Micro Hydropower : Turbulent Turbines

Hydropower has been with us for millennia, but the 20th Century race to build huge centralised hydropower dams in many parts of the world has caused untold environmental damage. Now a new micro-hydropower technology is working with the natural flow of water and wildlife rather than against it, to bring much needed constant baseload power to off grid areas in remote areas of developing nations.
Video Transcripts available at our website
www.justhaveath...
Help support this channels independence at
/ justhaveathink
Or with a donation via Paypal by clicking here
www.paypal.com...
You can also help keep my brain ticking over during the long hours of research and editing via the nice folks at BuyMeACoffee.com
www.buymeacoff...
Download the Just Have a Think App from the AppStore or Google Play
Interested in mastering and remembering the concepts that I present in my videos?
Check out the FREE DiveDeeper mini-courses offered by the Center for Behavior and Climate. These mini-courses teach the main concepts in select JHAT videos and go beyond to help you learn additional scientific or conservation concepts. The courses are great for teachers to use or for individual learning.
climatechange....
Check out other KZbin Climate Communicators
zentouro:
/ zentouro
Climate Adam:
/ climateadam
Kurtis Baute:
/ scopeofscience
Levi Hildebrand:
/ the100lh
Simon Clark:
/ simonoxfphys
Sarah Karver:
/ @sarahkarver
ClimateTown:
/ @climatetown
Jack Harries:
/ jacksgap
Beckisphere:
/ @beckisphere
Our Changing Climate :
/ @ourchangingclimate
Research links
Turbulent website
www.turbulent.be/
• Turbulent vortex turbi...

[@ravenfeeder1892]

There are weirs for old mill waterwheels all over the UK (and presumably the rest of Europe). The waterwheels and their mills have all shut down long ago, so I was wondering if this technology could be used to repurpose this existing infrastructure. Most weirs already have salmon leaps built in and are 100+ years old, so the environmental cost is even less. Whilst all these sites will already be grid connected it could still be a way to provide extra reliable energy.

[@b00marrows]

literally had the same thought process when i was watching video on this over the last few years. Glad this channel also covered this.

[@Tore_Lund]

@@b00marrows There are a few YT videos on old UK mills converted to generate power, both as private installations and as community projects. The benefit is that as the waterwheel is now generating an income, it stays serviced and becomes a tourist attraction drawing business to the area too. Depending on the state of the waterwheel, it can either be as simple as fitting some pulleys to the shaft coming in through the wall, or a costly restoration of the waterway and wheel with historical accuracy.

[@craigknight2764]

I've often thought the same. Here in Norfolk its pretty low land but we still have all the old weirs etc. It would be so good to have a kind of micro baseload that is always there, maybe charging up peaker batteries, and not needing to be met by other fossil means.

[@JohnC-iv8jo]

@@craigknight2764 sounds like an excellent opportunity for co-operatives, green tech, positive impact investment opportunities ( potentially global for carbon trade ), with tech specific crypto thrown in ( solar coin as an example of mechanism ). frightens people though, they tend to think you are a ranting nutter when not in the presence of the choir and the councils that may potentially make money over vast periods of time from it. Well they are a bit put of if you aint female. Oh I forgot utube used to get upset about such suggestions and shadow ban etc such idea's also. At least that was the case 15 years ago. Dare you to get rich from it though, in fact I double dare you

[@durwoodmaccool890]

One advantage to this kind of installation would be the power produced wouldn't be competing directly with utility solar and wind, but with peaker plants. Could likely make it more attractive commercially.

[@entyropy3262]

This is an awesome Channel, thanks for your efforts you put into public education.

[@JustHaveaThink]

Glad you enjoy the videos. Thanks for watching!

[@autodidact537]

@@JustHaveaThink With some rivers the seasonal water flow varies quite a bit. Wouldn't the reduced flow in summer make many rivers unsuitable?

[@paulhellewell8762]

@@autodidact537 I imagine that the total and seasonal flow is part of the surveying and assessment of the waterway in question.

[@showshowtomakefreeenergyge2426]

Micro hydropower is an attractive option for rural electrification in many countries because it can be implemented with little infrastructure. Turgo turbines are one type of micro hydropower turbine, and they are well known for their reliability and maintainability. However, there are some issues that need to be addressed in order to make Turgo turbines more reliable and easier to maintain. One issue is the design of the turbine blades. The blades are subject to wear and tear, and they must be repaired or replaced regularly. Another issue is the bearings, which need to be regularly lubricated and replaced. Finally, the generator must be regularly serviced in order to prevent damage from dirt and debris. With proper maintenance, Turgo turbines can provide years of reliable service. However, if they are not properly maintained, they can become unreliable and difficult to repair.

[@AndyFletcherX31]

Turgo turbines are well known, the main issues are reliability and maintainability. I do wonder why so many of these installations use a single unit rather than a pair of smaller ones. If you have a single turbine and it needs maintenance then you lose all power whereas if you have more than one you can shut them down separately and the parts are smaller meaning it is more likely that the locals can handle repairs themselves without needing heavy equipment.

[@Tore_Lund]

Because of cost. Small turbines are almost as expensive, so there is really no reason to get two of half the power for redundancy.

[@lestermarshall6501]

Actually it is better to have 3. With 2 in service, the spare is used when one of the in service units needs maintenance or repairs. This way you always have full power if you need it and if you need even more power, in summer say, you can put the spare online.

[@Tore_Lund]

@@lestermarshall6501 I don't know about the Thugo turbines in particular, but a Pelenton you change bearings every 3-4 years and maybe a broken bucket every 10 years?

[@totherarf]

This is not a Turgo turbine! Turgo's need 15m head to become efficient and direct "jets" of water at the turbine wheel. This works by getting the whole mass of water to spin and the turbine extracts that spinning motion and adds it to the gravitic energy from the water falling through it! The revolutions of Turgo's are a magnitude higher than this too so you would expect bearing replacement to be less too!

