Optimization of Hydropower Conveyance System Using Particle Swarm Optimization Technique

Hydropower plants can enhance the requirement of nation’s power demand at affordable unit cost by providing clean and renewable energy. Large tunnels or penstocks need to be constructed for high head hydropower project. Such power plants operated under critical conditions, and they need to be tested for safety aspects of the major components. Provision of surge tank can absorb the effect of high-pressure waves in the head race tunnel due to occurrence of transient flow. Surge tank simulation program is prepared using particle swarm optimization (PSO) to optimize the diameter of the tunnel and diameter of the surge shaft. The objective function of the study is to minimize total cost of construction of tunnel and surge tank subject to constraints of minimum and maximum limit of velocity of flow in tunnel and surge tank. The results obtained by PSO provide optimum design of the surge tank and headrace tunnel under different operation schedules of turbine gate valves. The PSO coupled with a simulation model can support the decision to finalize the size of various components of the hydropower system.