Small Hydropower: Design and Analysis

Small Hydropower: Design and Analysis presents a comprehensive guide to the design, operation and maintenance of small hydropower plants. Using detailed diagrams and illustrations, the book examines the classifications, components, equipment, feasibility and analysis of each aspect of SHPs. Following a broad introduction, the book discusses classification approaches based on head, discharge, capacity, etc., analyzes site selection, and gives an overview of key development stages. SHP components for civil engineering works and electro-mechanical equipment have dedicated chapters that are followed by a chapter on how to design new components for the civil, mechanical and electrical aspects of a plant.

Subsequent chapters provide guidance on economic and financial analysis, environmental impact, troubleshooting and diagnosis in operating plants, and refurbishment and upgradation of SHPs, when and why this is needed, and how to approach it. Finally, several case studies provide real-world examples of SHPs in operation, giving readers insight into the practical needs of operating SHPs.

• Addresses all aspects of small hydropower, including civil works, hydro-mechanical, power generation and distribution, costing and financial analysis, environmental impact, and plant refurbishment and upgrading
• Provides dedicated chapters on the environmental and ecological impacts of small hydropower plants
• Assesses common problems in SHPs and provides tools for troubleshooting, diagnosis and solutions, including for site-specific issues
• Presents detailed real-world case studies showing the application of key aspects of SHP design, operation, maintenance, environmental and ecological assessment, and refurbishment

Sunil Kumar Singal is presently working as a Professor and Head of Department, Department of Hydro and Renewable Energy, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee. Prof. Singal obtained his Ph.D. on Optimization of low head small hydro installations from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee. He started his professional career as a Scientist at IIT Roorkee in 1984. He has more than 36 years of experience working on hydro energy and has successfully supervised 8 Ph.D. students and 80 Masters students in the fields of hydro energy and other renewable sources. Prof. Singal has published more than 200 technical manuscripts in the form of books, book chapters, journals, and conference proceedings. His research interests include small hydropower resource assessments and planning, designs of civil works, cost optimization and tariff analysis, integrated renewable energy systems, planning of water resources etc. He is a recipient of the Distinguished Scientist award- VIFRA 2015, Best Citizens of India Award – 2016, The Institution of Engineers (India) Excellence Award 2018, and Research Peace Award 2019-20.

Varun Goel is working as Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the National Institute of Technology Hamirpur. His area of research includes but is not limited to Heat Transfer, CFD and Renewable Energy. He is the recipient of the prestigious ‘Bhaskara Advanced Solar Energy (BASE) Fellowship (2018)’ for his work in the area of Solar Energy and worked at the University of South Florida Tampa. Apart from this, he is the recipient of Hari Om Ashram Prerit Research Award on Renewable Energy for his work on “Life cycle Assessment of Small Hydropower systems in India”, the Institution of Engineers India Young Engineer Award, and the ISTE-SGSITS National Award for Young Teachers. He has published more than 140 papers in journals/conferences. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers (India) and member of several national and international professional bodies.

Himanshu Nautiyal is an Assistant Professor and Head of Department, Mechanical Engineering Department at THDC Institute of Hydropower Engineering & Technology, India. His research areas include Renewable Energy Technologies, Sustainability and Life Cycle Assessment. He has published various research papers in journals and contributed chapters in books published at the international level. He is actively engaged as a reviewer of various journals and is a lifetime member of several national and international professional bodies.

Dimitris Papantonis is an Emeritus Professor at the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Greece, where he has been a professor since 1981. He is the former Director of the Laboratory of Hydraulic Turbomachines, Head of the School of Mechanical Engineering, and Vice-Rector at NTUA. His research interests include Hydraulic Machines, Hydroelectric Plants, Fluid Mechanics and Numerical Simulation, and Hydraulic transients.