6 ms·

From a hydrotechnical perspective, it's a feature not a bug. You do not want sediment going through your turbines. Suspended sediment is a major maintenance iss

• rhodozelia 6y ago
  I acknowledged that sediment suspended in water moving through the plant causes wear and suggested designing such that it would be deposited in front of a sluice gate to allow it to be flushed without going through the water conveyance plant and the turbine. I think the sediment building up behind the dam is a bug and not a feature 1) the reservoir fills up with sediment reducing the volume of water that can be stored and the amount of stored energy 2) according to the article, depriving the downstream reaches of the river of sediment is detrimental to the ecosystem. 3) for run of river plants as you have indicated the sediment builds up behind the intake structure and once that volume, which is often quite small for run of river plants, is full it has no choice but to go down the penstock and through the turbine anyway, and depending on the abrasiveness of the sediment and velocity of the water it can be extremely effective at removing metal. Clearly it is better for sediment to continue moving downstream past any dams or intake structures. Maybe some kind of dredge system / conveyor system would be another option.
• rhodozelia 6y ago
  Would you rather have to overhaul a turbine every year or have no fish?