[@TerraPosse]

@@lestermarshall6501 There's a reason you don't find what you describe out in the wild. As Tore alluded to, this would make the scheme prohibitively expensive and complicated for very little to no gain. If a turbine is regularly serviced (i.e. once a year on average) than breakdowns should not be an issue. And a service on a micro-hydro turgo scheme only takes a day at most.

[@constructioneerful]

"Somewhat invigorated and keen to have another go" very nice writing😁

[@mentality-monster]

Made me chuckle too

[@MrBizteck]

WHEEEEEEeeeeeeeee! 🤣

[@nagualdesign]

😆 _Yay!!!_

[@KameshwarChoppella]

That was pretty good ha

[@davidmaxwaterman]

I laughed out loud at that one :D

[@marilynlucas5128]

The guys at Turbulent are amazing. Inspirational what they're doing with turbines! I wish them well.

[@crcdistribution878]

Agree! Turbulent is very impressive. We hope to work with them one day.

[@terenceiutzi4003]

Regardless they remove the oxygen from the water and cause vast amounts of toxic solution! And damming the water up releases vast amounts of Co2

[@johngoldsworthy1925]

Turbulent is indeed making local small scale hydro power a reality. I really like the way their design provides for as little harm as possible to wildlife (fish) as it operates. A win-win.

[@terenceiutzi4003]

@@johngoldsworthy1925 yes at the most expensive cost we have ever seen and destroying our waters and enviroment well it is at it!

[@xmysef4920]

@@terenceiutzi4003 But isn’t that the reason why they’re small in the first place? to avoid too much of those kinds of problems

[@ThreeRunHomer]

No reason to limit them to remote areas. Any town on a stream or river could benefit from some localized, clean energy production.

[@lukasdolezal8245]

100% true. I think the issue is for places connecte to grid, it may not be financially beneficial as grid power is already there and cheap currently. Solution would be to increase electricity cost (which is often hidden or not paid, like carbon tax). But even then, sadly in many places in europe electricity is subsidies by government, so even more removing the natural opportunities for these solutions. Only if people would really care and push their politicians to look at those things

[@ThreeRunHomer]

@@lukasdolezal8245 Electric utility companies are already investing in sustainable power. For example, my local electric company has a big field of solar panels and a large battery installation close to where I live. It’d be nice to see the companies build these water turbines as well ... varied and dispersed energy production means more resilience to disruption.

[@simonrodriguez4685]

Even treated water. Or for pumping water to uphill locations. They could also be installed to decelerate water flows.

[@JustHaveaThink]

Very true

[@adamlytle2615]

Given that many waterways that run through urban areas already have anti-erosion measures in place (ie, concrete and metal walls), adding a string of micro turbines like this would have minimal environmental impact.

[@bernardthedisappointedowl6938]

Windmills and watermills - clearly pre-industrial Britain got a few things right, ^oo^

[@chrisdaniels3929]

There is a reason the industrial revolution kicked off with factories in North West England. It rains. Water power started it off.

[@brendanwallace4661]

And the fertile crescent where windmills have been used for thousands of years

[@seankuhn6633]

Clearly your old generations Far more stupid than your gluttonous egos would Ever allow to be concievied

[@tombombadil3185]

@So'FUk'NTiReD OfBarelygetnBy LOL, Texas come to mind?

[@lestermarshall6501]

@So'FUk'NTiReD OfBarelygetnBy windmills in North Dakota are winterized to prevent that.

[@lornehilton8772]

Living in Manitoba, Canada with mostly hydropower and these small systems look excellent for our remote communities. Love the flexibility!

[@Nvwheeler]

I live in BC and the same can be said for our remote communities. We are fortunate in Canada to have the water resources we do. This type of power production looks very appealing for sure

[@penguinuprighter6231]

My uncle helped engineer many Manitoba mega dam projects in the 70s. Then worked with the natives whose lives have been affected by the same dams. Sort of a make work project.

[@MeI-vy2ls]

They make big damns not any smaller ones I thought?

[@vitalilisau6181]

I think they will not work with ice, unlike big dam projects. Mini turbines are for hot climates.

[@MeI-vy2ls]

@@vitalilisau6181 how do they counter the ice then?

[@anonanon7278]

"... the low rotation speed turbine blades have soft rounded edges, allowing aquatic life to pass straight through the entire system, possibly somewhat invigorated and keen to have another go ..." That was gold! :D

[@mozismobile]

the problem is how aquatic life gets back up to the top have another go... without an explicit bypass this turbine is just as effective a filter as any other setup.

[@anonanon7278]

@@mozismobile The turbine is installed as a channel that is parallel to the river, so all the fish would need to do is swim back up the river and enter the turbine inlet channel again to have another go.

[@mozismobile]

this exact example, yes, but it wasn't clear that that's the only possible installation. It seems likely to come down to regulation and enforcement rather than mechanics.

[@AnalystPrime]

@@mozismobile That is the only installation that has ever been even suggested. Any other setup requires different kind of turbines.

[@Withnail1969]

if fish can get into the system then so can debris and silt. this thing will be silted up in no time.

[@haroldburrows4770]

As long as it doesn't hurt the fish it sounds jolly good

[@parthasarathyvenkatadri]

They could just use nets to not let the fish go in

[@grevberg]

That's why people who enjoy fishing use hooks made of foam rubber!

[@Withnail1969]

of course it hurts the fish.

[@parthasarathyvenkatadri]

@Trento that is the plan both hydro power and free fish ..

[@mryousmi9896]

@@Withnail1969 look at closely the shape of blade, it touch the fishs but dont hurt them, I work in aquaculture and the pump we use to pump the fishs have the same shape

[@nonewherelistens1906]

Non-dam solutions can even be imagined on larger rivers, servicing a much bigger population grouping. We just need the political will.

[@mlenox]

No dam systems on larger rivers are not viable. You must have SOME drop from inlet to outlet. I believe he said minimum 1.5 m. Energy output is directly proportional to that drop. More drop more power. No drop, no power.

