A potential solution to recover energy from wastewater environment by using the single-channel pump as turbine

Duc-Anh Nguyen, Cong-Truong Dinh, Gyeong Sung Kim and Jin-Hyuk Kim

Energy, 2025, vol. 320, issue C

Abstract: Hydroelectric turbines can become clogged by trash in the water source, which can damage the blades and reduce the performance. Thus, a turbine that can operate efficiently in trash-filled water environments is needed. In this study, a single-channel pump for operating in turbine mode is proposed as a potential solution to recover energy from a water source containing trash. To evaluate the operational capability in turbine mode, the hydraulic characteristics, radial force, and vibration were analyzed in detail by the computational fluid dynamics. Experiments were performed to confirm that SPAT could operate in trash-filled water environments and to validate the reliability of the numerical results. SPAT had a lower hydraulic efficiency in turbine mode than in pump mode, which can be attributed to the appearance of a vortex rope rotating around not only itself but also the rotating axis of the runner. The vortex rope caused large energy losses but also facilitated the movement of trash through the turbine. The net radial force was lower in turbine mode than in pump mode, but the greater eccentricity of the radial force in turbine mode resulted in stronger vibrations.

Keywords: Single-channel pump as turbine; Wastewater treatment; Energy performance; Radial force; Vortex rope (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:energy:v:320:y:2025:i:c:s0360544225010412

DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2025.135399

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