Brumboo was awarded a multidisciplinary analysis project by a major Austrian hydropower company. The task was to determine the remaining life of a Pelton turbine unit consisting of two runners on a single shaft.
The client had previously experienced a serious problem with a long crack in a Pelton turbine bucket, which could have easily led to a major incident if it hadn’t been found in time. Therefore, the customer decided to thoroughly inspect both runners and their common shaft to assess the remaining life before failure of the turbine unit.
Brumboo, as the main contractor, defined the methodology together with the customer. Reasonable simplifications were made to do only what was necessary without wasting time and money.
Specialised companies were then involved in the project for each activity, and the project was carried out on a tight schedule to avoid a standstill during the water-rich spring period.
The methodology included 3D laser scanning of the site, CAD approximation, non-destructive testing, transient fluid volume CFD analysis, finite element analysis and rapture mechanics including load collectives.
Most importantly, all assumptions were made conservatively to minimise the likelihood of underestimating remaining life.
