Keita Yamamoto

• PhD
• Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne

This paper introduces an experimental method for the evaluation of dynamic transfer matrices using only pressure transducers. The discharge fluctuations are evaluated from the fluctuation of the pressure difference at different streamwise locations. The transfer matrices of the resistance, the inertance and the compliance elements are determined by...

Francis turbines are subject to various types of cavitation flow depending on the operating condition. To enable a smooth integration of the renewable energy sources, hydraulic machines are now increasingly required to extend their operating range, especially down to extremely low discharge conditions called deep part load operation. The inter-blad...

For seamless integration of growing electricity production from intermittent renewable energy sources, Francis turbines are under increasing demand to extend their operating range. This requires Francis turbines to operate under off-design conditions, where various types of cavitation are induced. At deep part load condition, an interblade cavitati...

It is well known that hydraulic machines experience various types of flow instabilities which cause a negative influence on the system. The transfer matrix method correlating the flow properties in upstream and downstream of hydraulic machines is widely adopted as a first step to investigate dynamical characteristics of flow. The transfer matrix el...

At part load conditions, Francis turbines are subject to the emergence of a hydrodynamic instability in their draft tube, referred to as precessing vortex rope. It induces pressure pulsations in the water passages at the precession frequency of the vortex, leading to additional vibrations and dynamic loads on the runner blades. The prediction of bo...

It is of primary importance to decrease risks of snow damages on electric transmission lines to ensure a stable supply of electricity. For an acquisition of reliable data to clarify characteristics of snow accreted on a transmission line, it is effective to conduct an indoor experiment. The present report describes an experimental method for snow a...

In liquid-propellant rockets, POGO instability can occur, in which a fluctuation of propellant supply to the engine, a thrust fluctuation, and a structural vibration are coupled. For the prediction of this instability, it is required to provide dynamic characteristics of the pump represented as the transfer matrix correlating the upstream and downs...

At a deep part load operation, Francis turbines are subject to the formation of inter-blade cavitation vortices inside blade channels, however its characteristics are not fully understood yet. The present study aims to investigate the development of the inter-blade vortex as well as the flow characteristics associated with the vortex formation insi...

At part load conditions, Francis turbines experience the formation of a cavitation vortex rope at the runner outlet whose precession acts as a pressure excitation source for the hydraulic circuit. This can lead to hydro-acoustic resonances characterized by high pressure pulsations, as well as torque and output power fluctuations. This study highlig...

At off-design operating operations, cavitating flow is often observed in hydraulic machines. The presence of a cavitation vortex rope may induce draft tube surge and electrical power swings at part load and full load operations. The stability analysis of these operating conditions requires a numerical pipe model taking into account the complexity o...

Full load pressure surge limits the operating range of hydro-electric generating units by causing significant power output swings and by compromising the safety of the plant. It appears during the off-design operation of hydraulic machines, which is increasingly required to regulate the broad integration of volatile renewable energy sources into th...

Francis turbines are subject to various types of the cavitation flow depending on the operating conditions. In order to compensate for the stochastic nature of renewable energy sources, it is more and more required to extend the operating range of the generating units, from deep part load to full load conditions. In the deep part load condition, th...

Francis turbines operating at part load conditions experience the development of a high swirling flow at the runner outlet, giving rise to the development of a cavitation precessing vortex rope in the draft tube. The latter acts as an excitation source for the hydro-mechanical system and may jeopardize the system stability if resonance conditions a...

The large-scale penetration of the electrical grid by intermittent renewable energy sources requires a continuous operating range extension of hydropower plants. This causes the formation of unfavourable flow patterns in the draft tube of turbines and pump-turbines. At partial load operation, a precessing cavitation vortex rope is formed at the Fra...

Due to the extension of the operating range, Francis turbines are operating more and more at off-design conditions that are accompanied by cavitation. In the present study, the cavitation phenomena at deep part load conditions are investigated using two-phase numerical simulations. This operating point is characterized by the occurrence of inter-bl...

The cavitation helical vortex rope arising at Francis turbine partial load induces pressure fluctuations at the rope precession frequency, which can be decomposed into two components; the convective one and the synchronous one. The latter acts as an excitation source for the hydraulic system and is amplified in case of resonance. The present paper...

Francis turbines operating at part-load experience the development of a precessing cavitation vortex rope at the runner outlet, which acts as an excitation source for the hydraulic system. In case of resonance, the resulting pressure pulsations seriously compromise the stability of the machine and of the electrical grid to which it is connected. As...

Flow instabilities in hydraulic machines often feature oscillating cavitation volumes, which locally introduce compliance and mass flow gain effects. These unsteady characteristics play a crucial role in one-dimensional stability models and can be determined through the definition of transfer functions for the state variables, where the cavitation...

In order to guarantee the electrical grid stability in the course of the integration of New and Renewable Energies (NRE), the operating range of conventional and pumped-storage hydropower plants is continuously extended. The off-design operation however induces unfavourable flow patterns and instabilities in hydraulic machines, causing a variety of...

In hydraulic power plants, it is well known that Francis turbines are subject to various cavitation phenomena under off-design operating conditions, and visualizations have played a key role and performed for understanding and revealing the dynamical behaviour of the cavitation. However, visualizing the cavitation from the high pressure side of the...

The required operating range for hydraulic machines is continually extended in an effort to integrate renewable energy sources with unsteady power outputs into the existing electrical grid. The off-design operation however brings forth unfavorable flow patterns in the machine, causing dynamic problems involving cavitation, which may represent a lim...

Francis turbines operating at part load condition experience the development of a cavitating helical vortex rope in the draft tube cone at the runner outlet. The precession movement of this vortex rope induces local convective pressure fluctuations and a synchronous pressure pulsation acting as a forced excitation for the hydraulic system, propagat...

In a hydraulic power plant, it is essential to provide a reliable, sustainable and flexible energy supply. In recent years, in order to cover the variations of the renewable electricity production, hydraulic power plants are demanded to operate with more extended operating range. Under these off-design conditions, a hydraulic turbine is subject to...

Hydraulic machines operating in a wider range are subjected to cavitation developments inducing undesirable pressure pulsations which could lead to potential instability of the power plant. The occurrence of pulsating cavitation volumes in the runner and the draft tube is considered as a mass source of the system and is depending on the cavitation...

In the liquid propellant rockets, POGO instability can occur through the fluctuation of propellant supply to the engine, the thrust fluctuation, and structural vibration. For the prediction of this instability, it is required to provide unsteady characteristics of the pump represented as the transfer matrices correlating the upstream and downstream...