Influence of Deflector Geometry on the Performance of Drag-Based In-Pipe Turbines: A Numerical Study

In recent decades, population growth, economic development, and rapid technological advancement have increased global energy demand. To improve the efficiency of power generation and transmission systems, three key approaches, namely decarbonization, the adoption of distributed energy generation, and the digitalization of transmission networks, have received considerable attention. One underexplored opportunity in this field is the recovery of energy from high-pressure water transmission networks. Replacing pressure-reducing valves with in-pipe hydro turbines enables electricity generation as well as flow characterization and leakage detection. In this study, the influence of upstream flow deflector geometry on the performance of an in-pipe drag-based turbine was evaluated using three-dimensional transient simulations in ANSYS Fluent under a pressure difference of ۲۰ kPa and a rotational speed of ۵۰ rad/s. The deflector geometry was examined parametrically by varying its height, length, and vertex angle within a pipe of ۱۰ cm diameter. Optimal performance was obtained with a deflector height of ۲۰ mm, a distance of ۵ cm from the turbine center, and a vertex angle of ۲۵ degrees.

کلیدواژه ها:

Clean energy ، Vertical-axis turbine ، In-pipe drag-based turbine ، Flow deflector ، Numerical simulation