Future of Hydraulic Turbines

            Future of Hydraulic Turbines                  The history and innovation in hydropower turbine technology have been associated with a high demand for maximum power generation. Over the last two decades, however, a focus on decreasing fish mortality has become increasingly important. Turbines are available and in continued development to offer solutions to some of hydropower’s biggest issues — particularly the safe downstream passage of fish through turbines and increases in generation through reductions in the spill. In the early 2010s, turbine entrainment was as high as 2,500 fish per hour, according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. This alarming number of fish injuries and mortalities was in part due to the pressure placed on the hydropower industry to operate at peak efficiency — plus or minus 1 percent — even during fish passage season. One of the main solutions to downstream fish pass...