Pelton Turbine

Pelton Turbine (FSI) — ANSYS Fluent CFD Simulation

Description

This project simulates fluid–structure interaction (FSI) in a Pelton turbine using ANSYS Fluent. A Pelton turbine converts the pressure energy of a high-velocity water jet into mechanical rotation via cup-shaped blades, and when that high-pressure jet strikes the turbine body, it can noticeably displace or deform the solid structure — making this a genuine two-way coupling problem between the fluid flow and the structural response rather than a fluid-only analysis. Within the FSI: Beginner CFD Training Package, this project applies FSI to an impulse hydro turbine, extending the coupled approach to a high-load rotating machine where the jet impact drives the structural response.

Methodology

The geometry, covering both the solid turbine body and the surrounding fluid region, is built in 3D using Design Modeler and meshed in ANSYS Meshing with roughly 6 million cells. Rather than coupling Fluent to an external structural solver through a system-coupling setup, the project uses Fluent's Intrinsic FSI capability, running both the fluid and structural calculations natively within Fluent by enabling the Structural Model with a linear elasticity formulation for the deformation. Rotation of the turbine is captured through the Moving Reference Frame approach, applying a specified rotational speed to the fluid zone adjacent to the turbine body via Frame Motion, consistent with a steady-state run.

Analysis

The results are examined from both structural and fluid perspectives: total displacement and von Mises stress describe how the turbine body responds mechanically, while the pressure and velocity fields describe the water flow around it. The coupled results show that the high-pressure, rotating water jet imposes substantial loading on the solid body, producing noticeable deformation concentrated on the blades — exactly where the jet impact is most direct — confirming that the intrinsic FSI setup captures a physically consistent fluid-to-structure load transfer. By the end of this project, you'll be able to set up an intrinsic FSI simulation within ANSYS Fluent using the Structural Model with linear elasticity, apply the Moving Reference Frame approach for a rotating turbine, and interpret the displacement, stress, pressure, and velocity fields that characterize the jet-driven fluid-structure interaction in a Pelton turbine.