Hydraulic turbine
AssigneeNatel Energy Holdings, Inc.
InventorsAbraham D. Schneider, Sterling Marina Watson
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A runner for a hydraulic turbine configured to reduce fish mortality. The runner includes a hub and a plurality of blades extending from the hub. Each blade includes a root connected to the hub and a tip opposite the root. Each blade further includes a leading edge opposite a trailing edge, and a ratio of a thickness of the leading edge to a diameter of the runner can range from about 0.06 to about 0.35. Further, each blade has a leading edge that is curved relative to a radial axis of the runner.
Claims20
A runner for a hydraulic turbine, comprising:
- a hub;
- and
- a plurality of blades extending from the hub,
- wherein each blade of the plurality of blades comprises a root located at the hub, a tip opposite the root, a leading edge, and a trailing edge opposite the leading edge,
- wherein for at least one of the plurality of blades, a thickness of the leading edge is greater than 100 mm, and
- wherein for the at least one of the plurality of blades, the leading edge at the root is positioned along a radial axis of the runner and the leading edge at the tip is cantilevered beyond the radial axis in a circumferential direction of the runner.
A runner for a hydraulic turbine, comprising:
- a hub;
- and
- a plurality of blades extending from the hub,
- wherein at least one of the plurality of blades comprises a leading edge that has a concave curvature relative to a radial axis of the runner, and
- wherein for the at least one of the plurality of blades, a thickness of the leading edge of the blade is greater than 100 mm.
A runner for a hydraulic turbine, comprising:
- a hub;
- and
- a plurality of blades extending from the hub,
- wherein each blade of the plurality of blades comprises a root located at the hub, a tip opposite the root, a leading edge, and a trailing edge opposite the leading edge,
- wherein for at least one of the plurality of blades, a thickness of the leading edge is greater than 100 mm, and
- wherein for the at least one of the plurality of blades, a portion of the leading edge at the root is slanted at a first angle, and a portion of the leading edge at the tip is slanted at a second angle that is smaller than the first angle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.