[@nonewherelistens1906]

@@mlenox You need to get out more.

[@erstwhilegrubstake]

Diesel: It's also carcinogenic.

[@AnalystPrime]

In lots of those out of way areas it is also hard to get, which increases price. And you are lucky if you just have to pay little extra as transport cost to the guy who brings it to your village in soda bottles on back of an old motorcycle, he might also cut the product by adding water or something else so he has more product to sell, which you'll find out when that crap breaks your engine...

[@Withnail1969]

Allegedly.

[@AnalystPrime]

@@Withnail1969 Check out this video about poppy farmers going solar explicitly because getting fuel for their water pumps is too troublesome and fixing those pumps when there is water in the fuel is even worse.

[@indyola1]

To what extent are small rivers not intermittent? I understand that they don't stop when the sun goes down, but don't they occasionally dry up due to changes in rainfall, snowmelt, and seasonal factors?

[@hc8714]

no in those tropical/Subtropics rivers.

[@m.j.debruin3041]

If the river is intermittent you could create a lake to feed the turbine at night and solar panels in the daytime. And you could combine with windmills.

[@mariuszfurman4767]

Seasonal factors are meaningless in northern part of the planet where we use most of energy and in tropics where it's badly needed. In other places different solution may be needed but not everywhere you need everything.

[@guilhermeroneto]

They sure do. Seasonality must be considered in every renewable power plant design regardless of the technology used.

[@johnmoncrieff3034]

These systems are designed to use only a fraction of the water flow of the river so the annual rise and fall of the flow are generally accounted for in the design! Normally when the flow is low then so is the demand for power as it is generally hotter so no need for heating by electricity as there is in cold weather! ( Heating is generally the biggest demand for electricity)!

[@PaulAndHarris]

This is my first time watching your channel. I love how you explain things to simply, succinctly, calmly, and without any annoying background music. Subscribed!

[@Goreuncle]

I always find it ridiculous when people claim that the full potential of hydro power has been reached. As I see it, we have barely begun.

[@johnbanka9199]

These turbines do not achieve the full potential of hydro power, as you put it. They are very inefficient in their use of water. Under drought conditions, they might not be able to function properly.

[@donutemptycircle8717]

As we struggle to deal with centuries of criminal negligence, nature quietly gets on with taking care of business. Nature does not care that it is the extinction business.

[@maximianocoelho4496]

Good power output Easily installed Relatively cheap And Doubles as a Fish Water Park. If there is one here in Portugal I am gonna visit the place if I have the time.

[@markissboi3583]

added along rivers for hundreds miles & never need to stop the flow like dams .

[@ElElGato1947Gato]

Glad you mentioned the cost to human life that the mega dams incur. In India whole communities just simply disappear. Government builds these hydroelectric dams, no plans for relocation of the displaced populace. People just have to leave the homes their families have occupied for generations & try to survive elsewhere. The human cost is horrific.

[@ashutoshsharmash]

It's so beautiful to see scientists apply lateral thinking to solving the energy requirements of the world, without leaving a carbon footprint ... I'm so glad I found this channel.. And I love the way, the narrator just beautifully narrates this. I find his intellectualism so soothing.

[@JustHaveaThink]

Thank you :-) I really appreciate that feedback.

[@snowstrobe]

Have to admit I've spent way too many hours thinking about something exactly like this, yet my lack of understanding of water flow dynamics and basic engineering limited my ideas somewhat. So brilliant that some clever bods have done this. Be good if they had a funding (pay-it-forward) system in place so others could help remote communities get these in place.

[@paintedwings74]

Me too! I had in mind a system of vanes moved back and forth by turbulence, but again, great that engineers have produced the functional version. Pay-it-forward systems are ideal, there are some NGO's focused on that sort of funding.

[@Withnail1969]

a turbine in flowing water isnt exactly a new idea.

[@snowstrobe]

@@Withnail1969 Yeah, I know... it's just that there might be better ways to do it. But thanks for that.

[@Withnail1969]

@@snowstrobe That's OK. There aren't really any better ways to do it.

[@snowstrobe]

@@Withnail1969 Did you even watch this report?

[@idea-shack]

A great choice if you have a river near your property, but how many people actually have a river near their property? When I bought my small plot in the countryside, I specifically looked for one near a river or stream and I can tell you, it was damn hard to find one. Eventually I did, but the river is just a tiny stream, although I'll take the free water to irrigate my lands, thank you very much. I did have to pay a small premium for the land, being close to the river, so there's that hidden cost. Still, land next to fresh water will someday be a very valuable commodity and also land next to rivers usually have very fertile soil, which helps of course.

[@tombombadil3185]

If your stream has constant flow drop a ram pump in and lift the water as high as you can and feed it thru a micro turbine /alternator. Problem solved. People are cursed with thinking bigger is better.

[@showme360]

Have you seen the water wheel which can not only generate electricity but pump water manually through a coiled hose?

[@idea-shack]

@@tombombadil3185 Yes, our neighbor has already installed one. We use it to raise the water as our lands are several meters above the stream's bed height so there are options there, but I don't see the need to raise it higher, the ram pump already generates the extra head pressure, I'm sure I could just put it through a nozzle into a microturbine, don't see the need to raise it per say. However, that said, one option is to use the ram pump to pump into a high reservoir and then use that to drive a microturbine intermittently when energy is required on demand.

[@Baekstrom]

The comparison to the four tennis courts worth of solar installation is a bit unfair. The solar panels don't require any more space than they take up to function. The turbine is fed by a river that gets its water from a very large area in the mountains. That explains why a solution like that won't scale up very well. When you consider the entire area of land needed to provide the energy, you don't get very many watts per square meter.

[@stevemickler452]

It is even more unfair if rooftop mounting or agriphotovoltaics is considered.

