Case Study: e3k achieves Pelton turbine efficiency gains and >80% reduction in secondary flow losses with ANSYS FLUENT

e3k - Customer Case Study

e3k, an Australian mechanical engineering consultancy focused on R&D across energy and other sectors, was tasked with optimizing a multi-nozzle Pelton wheel hydroelectric installation. The project required detailed examination of the branching distributor manifold, nozzle geometry and the rotating runner to extract maximum energy under complex unsteady, multiphase flow conditions; e3k turned to ANSYS FLUENT® to tackle these challenges.

Using ANSYS FLUENT®, e3k visualized and quantified the complex flow interactions, guided geometry refinements and identified a previously unreported flow phenomenon. The ANSYS solution enabled targeted design changes that improved overall system efficiency—reducing secondary flow losses in one component by more than 80% and capturing the incremental performance gains that translated directly to the client’s bottom line.

e3k

Ben McGarry

Principal Engineer