What is a Turgo Wheel

A Turgo wheel is a cast epoxy impeller is designed to provide efficient performance on micro-hydro Turgo wheel water turbines. Another word that is used to the describe the Turgo wheel is Turgo Runner. Power from water increases with head and increases with flow rate but is limited by pipe friction. Maximum power for any pipe size occurs when the frictional losses in the pipe
equals one third of the static head. Any increase in flow rate beyond this point will result in less power. Both power and water usage should be controlled by a choice of nozzle sizes. Adequate filtration on the water supply is essential. The area of the intake screen should be large enough
to reduce the effect of clogging by leaves etc. The screen should have holes small enough to exclude any particles that may block the smallest expected nozzle size.

Installation of a Turgo Wheel

the wheel is made to fit a 15 mm shaft. Correct attachment to the generator shaft is important. Thick stainless steel or galvanized washers of at least 25 mm outside diameter should be used on both sides of the wheel to distribute pressure evenly over the casting. A spring washer is essential. The nut should be tightened to 6.5 N/m torque (firm with a 160 mm spanner).

Turgo Runner Specifications Impeller Material Cast Epoxy Resin Composite Diameter Outer is 165 mm; Inner hydraulic diameter is 133 mm Shaft Diameter 16 mm Keyway Width 4.76 mm ( 3/16th inch) Hub Depth 22 mm Nozzle Aligment 57 mm tangentially to centre of shaft

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Alignment of the water jet

Correct alignment of the water jet is important with this design of impeller, both to achieve maximum efficiency and to prevent possible damage to the blade edge of the runner buckets. The nozzle must be adjusted so that the jet strikes the wheel at an angle of 20° from behind as shown in the diagram below. A clearance of at least 65mm is recommended between runner and turbine case.

 

This image shows the correct allignment of the water jet.