[@Kiev-in-3-days]

Sure.. Let's be fair and pretend it matters: then using your logic the distance travelled by the photons from the sun to those solar panel is a lot larger than the areas crossed by those rivers. Fortunately your point of view does not make any sense whatsoever. Those turbines are a lot smaller than their photovoltaic systems equivalent. Period.

[@lousarsol9005]

I can see the angle you are coming from. Honestly I think you raise quite a valid point, this definitely can't work everywhere. Although, these turbines solve the problem of intermittent power attributed to solar panels. These turbines work off of the principal that they aren't leaving a large, man-made footprint on the planet. When taking that into consideration, I feel that the length of the river is irrelevant considering that where these turbines will work are places that no one is going to remove the river unless you are planning on putting a large scale hydro-electric dam on site. I would also like to point out that I disagree with Sebastian as I don't think those comparisons of logic made much sense. As I said, I feel you raised a valid point. However, I don't think anyone is going to remove a river in the effort of ecological conservation.

[@JustHaveaThink]

Hi Tim. I guess I should have made it clear that I was not denigrating solar (in fact I am a big fan and have solar on my house and cabin), but it is fair to say that within the specific context the turbines take up far less space, so if a site was space limited then this is a good option.

[@johnmoncrieff3034]

This has to be the best form of renewable power generation that most governments and large power companies have deliberately ignored for decades! Tied into highly efficient insulated housing this has to be put at the forefront of future developments throughout the planet! All local authorities should be specifying these for current and future planning regulations! Here in Scotland, I see this as a means of opening up the remoter parts of the highlands to modern industry, housing, and sustainable living! Without the need for expensive grid connections & all the hassle that brings!

[@bluceree7312]

Also, infrastructure for communal ground heat pumps. The first one was just installed in East England a month ago.

[@kateegnaczak5902]

Governments and large power companies did not deliberately IGNORE for decades, they actively prohibit them and regulate them out of existence.

[@rem9882]

@9:23 on the map they say that Japan is the Philippines. How did they not spot that. Still, there doing a great thing and it’s fantastic to see

[@joselaporre5163]

Yeah it's true. What is wrong we that?... so' s fail editing background video 😅

[@larryp5359]

These look great for very rural areas without deep freezes and with consistent stream flow. However, the amount of energy you can get out of a given volume of water is proportional (approximately) to the difference in height between the inlet and outlet. This is why very tall dams get built, more power for a given water flow. So while these can help, they won't "replace the grid" in any area with significant power needs. In areas where there isn't a large drop in elevation, you are limited to micro-hydro and these look good for that as long as only part of the stream's flow is diverted and the majority of the water is left in the original channel the environment isn't changed too much.

[@johnbanka9199]

You are correct. Dams with Francis Wheel turbines must have a head of at least six metres to overcome cavitation. These low-power units will have no cavitation issues.

[@ChipmunkRapidsMadMan1869]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, The way to use renewable energy is on the individual level.

[@ezg8448]

I was thinking this too, already people on KZbin have made 1/2 kilowatt water generators with nothing but a small stream. Those would have a even lower environmental impact and significantly lower cost, not to mention the water source requirements are lower too.

[@ChipmunkRapidsMadMan1869]

@@ezg8448 The part that people forget is resilient plastic requires petroleum.

[@mieszkogulinski168]

@@ChipmunkRapidsMadMan1869 But the petroleum is not burnt, so it doesn't emit CO2.

[@ChipmunkRapidsMadMan1869]

@@mieszkogulinski168 but if it's not cost effective to extract it, it won't be extracted. So either the price for solar arrays goes way up or we continue using petroleum as motor fuel.

[@ablacknambercat]

Before rural electrification in Ireland, there were 3 old mill weirs generating electricity(and selling it) in Kilkenny. Once the Electricity Supply Board took over you could not sell electricity and they fell out of use. A shame because imagine these used to power street lights, traffic lights and other community use electric demands rather than a bill to the ESB.

[@rolliebca]

Tom G - I believe it's deplorable that in today's bureaucracy they not only prevent you from selling the power, they make it illegal to even give it away or use it yourself. Further tightening the grip of societal imposed slavery. Our world could be so much better if that were not the case. I'd love to hear peoples opinions on how to fix this.

[@donutemptycircle8717]

@@rolliebca Watching a Hawaiian dam about to break while generally noticing freakish rainfall events all over the world suggests any return to ye olde early days of industry might well be impossible.

[@alaskavaper2490]

This seems like a very good way for those people living nearby to an appropriate water resource. Great video as always, James. Thank you.

[@dougmc666]

Contrary to what this video says there's no magic in low head, run of the river or mini size! A high head pelton turbine works just as well with a lot less water, there is run of the river hydroelectricity measured in gigawatts and a huge dam in the mountains doesn't impact people or fish. It's local circumstances that determine whether a design is good or bad.

[@Withnail1969]

of course there isn't, you can't change the laws of physics. if you want to move a turbine with a decent power output you need a lot of water.

[@dougmc666]

@@Withnail1969 - Or a high head of water.

[@lukasdolezal8245]

In many towns on small rivers and streams they already build artificial river basins to control the flow and erosion. Now I wonder how much additional cost would it be to add those turbines. Seems like it could be small cost when part of the river/stream basin construction project, but it could actually pay for itself. And I am sure the local citizens would also be more proud of it, to have local generation of power.

[@kurtappley4550]

Early in your video you hit on the major problem with all US renewable projects.....Monopolies.

[@johnfowler4820]

Brilliant . I have said it before,the grid is dead.

[@dewiz9596]

I don’t think so. You’re not going to build one of these on Fifth Avenue

[@tombombadil3185]

Billions+ invested in the grid. They won't give up easily. Same for big oil, coal, all those fucking institutions.

[@lestermarshall6501]

@@tombombadil3185 Big oil is already shifting to renewable energy.

[@tombombadil3185]

@@lestermarshall6501 Yeah, only 40 years too late. Dubya commissioned a study to debunk climate change for instance. FAILED!

[@Withnail1969]

@@tombombadil3185 i hope they don't give up, i dont want my electric supply depending on unreliable feeble sources like wind and solar.

