Feasibility Study on Non-dam Floating Adjustable Intake for Hydropower

It is a challenge to produce hydropower by directly utilizing potential energy and kinetic energy of natural rivers while minimizing the disturbance to natural ecosystem and environment. This paper proposed a non-dam floating adjustable intake structure based on analysis and comparison of advantages among dam type, diversion type and micro and small type hydropower as well as their impacts on environment, and analysis of the comparative advantages of the dam type normal intake and the sediment problem caused by lateral flow for diversion type intake structure. The intake structure is capable of automatically adjusting its own position according to the variation of water level by combination function of buoyancy, spherical universal joints, cable structure and sliding floating ring. The authors studied the feasibility of the intake by dynamic mechanical analysis of water flow action of the inside and outside of the pipe and the structure equilibrium. The intake structure not only effectively solved the sediment problem caused by lateral flow in the bank fixed intake and reduced the influence of the vertical vortex at the intake, but also avoided the adverse environment impact of river cutoff due to dam construction. It realized the normal water intake without dam and the full use of water kinetic energy of the river. As a new type intake structure, it may offer a reference for design of other intake of diversion engineering.