Overview of conduit hydropower in South Africa: Status and applications

Abstract

This paper conducted a review of relevant literature on energy recovery in water supply systems, stressing key elements such as system operation, design, application of and previous studies of energy recovery in water supply systems. The methodology comprised a discussion on the operation of the conduit hydropower system, the possible designs of the system and the implementation of the system within the municipal water supplies and some relevant research on energy recovery systems in water supplies. Results show that economic feasibility is dependent to a variety of factors. Smaller turbines reduce the cost of electricity, but disadvantage energy recovery potential. Even though there are encounters, energy recovery turbines justify serious considerations for application to some water supply systems. They prove to be flexible, economical and renewable option for managing pressure.