[@chippysteve4524]

15kW is not a lot of power for 30 homes! You can't recharge (m)any Teslas with that. Similar systems have a mesh at the intake end to stop fish getting in.Then you can accellerate the water much faster down a spiral vortex chute until it hits a high RPM small diameter,spinning impeller which connects to your dynamo. Or... I think a highly effective system can be made for a fraction of the cost by suspending one or more horizontal axis lightweight waterwheels into the river from the bank. Customise the wheel diameter,width to suit and run a dynamo off the axle(scaffold pole for mass) on the riverbank where you can conceal it so you don't ruin the view too much. You don't need a gradient,just the right blade size for the flow rate and demand A simple pair of walls can be easily set upstream to funnel a fraction of the river more quickly through the paddles. fish swim around or under you can get all the parts from a junkyard you can put multiple wheels side by side,hang them from bridge structures easily removed for maintenance, silent You could literally turn an old paddlesteamer into a floating powerstation/restaurant/cinema etc

[@geoffevans7915]

This is very impressive. As a civil engineer I have found that rather than using bespoke designs for each site it’s best to have a range of modular designs for different situations, for example levels and flow rates, and then make shutters and/or fibreglass formers to suit and impellers to fit. In other words a standard range of repeatable kits.

[@EntropyOfTime]

plastic pyrolysis is the answer

[@Runescope]

These are hardly new. They’ve been around for years.

[@lexiecrewther7038]

Dave takes his patreon suckers money and regurgitates old KZbin pipe dream videos, and the suckers beg for more

[@Withnail1969]

@@lexiecrewther7038 Ha ha nail on head. None of these dumb ideas ever make it into the real world because they don't work.

[@edinfific2576]

Except for the rounding of the turbine edges, their turbine is nothing new. In 1993. in Nemila, Bosnia, a local man (don't know if he were an electrical engineer or an electrical technician), due to the power outage as a consequence of war, built exactly the same thing. First he built about 50-100 meters of concrete channel to raise the water level to about 3 meters, then made a spiral shape in the end to get the water spinning, and then placed a turbine at the top. He used maybe a 2kW motor as a generator, and a capacitor to start it. We could see a dozen incandescent 220V light bulbs running on that power. Unfortunately, none of the structure is there today. Bosnians tend to go back to the easier way of life once the necessity is gone, and it's easier to just use the grid power.

[@thomasalbrecht5914]

The Diesel engine was deliberately designed to run on all kinds of fuels and has one of the best efficiencies of combustion engines. The fact that it is in practice mostly run on mineral oil is a result of the prevalence of the fossil fuel industry. Not to advocate it above non-combustion means of generating efficiency... when there’s running water with continuously sufficient flow, small turbines are certainly superior. But a backup is never a bad idea.

[@garethbaus5471]

Deisel engines definitely still have their place, but the higher pressure and combustion temperature also leads to the production of a lot more harmful nitrogen compounds making it harder for them to have comparable emissions to other internal combustion technologies.

[@leerman22]

@@garethbaus5471 As opposed to a car, a stationary diesel generator can afford to have good scrubbing of such pollutants. If it's only used as a backup I wouldn't worry about the extra expense.

[@garethbaus5471]

@@leerman22 if it's only used as a backup the extra expensive of scrubbers seems much less justified, but yes scrubbers do tend to improve emissions.

[@CanonFirefly]

There are quite a few youtubers who have built diy micro hydro systems using upcycled components like washing machine motors. It would be great if you could do an episode covering these style systems. They are very small, around 500-2000w usually, but very cheap and have very limited impact on the environment.

[@AndyFletcherX31]

Couple of you-tubers doing this are Kris Harbour and Marty T

[@CanonFirefly]

@@AndyFletcherX31 yep, they're my favourites.

[@louispeters2105]

Most diy hydro setups are illegal "sadly"...mind blowing over-regulation is layered within multiple bloated agencies...

[@trueriver1950]

During the conflict in the former Yugoslavia mains power was off for months or longer and fuel for cars was also unavailable. People living near rivers made their own hydro, usually from the alternators taken from their standed cars and DIY water wheels, mounted on a small anchored floating raft in midstream, and driven by the flow past the wheel. One design looked like a Mississippi stern-wheel paddle steamer heading upstream "pulled" by its anchor rope. People could light their homes with 12V lights (not at full mains brightness but still usable) run a radio. Beauty was the dead car also had a regulator and battery that could be repurposed to control the output of the alternator over a huge range of revs. Not efficient. Not cost effective in normal life, but in a situation where normal city utilities failed it made survival that bit more comfortable and using only what was already present in an city when it went off grid... I have wondered since how much of that kit made it back into the cars it came from...

[@joewright099]

love these, plan to make one soon!

[@vice.nor.virtue]

At 5:44 you explain that a small portion of the river's flow is diverted to create the vortex needed, however, the diagram shown shows a weir in operation which of course would still stop migration routes.....Basically, I wasn't totally convinced this technology would work without preventing upstream migration routes.

[@Alex_Pro_A]

This is a good and smart solution. But, like all other solutions, that have it own profs and cons. Profs you have mentioned in video. CONS is that such turbines have zero tolerance to ANY ice. So areas where it can be applied is very limited. You can see, that all already existing turbines is in the tropic climate only - it's not a coincidence. Conventional large scale hydropower don't have such issue, BTW. @JustHaveaThink it will be nice if you will mention not only a good side of each technology, but risks and limitations as well. But still you do a good job, and I'm happy to watch your channel.

[@nuarius]

Depending on th4e size of the turbine and river. Unless you are living somewhere extremely north/south, Freezing would only be really problematic for smaller sized instillations off smaller or slower moving bodies of water. Even when the surface layer freezes on a River, The water is still moving. the faster the water is moving, the less ice is an issue. These could still work in a Lot of places where Sub zero winters are the norm, But would be limited to higher throughput models on higher volume bodies.

