Pump As Turbine
PUMP AS TURBINE -PAT-
A Pump as Turbine (PAT) is a conventional hydraulic pump operating in reverse in its hydraulic part. And through adjustments to the motor, it is capable of pumping (raising water) or turbine (lowering water).
PAT systems significantly reduce initial investment costs by utilizing existing pumping infrastructure to generate hydroelectric power.
With a single machine you can achieve two purposes
It can drastically reduce the cost of installing a turbine
Positive impact if there is an energy surplus.
INITIAL ADVANTAGES
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With one machine you can achieve two objectives (pumping and changing the turbine flow).
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A much lower acquisition cost compared to its equivalent of a turbine.
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Positive impact in the event of an energy surplus.
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Allows the local area to replace pressure reducers or even take advantage of existing pressure drops in the pipes, to obtain an increase in energy at a much cheaper price than a conventional turbine.
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Allows you to work in pressure and flow ranges that a turbine could not reach. Tube-tube pumps are mainly used, which makes them ideal for pressurized water circuits where the water, once turbined, does not pass outside.
Why use a pump that works like a turbine?
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By availability: the availability of pumps on the market is very wide, and in the catalogs there is a lot of information about their operation and constructive aspects. This is an advantage with respect to microturbines, where there is not always information. This is also a great advantage in countries with emerging economies, where the availability of hydraulic pumps is greater than obtaining specific turbines.
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For economic and feasibility reasons. Turbines are generally manufactured for a specific working point. This makes their price (even in microturbines) high when working with a single unit. On the other hand, the mass production of hydraulic pumps results in much lower prices. It is true that a PAT will give less production, but this can be perfectly compensated by the lower price compared to a turbine.
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For construction and maintenance reasons. In general, turbines are complex machines that require more maintenance than already manufactured pumps. In terms of operation and civil engineering works, it is easier to implement a PAT than a specific turbine and the maintenance, if any, is already known.
DO I NEED TO APPLY FOR AN ENERGY USE CONCESSION?
The water concession or permit is generally already available. Installing the PAT mini turbine would be like installing a booster pump or replacing a reducing valve. No permit or concession is required if the water in question is already available. If it is a new work, a technical report may be required.
This can be a very important advantage over installing a turbine specifically. This administrative advantage makes it very useful in private water circuits, where there are hydraulic conditions available to operate a PAT turbine (reversible pump), in energy self-consumption mode.
CAN ANY HYDRAULIC PUMP BE USED AS A PAT TURBINE?
The hydraulic conditions (flow and pressure), performance and specific speed (Ns) must be given in order to determine the pump model suitable for operating as a PAT turbine (reversible pump).
A pump can be converted into a PAT tube, if a flow and pressure study has previously been carried out, the specific number in pump mode and PAT mode has been determined, as well as the speed and performance in pump mode and PAT mode.
Advantages of PAT technology: HYDRAULIC BATTERY
The ideal situation would be to pump water from a lower tank to a higher tank, during hours when there is an energy surplus (either due to photovoltaics or low purchase prices). Once the surplus is over and there is an energy demand, the flow is reversed and the pump becomes a turbine, sending the production to internal self-consumption.
How a PAT system works
A conventional hydraulic pump can be converted into a PAT system, but not all situations are favorable to be able to convert to reversible pumping.
In fact, if you look at the graph, the machine working in pump mode uses a much lower flow rate (Qn_b) than in turbine mode (Qn_t). The same happens with pressure. In turbine mode, more pressure (Hn_t) is needed, compared to working in pump mode (Hn_b).
IDEAL PLACES TO PUT A PAT TURBINE
Existing pressurized water networks
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Overpressure tank inlets,
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Gravity pressure irrigation circuits,
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water circuits where pressure reduction is desired before distribution,
Networks with very little pressure
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Water outlets from sewage treatment plants or fish farms
BATTERY CHARGING OR SELF-CONSUMPTION
As always at Hidric, I offer solutions for battery charging (off-grid), or a mixed system (hybrid with battery and direct self-consumption) or even an exclusive direct self-consumption system. PAT turbines (reversible pump) will adapt to your situation.
HOW CAN I HELP YOU?
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Doing hydraulic calculations to know which pump model you can buy. You need to know the flow rate, pressure and energy requirements. I can also make a project or a technical report. Minimum engineering cost of €175.
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Supply of the pump transformed into a turbine -PAT- (the price already includes engineering) and all the necessary hydraulic and electrical elements, or whatever you need. Installation is your responsibility. Request a quote.
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Same as point 2 plus installation assistance. Price to be agreed depending on location.
Explore our success stories (ep!! under construction)
Gallery of innovative PAT installations
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