Abstract

Abstract To obtain the flow characteristics inside the draft tube of the model Kaplan turbine, a model test method was developed and carried out in this paper. The method includes introducing the model test system, test method, and parameters of model Kaplan turbine. Subsequently, experiments are conducted under different operating conditions and the results are analyzed. The result shows that, for the same blade angle and unit speed, operating conditions with larger guide vane openings (GVO) generally have higher axial velocities and lower tangential velocities than those with smaller GVO. In addition, particularly at higher flow velocities, a low velocity or backflow zone can occur in the center of the draft tube. Vortex rope is found to have a significant impact on the turbulence intensity in the mid-section of the draft tube, resulting in an unstable flow state. Also, under higher unit speed operating conditions, the turbulence intensity in the middle of the measurement area is greater and has a larger sphere of influence. Finally, the tangential pulsation intensity at the same measuring point under the same operating conditions is larger than the axial pulsation intensity, showing that vortex ropes have a more significant influence in the tangential direction.