[@Alex_Pro_A]

@@nuarius according the images of real tourbines from the video, i would say that that freezing the surface of water will stop this turbine, and potentially damage it. And it is 100% sure that when temperature will rise (and ice start to crach and moving) it will damage turbine a little bit.

[@RAndrewNeal]

I would think that using some grating at the intake of the vortex would stop large pieces of ice from getting to the turbine. As for the flowing water itself, as long as it remains flowing fast enough, it should prevent freezing after the water comes through the grate. If you're really that worried about it, it could probably be covered up and use some of the generated electricity to power some heat lamps that are turned on when the temperature drops a certain amount below freezing.

[@MDP1702]

I just wonder why this hasn't gotten more traction. If this 2,3 cents/kWh is correct, this would make it one of, if not the, cheapest power generation methods out there. Considering this I find it weird this isn't being build en masse everywhere where it is possible. I therefor can't shake the feeling that there might be some hidden catch, if not this should be placed everywhere possible very quickly.

[@lamondhaughton1598]

I seen this concept years ago they took lots of knowledge from Schauberger.

[@ruipedrovilarinho5560]

Schauberger made one of these in the 30' or 40' last century! Almost 100 years ago! They got destroyed in II world war.

[@noorfahad1999]

The juicy taxi delightfully smell because credit conversely seal next a crazy joseph. abrupt, clumsy layer

[@hair2050]

Somewhat invigorated🤣🤣🤣. That gave me a good chuckle 🤭

[@jepperose]

Kmm

[@ssruiimxwaeeayezbbttirvorg9372]

You should be able to put such low output turbine anyway you want (on your land), unfortunately governments do not like theirs citizens to be independent and forbids/heavily tax/regulate such installations.

[@bibliotek42]

"possibly somewhat invigorated and keen to have another go" :-D

[@I3lex]

Hi I love all the Info u bring, but the problem with these kind of small powerplants is that its easier for a big company to manage 1 giant powerplant then 100 small eco friendly.

[@hyric8927]

9:20 Dave, the place marked as "Philipines" is actually Japan.

[@JustHaveaThink]

Apparently so. I did not check their map, but I wish I had!

[@patriot9455]

@@JustHaveaThink May that be the worst mistake anyone makes,

[@hyric8927]

@@JustHaveaThink I see it now. Video source: Turbulent. It's a bit difficult to see (let alone notice) when the play bar obscures it.

[@joselaporre5163]

Yeah. That's fail marking😅

[@chrisadriangregory392]

waht is the highest stage of river flow at the proposed site? is ther a good contour map available from local study? what is the best estimate of maxium annual flow, average flow and minimum annual flow? what is is the appromiate length of the flo0d flow season? what is the approxiamte length of the drought or low=flow season? are there any instream uses and diversion of water that might affect the possible gtdropwer development at the site

[@mattcbinns]

I’ve seen this before and this it’s an excellent idea.

[@guidedmeditation2396]

Some day we need to just begin using Zeropoint energy to generate electricity. It is infinite and free. But that is the problem. How do you charge billions for free electricity?

[@vishwasdeshmukh3999]

Amazing content 🎊

[@dadikkedude]

I saw videos of people making these mini hydro power turbines out of washing machines.

[@EctoMorpheus]

5:22 it's a shame that company already took it, otherwise Electricidad would have been a great name for this channel :)

[@JustHaveaThink]

:-)

[@kenknight4560]

There is a KZbinr in NZ, Marty T, who has built a unit like this out of an old washing machine and alternator. He runs his off grid house off a tiny creek in the bush. Check out his "micro" solution.

[@JustHaveaThink]

Hi Ken. I did see that video. Very inspiring and absolute genius. Not quite sure how scalable it is, but all credit to Marty.

[@martir.7653]

Honestly this sounds too good to be true. Since no serious criticisms were covered, it makes me suspicious there is something that's not being said.

[@lexiecrewther7038]

He keeps flogging these pipe dream cons that fail the physics smell test. I also suspect that he is being sponsored

[@lexiecrewther7038]

A 15kw turbine requires either enormous water flow at low head, or high head and moderate flow. There's no such thing as a 15kw "micro turbine"

[@Withnail1969]

@@lexiecrewther7038 Most of the videos are promoting stuff that hasn't even made it beyond the speculation/hype stage, it's all rubbish recycled from other youtube videos. his audience should check back a few years and see what's come of any of the stuff he was promoting in, say, 2017.

[@cavemann_]

@@lexiecrewther7038 He's legally obligated to state who sponsors him on youtube so I doubt that.

[@cavemann_]

@@Withnail1969 Spreading knowledge about more ecological ways of producing power is just as important as making them work. And some of the stuff he covered is being used on a decently large scale so it's not like it's all bogus.

[@JonathanGarneau]

Excellent video! I especially liked the $/kWh estimate! Priceless!

[@martyschrader]

I've been keeping one eye on Turbulent for a couple years now. This stuff is going to be the micro-gen grid of the future, you betcha. The US of A will, of course, be the last domino to fall, but we'll have to do something like this to support the extension of generation from large plants to smaller, spread-out sources. Our infrastructure simply can't handle the loads any more, as witnessed by the recent mess in Texas. Small generators spread all over hell and gone will save our electrical grid's bacon by making the major load-bearing lines do less work. Watch for it.

[@johnbanka9199]

Just wait until you find the regulatory hell each of these little turbines faces if it is to be connected to the grid! Good luck!!

[@michellelewis3063]

There appears to be a claim that smaller is more efficient, this strongly contradicts the 'economy of scale' principle which has driven ever larger generation systems. Water authorities such as SEPA have very strict rules on small hydro and require rigourous surveying, environmental criteria and professionally certified installers, and grid connection equipment to phase align the supply to grid is not cheap even for a very small generator. All of which make micro hydro proportionately much more expensive per kW than larger systems. These are some of the reasons why micro hydro is not more widely implemented in the UK at least. Claims by companies really must be critically assessed for bias. Love micro hydro myself, will be building one soon, don't tell SEPA :)

[@useodyseeorbitchute9450]

Well, even in this video he admitted than that bigger microturbine is more cost effective.

