Technical and economic prospects for the site implementation of a gravitational water vortex power plant in Nepal

Abstract

Micro hydropower is a very promising renewable energy source for off-grid energy generation in remote areas where the resource exists. This study focuses on integrating an innovative new design of micro hydropower system called the Gravitational Water Vortex Power Plant into existing water infrastructure. Three types of existing water infrastructure are considered applicable for hydropower integration: irrigation canals, reservoirs and weirs. The theoretical designs for the civil works for the low-head gravitational water vortex power plant integrated into these structures are given and the costs of construction are estimated. A scalable system of 1.6kW is also designed and integrated in an existing irrigation canal for the technical performance evaluation and validate the theoretical economical study. The study concludes that the performance of turbine is mostly suitable for rural electrification and to integrate in cost-effective way, the civil works and installation cost should be greatly reduced.