SPEED REGULATION (GOVERNING) OF THE PELTON WHEEL

The governor uses either mechanical or electronic feedback to sense the speed of the turbine.
Proportional or directional valves controlled by the governor operate cylinders that open and
close wicket gates or needle valves to adjust the flow of water to the turbine in order to maintain
a constant turbine speed. Hydroelectric turbines rotate at relatively low speeds compared to
steam turbines, with larger hydroelectric turbines rotating at 35-75 rpm, and smaller ones as fast
as 150 rpm. The large turbine diameter combined with the massive inertia of the water flowing
through it makes precise control of rotational speed a critical concern. If governor proportional
or directional valves do not respond instantly and accurately to fluctuating generator loads, there
is a lagging behind of the wicket or needle valve position. This results in an oscillating condition
where by the turbine is constantly speeding up and slowing down. This inefficient power
production, although difficult to quantify, leads to loss in revenue for the utility. Furthermore, if
this oscillation exceeds the maximum allowable frequency, then the turbine must be shut down,
resulting in temporary loss of generating production. Also, in the event of a sudden loss of load,
it is important that the governor act instantly to shut down the turbine to prevent a runaway
speed condition. Runaway speed is the speed at which the turbine exceeds its designed maximum
rotational speed. When this occurs it is possible for the turbine to disintegrate due to massive
centrifugal forces.
Usually, hydraulic turbines are coupled to electronic generators. These generators are required to
run at constant speed irrespective of variations in the head and power output. When the load on
the turbine changes, the speed may also change, (i.e., without load the speed increases and with
over load, the speed decreases). Hence, the speed of the runner must be maintained constant to
have a constant speed of generator. This is done by controlling the quantity of water flowing on
the runner according to the load variations. This speed regulation is known as governing and it is
usually done automatically by a governor.
Main Functions of the Governing System
Control of the turbine start-up and shutdown sequences
Synchronization of the turbine with the grid
Control of the active power supplied by the generator to an interconnected network
Control of network frequency on an isolated electrical network
Protection of the unit against over speed in case of load rejection
Control of advanced sequences

Governing Mechanism for the Pelton wheel

A servomotor governor (also known as oil pressure governor) is shown in Figure. It consists of
(l) a servomotor, (2) relay valve or control valve, (3) actuator (centrifugal governor), (4) oil
sump, (5) oil pump and (6) oil supply pipes.
Working

The centrifugal governor (actuator) is driven by the turbine shaft through a belt or gear. When the
load on the generator reduces, the turbine speed increases. It causes the following actions to take
place one after another.
1. Fly ball of the governor moves upward,
2. Sleeve moves upward,
3. Left hand end of main lever rises,
4. Bell crank lever moves down and simultaneously the piston of the control valve moves down
in the cylinder.

The movement of bell crank lever brings the deflector in front of the jet. The deflector diverts a
portion of the water jet away from the runner buckets. Thus, rapid closure of the nozzle opening
is eliminated and at the same time the quantity of water striking the runner is reduced. The rapid
closing of the nozzle increases the pressure of water which may result in water hammer
problems.
The downward movement of the piston in the control valve forces oil under pressure from the
control valve to the left side of the piston in the servomotor. The piston of the servomotor moves
to the right pushing the spear forward. The oil in the right side is returned to the oil sump. The
forward motion of the spear reduces the opening of the nozzle. Consequently, the rate of flow is
decreased and normal speed is restored. Once the normal turbine speed is restored, the main
lever returns to its initial position. The deflector is brought to its original position by means of
cam arrangement.
When the load on the generator increases, the turbine speed decreases. This causes the following
actions to take place one after another.
1. Fly balls move downward,
2. Sleeve moves downward,
3. Left hand end of the main lever lowers down,
4. The piston in the control valve moves upward in the cy binder,
5. Oil under pressure is forced from the control valve to the right side of the piston in the
servomotor,
6. Servomotor piston moves to the left pushing the oil in the less side to the oil sump.
Simultaneously, the spear moves backward. The backward movement of the spear increases
the opening of the nozzle outlet. Thus, a large quantity of water strikes the runner and the
normal speed of the turbine is restored.
PERFORMANCE CURVES FOR TURBINES

Turbines are always designed and fabricated for a given set of specifications containing
variables, like speed, power output, head and discharge. And the efficiency of the unit is
maximum when it operates under designed conditions. But in practice, it operates under
varying conditions because the level and quantity of water in a storage reservoir does not
remain constant throughout the year, and also the load on the turbine is variable. Thus, it is
essential that the exact behavior of the unit under varying working conditions is predetermined. These are obtained by manufacturers by conducting experiments on models in a
laboratory and by doing field tests on the site.
The physical parameters controlling the performance of a turbine are speed N, power output
P, head H, discharge Q, the position of gate opening (nozzle opening or guide blade opening)
G, and the efficiency of the turbine. The behaviour of the units are represented by curves
called turbine characteristics.
The characteristics of turbines are obtained under three different categories-'
(a) Main characteristics (Head constant)
(b) Operating characteristics (Speed constant)
(c) Muschel curves (Efficiency constant)

A. Main characteristics: In this case, the head is kept constant and the speed is varied by
varying the load on the turbine. The governing mechanism is disconnected from the system so
that the experiments are performed at constant gate openings.
Speed vs discharge curve: For a given area of flow, the discharge depends upon H 1/2 for a
Pelton turbine. Since H is constant, the peripheral speed of the turbine is constant and
therefore, the discharge is independent of speed.
Speed vs power curve: Power is proportional to angular speed. When N is zero, the angular
speed is zero and when N equals runaway speed, the output power is again zero. Thus, the
speed-power curves for turbines are parabolic in nature.
Speed vs efficiency curve: The speed-efficiency curves for turbines are similar to speedpower curves.