[@michellelewis3063]

@@useodyseeorbitchute9450 The video misrepresents the efficiency of micro hydro relative to macro hydro and misrepresents its cost effectiveness by leaving out all the regulatory hurdles and installation realities that add huge costs in developed countries. It furthermore promotes the specific company as 'innovative and entrepreneurial' and the 'designers' of the tub mill when they are no such thing, tub mills have existed for a thousand years prior to 2015. Additionally, it suggests that their technology is simple enough to be installed by local people in rural communities, implying it provides a kind of independence, yet has control systems which will need specialist engineers with intimate understanding of the specific technology from that company. This is a fluffy, wishful thinking, rose tinted and poorly thought through promotion of a private company rather than a thought provoking look at micro hydro.....I like and respect the show enough to criticize it.

[@useodyseeorbitchute9450]

@@michellelewis3063 Yeah, good point, he should at least mark it as infomercials.

[@philoso377]

Likes the idea of distributed hydro power station, one good about this is it also benefits migratory marine life.

[@l0I0I0I0]

I love it but still very expensive. Nonetheless, TY very much!

[@raphlvlogs271]

they can be very helpful on De-urbanising the population.

[@billalexander4360]

Great idea but not much use in many remote parts of the frozen north.

[@myriverfarm]

IF WE COULD GET HUMANS TO LISTEN TO LOGIC, WHAT A GREAT THING...

[@ka_okai9]

Amazing. Thanks for sharing this , friend!

[@anagramconfirmed1717]

"Sustainable" is a nasty little buzzword.

[@Brightandheavy]

What i want to know is, how could anyone dislike these videos?

[@Jasfras1]

09:20 PHILIPPINES moved recently ?

[@JustHaveaThink]

Oh heck, did I place the name wrong? I must have missed that

[@michaeloosthuizen2383]

That cost analysis doesn't quite pass the sniff test. 15kW for 30 euro homes: so that's an average draw of 500W. 12kWh per day sounds a bit low, but let's accept that for the sake of argument. The problem is that each house doesn't draw 500W continuously. To smooth out the differences between generation and consumption you need to factor in the cost short term storage. The cost of a solar installation already has that cost factored in (at the moment the batteries are the lion's share of the cost), so does the 90k Euro cost include such storage? I'd love to have micro-hydro, and if I lived on property that had running water I'd definitely look at including that into generation. Even a modest generation capacity can greatly reduce the requirement of short term storage for a solar installation, which has knock-on financial and environmental impacts.

[@lexiecrewther7038]

You also could not get anywhere near 15kw out of a turbine with low head and smallish flow. Fudging all over the place

[@tomkelly8827]

As a Canadian, where hydro is king, I would say that these look really great, particularly for mountainous places, but I think that the much more obvious place for hydro electricity production is on our countless unpowered dams! I spent a lot of time whitewater kayaking and I can say that most dams here are unpowered, just for flood control but the flow rates are massive and the head is really good too. I think we ought to power up our unpowered dams, then use the resivoirs as batteries for more intermittent renewables like wind and solar. No need for Lithium batteries, natural gas peaker plants or pumped hydro, just good dam control!

[@someonespotatohmm9513]

From what I understand the problem usually is the cost of getting the wires there. It just isn't worth it to spend that much money on getting it connected to the grid when the generation is not that much.

[@kateegnaczak5902]

In the USA only 3% of dams produce power. The Dept.of Energy claims that there is 65 GW of untapped power at potential small and micro hydro sites in the USA

[@Withnail1969]

you realise dams in the middle of nowhere are no use for supplying electricity to population centres? that's why they aren't powered.

[@someonespotatohmm9513]

@@kateegnaczak5902 According to wiki that 3% has a 75GW capacity. Ie more then the other 97%. Numbers mean nothing without context.

[@abhishekshingala1212]

Even I love these kinds of sustainable decentralized energy-producing machines.

[@DrOtiose]

Reading the comments, it seems there's real interest out there in actual installations, but possibly not such good follow-up from Turbulent.be. Wonder if the "bespoke" nature of every project means the company is already at full capacity.

[@grindupBaker]

The other possibility is that Mister Think made it all up and that's why a lady says "Pardon ? I'm sorry, this is a pharmacy" when you phone, instead of helping you (Actually happened to me once, long dull story, I hid my face & skulked out).

[@marcteenhc9793]

Its always the same...the first 5 minutes are crap, nonsense to introduce the topic...and then I have to put the video on 1,25 speed to not fall asleep. Still, overall a good video...I would just cut a bit the crap at the beginning and speed up the explanation later on.

[@grindupBaker]

I've been listening to all climate videos on 2x speed for the last 4 years, even Webinars by scientists for other scientists. You just switch to 1x speed when you see/hear a bit of information that's new & interesting. It's like Magic this Interwebby. Added benefit, Mister Think sounds like a chipmunk.

[@lumineesh]

How do fish swim upstream when you have this blocking the stream? Creating a side channel for fish will reduce turbine efficiency substantially.

[@JohnSmith-yv6eq]

Thsi turbulent turbine IS the side stream...the main current still flows unimpeded..

[@cleaterose5914]

Dual sport riding in Vietnam, I noticed boats with outboards tied along the shore with a wire running from the outboard to a nearby house or hut. When I inquired about this, we pulled over to one of these huts advertising "cold bia". The owner took us down to the river where the outboard was off but the prop was turning in the current. The alternator was providing current to a battery which in turn powered a refrigerator full of cold beverages. He produced a product that thirsty dual sporters want and that helped support his family. Plus, he still has a boat to do portaging work. Micro hydro at it's best.

