A historical survey of low-head hydropower generators and recent laboratory based work at the University of Salford

All life depends upon water. For man, however, water cansupply the power necessary to relieve him from the drudgeriesof life and give the time and means to enrich his existencebeyond the bounds set by the mere need to survive.Large scale hydropower makes a significant contribution to thetotal generated power of the developed world. The means ofharnessing water power for large flows and heads above threemetres are efficient and well established. There remainshowever, the fact that many people, especially in developingcountries live adjacent to water courses and tidal estuarieswhere heads of 2 metres or less exist but are not exploited.The reasons for this are often that practical machines do notexist or are insufficiently well developed to be used. Mucheffort has been made in recent years to develop equipmentsuitable for small, low-head sites in remote places.The writer has worked on three such devices in both thelaboratory and on site - these are the Salford TransverseOscillator, the AUR Water Engine and the Underwater Motor.This thesis describes these machines in detail together withother contemporary devices.The initial chapter contains an assessment of machines used inthe past to exploit low head sites. There is little doubt thatsome of these older machines, suitably brought up to date indesign and materials, would be more suited to the needs ofdeveloping peoples than many of the esoteric devices describedin later chapters.The thesis is concerned mainly with the need to provide a meansof generating power rather than the assessment or suitabilityof a site for power generation. The writer draws on experiencegained in the laboratory, and as a Mechanical EngineeringConsultant for small installations in the United Kingdom andoverseas