Advantages of Francis Turbines

●
Francis turbines work best for
medium to
high range heads
●
Easily controlled operating head
●
Francis turbines operate over
the largest
range for both flow and head
parameters
●
Large range in size to meet
different
power requirements
○
Range from 0.25 MW to 1000
MW
●
High efficiency
○
Generally around 94%
●
Francis turbines are mixed flow
designs
●
Francis turbines have the
highest
maximum power for turbines
●
Francis vs. Pelton
○
Smaller and more economical
than a
Pelton wheel capable of the
same
power generation
○
More resistant to wear than the
Pelton wheel
○
Francis turbines have higher
levels
of efficiency
Disadvantages
●
Unclean water can cause rapid
wear in
Francis turbines
●
Cavitation is always a possibility
○
Runner erosion
○
Losses in efficiency
●
Difficult to maintain and clean
●
Low acceptance of head
variation
●
Constant adjustment of guide
vanes and
runners
●
Francis turbines are generally
limited to
large hydroelectric systems