[@JohnSmith-yv6eq]

If that outboard motor was turning/freewheeling (the motor not running under it's own power) so the alternator on the top of the crankshaft could producee electric current...he is wearing the engine out. This is a very viable system if the engine is inboard and has an alternator driven off the propshaft...just put the gearbox in neutral and let the prop spin ....

[@KiteTurbine]

15kW enough to power 30 European homes. Hmmm not really though

[@grindupBaker]

I heard everybody in blighty now lived in tent cities on Wormwood Scrubs. You can heat a good tent real nice with 500 watts.

[@suresh_elonbro]

The constant comparison to solar is absurd. You are talking about a very specific case where they have access to moving water 24 7 365.

[@JohnSmith-yv6eq]

Yes, solar has that one large drawback...night.

[@davethefab6339]

These micro grid solutions could easily be deployed many times down the same river therefore producing masses of power by the re-use of the same water that drove all other units up and indeed down river. It’s such a simple idea and as you said Dave.... they would provide energy almost instantly and the cost would be paid off before a big unsightly dam could be built. Also any maintenance cost would be minimal over their lifetime.👍👍⚡️⚡️

[@InternetLaser]

I just don´t see how it´s economical with such a low hydrodynamic head. I´m suspicious about the power generation claims.

[@grindupBaker]

It's a trivial calculation with 100% efficiency. It's 1 hp = 550 foot.pounds-weight / second so 1 KW = 737 foot.pounds-weight / second. I'll not be trying to figure out efficiency for a GoogleTubes comment audience. I suggest you figure out efficiency if "low hydrodynamic head" concerns you and calculate Watts per water flow rate.

[@weeb3277]

@9:20 Philippines got misplaced.

[@edwyncorteen1527]

Sheffield is surrounded by abandoned old water power installations, all close to housing and industry, we need these!

[@David-bi6lf]

I have visions of fish acting like it's a day out at Alton Towers. Fighting against the down stream to swim back up and have another go 😂

[@davidleahy6141]

Shout out to the commentators of this channel. Mightally impressed with the quality of discourse.

[@rogerbarton497]

Even in developed countries they could be sited where rivers are close to electrified railways to supply them with power. They could also be used to regulate the flow of a river so that in rainy seasons water is held back so it doesn't all hit downstream areas in one go and cause flooding.

[@acmefixer1]

No, that would be a dam. This discussion was about no dams, just run of the river.

[@rogerbarton497]

I'm not talking about dams, although although at 5:30 he states that there needs to be a minimum of 1.5m height between inlet and outlet, this would most likely provided by the slope of the land. The very presence of a vortex will slow water flow down, an added generator will slow it further. A dam and sluices or maybe a weir could be incorporated but not necessarily, but you wouldn't want to increase the water level of the river to the point where it floods. I remember decades ago there was a news item about a Welsh town that regularly got flooded by water from the top of the town coming out of the drains lower down. They cured this by installing a vortex chamber in the pipes.

[@mattfuller6812]

I wish Britain would colonize America again, the accent alone would be totally worth it.

[@grindupBaker]

Cor blimey mate you'd also get some decent bangers & mash then instead of all this American Vegan crap. Gor bleedin' 'ang me.

[@Rezac66]

Thank you so much for the good news! Here i Sweden we really should be able to use this kind of waterpower. Video now shared.

[@chrisb508]

I love the idea of decentralizing power generation. I think it's the key to making power cheap, accessible, and renewable by focusing on using what is best locally.

[@rklauco]

We have similar pipe dreams :) I've spotted these folks ~2 years ago already, seems VERY interesting, especially with the minimal impact to the aquatic life.

[@namename8904]

Why not use multiple turbines?

[@LamarreAlexandre]

I live in Montreal Canada. According to my electricity bill, in January I consume 136 kWh per day on average. On average, my house therefore uses 5.6 kW of power (136 kWh / 24h). I have a standard house. A 15 kW micro power plant could therefore operate only 2.67 houses not 30 houses where I live. What kind of house can run on 0.5 kW (15 kW/ 30)? A hair dryer uses 1 kW. My Tesla needs 9.6 kW when charging (240 V X 40 A). I am not against this type of mini power plant, but it is not adapted to the North American reality. It is, however, a good idea for a fishing camp or hunting camp.

[@grantgeorgia7168]

My thoughts entirely -- 5kW is par for the course for household usage. He's off by a whole order of magnitude.

[@grindupBaker]

Wow, do you live in like that Chateau Frontenac by any chance ?

[@timkbirchico8542]

Invigorated fish? More like minced fish.

[@AnalystPrime]

As can clearly be seen on the video, no fish big enough to be bothered by the turbine blades can fit into the channel because of the grate blocking the way.

[@leax_Flame]

Couldn’t such an installation be used in an urban water runoff system?

[@grindupBaker]

Yes.

[@Walczaktowers]

Would love an update on this...

[@tyroberts2261]

If the barrier keeps back debris, why would there be fish going thru.

[@JohnSmith-yv6eq]

Small fish, larger debris?

[@Yanquetino]

Always makes my week when I see these videos posted. I'll wait to watch it and comment until it appears in my Patreon feed.

[@greebfewatani]

The central plant is built not for monopoly but to help huge percentage of ur people. It is built for easier maintenance The plant you mentioned isaybe 10 kW maximum while Hover Dam is 2GW which 200,000 times more, can you let me know how you are going to maintain this huge number of system? How you will integrate to increase reliability? How.... Etc It is easy to say government bad and this one bad but to dig deep through the real reasons will need Alot of effort. This system can work in a rural isolated area, better than nothing but cannot industrialize a nation

[@entyropy3262]

Industrialised Nations are not sustainable and will vanish soon, that is the essence of the Climate Catastrophe and the other crises that go along with it. I am sorry for calling your perspective naive. Either u want a sustainable civilisation, or you want an industrialised one. You cannot have both.

[@JustHaveaThink]

Hi Ibrahim. These turbines can be linked to provide multiple megawatts of energy. They will never compete with the Hoover Dam but they do not need to in most parts of the world.