Characteristics of Free Surface Vortices at Low-Head Hydropower Intakes
Publication: Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 140, Issue 3
Abstract
Tools for engineers who assess and optimize hydropower intakes are provided to help them measure and quantify the characteristics of free surface vortices (characteristic radius, bulk circulation, tip depth, nominal depression slope) that form at the intakes. Accessible methods are proposed for measuring and modelling vortex characteristics and the processes that affect their generation and strength. Common mechanisms that produce and strengthen the vortices (flow separation, shear, asymmetric approach flow) are discussed. An analytical model, based on Burgers’s vortex model and laboratory measurements, is described that incorporates the effect of the approach flow and intake geometry on vortex characteristics. Simple measurement techniques (acoustic Doppler velocimetry and surface particle tracking velocimetry) are presented by which the flow and vortex characteristics can be documented, allowing the model to be adjusted to the particularities of the specific intake under consideration. The analytical model is then used to help understand how the different processes affect the scaling of vortex characteristics.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank David Morissette, Pierre Tadeo, Tristan Aubel, Maryse Page, Anne-Marie Giroux, and Sébastien Houde for their advice and contributions. F. S.-G. was supported by the National Science and Engineering Research Council, the Fonds Québécois pour les Sciences et les Technologies, and the Hydro-Québec research center.
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Published In
Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 140 • Issue 3 • March 2014
Pages: 291 - 299
Copyright
© 2013 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 15, 2013
Accepted: Sep 11, 2013
Published online: Sep 13, 2013
Discussion open until: Feb 13, 2014
Published in print: Mar 1, 2014
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