause loss of natural vegetation available in those sites due
to construction of the dam, access roads, powerhouse, access tunnels etc.
ii) Impact on aquatic ecology The activities at the dam and powerhouse
site will disturb and probably displace the populations of large aquatic
animals particularly crocodiles and fish in these localities.
• iii) Human Environment
The socio-economic environmental impacts associated with the
displacement and involuntary resettlement of people and the loss of
agricultural land.
Impact on socio-economic environment
During the construction of dam, lots of activities such as undesirable
noises, air pollution due to the vehicle and machineries and some
others should be properly considered and adequately responded by
the design and construction engineers.
Potential positive impacts
 Generation of electric power
 Flood control
 Infrastructure development and mitigation benefits
 Employment opportunities
 Chapter 11
COST EVALUATION AND ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
• General
Economic analysis of hydropower project concern measuring
the benefit from the development and the cost expended.

Bill of Quantities and Cost estimation

The economic analysis of the project studies is dependent on
orderly and accurate cost estimation. The type of study, whether
a reconnaissance study, a feasibility study or a final design study,
will tend to dictate the precision with which cost estimates have
been made.
Annual cost and cost recovery factor
• This is the sum of the money invested in a project (including
its interest during construction) before its completion.
 .CONCLUSIONAND RECOMMENDATIONS
• Conclusion The design of Hare Hydropower Project based on the utilization
of Hare River flow.
• The implementation of Hare Hydropower Project has an ultimate benefit to
increase the demand of power supply in the country.
• After doing detail economic analysis for the project we come up with the
value of 1.94 benefit cost ratio, therefore we deduce that it is economically
visible.
• The project area is mostly metamorphic rock of the Precambrian rock, makes
it satisfactory dam site as it has high bearing capacity but many basalts of
comparatively young geological age are somehow permeable hence detail
studies of the permeability and the measures should be taken on the rock
has to be carried out before implementation of the project
• For full utilization, the river flow 75%excedence for annual flow has been
taken.
• The dam section is constructed by easily available material of rock fill from
nearby of the site.
• The upstream face of the dam is filled with impervious member of concrete.
• The chute spillway is provided at the side of the dam body on
rock surface. It is lined for protection of failure or seepage due
to cracks or fissures. The scouring effect is avoided by
providing energy dissipater at downstream.
• A cofferdam is constructed at the upstream of the dam to
divert the river flow for the purpose of dam construction.
• The water diverted at the upstream is passing through a
370m length of unlined tunnel.
• Water disposal from powerhouse is done by constructing
tailrace of coarse stone channel, which is safe for drawing it to
the downstream of the river.
 Recommendations
• In this project, since there is no any sediment data, we make
rough estimation. But, since it has great effect on the design
of the hall hydraulic structures, directly or indirectly, there
should be detail and accurate sediment data
• Since the reservoir created by the implementation of the
project may facilitate the spread of the diseases in the area,
appropriate heath care services and creation of awareness for
controlling the diseases has to be established with the
implementation of the project. And also appropriate
protection measures should be taken for other impacts of the
project as much as possible.
•  The estimated cost is obtained by rough analysis, which
need further detail quantity surveying .
• To have efficient use of water and to keep the structure in
good condition, the owner of the project should have to
manage it appropriately
• Afforestation should be seriously done for protection of
erosion to protect sedimentation of the reservoir easily.
• Facilitation of fish husbandry and recreational centers should
be carried out
• Some parts of the lands near the site are rain fed lands due to
its topography, but from this structure, it is easy to irrigate
that land, if the government or any other concerned sectors
think about it.
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