Cross-Flow Turbine

The Cross flow turbine is an impulse turbine. The field of application of a Cross flow turbine is about 4m to 30m and medium flow rates. The technique of this type of turbine allows the use of widely varying amounts of water. The water inlet of the Cross flow turbine can be divided in a one third and a two thirds chamber. The turbine can work, by using the one third chamber, with small amounts of water. By using the two thirds chamber it works with medium water amounts and with the maximum of water inlet the machine uses both chambers. The advantage is therefore that the Cross flow turbine has relatively uniform efficiency even using fluctuating water levels. In principle, the efficiency remains the same at a water volume of 25% to 100%. The water inlet can be undivided, if there exists a constant water amount. Hydropower plants from 30 kW to 1 MW can be realized.

General Information

The wheel of the Cross Flow turbine resembles a cylindrical impeller and consists of tangentially arranged blades. The flow pattern, in which the water enters on one side, then flows through the center of the wheel and leaves it through the opposing blades, allows this type of turbine to operate also with leaves, grass and small floating material in the water.

Compared to Kaplan, Francis and Pelton turbines the Cross Flow machine has lower peak efficiency; this disadvantage is partial offset by the relatively constant efficiency in water fluctuations. This turbine provides a cost-effective price-performance ratio.

Our technical solutions for this type of turbine include:

• Machines with horizontal undivided water inlet
• Machines with vertical undivided water inlet
• Turbines with horizontal water inlet, split into a 1/3 chamber and a 2/3 chamber
• Turbines with vertical water inlet, split into a 1/3 chamber and a 2/3 chamber