hydro Archives - Easy Hydro

Thrilled to announce the official launch of the intelligent Asset Management Platform for Hydropower (iAMP-Hydro) project!

Posted on November 22, 2023November 22, 2023 by Easy Hydro team

iAMP-Hydro is an innovation project funded by the European Commission under the Horizon Europe framework that will improve the operations of existing hydropower plants through a set of digital solutions under the form of a novel Asset Management Platform. The main aim of the project is to foster the digital transition of the hydropower sector and to improve its competitiveness. The full package of digital solutions will be validated at five real-world existing hydropower plants producing evidence for policy makers to support the green and digital transition of hydro.

In the beginning of November, the members of the consortium came together at Trinity College in Dublin to commemorate the launch of the project and share some updates and insights.

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Stay tuned for more updates as we embark on this exciting journey. We are eager to share more about the features, benefits and impact of iAMP in the coming weeks!

Easy Hydro exhibits at the 2023 ACCADUEO H2O fair in Bologna

Posted on October 17, 2023October 19, 2023 by Easy Hydro team

The biennial ACCADUEO H2O exhibition has been the reference event for the Italian water sector for the past 30 years. Its 16th edition was held in Bologna in October 11th-13th and featured a busy schedule of events and conferences alongside two halls hosting hundreds of international exhibitors. Among them was Easy Hydro, who shared a stand with our partner Tecnidro.

This was the perfect opportunity to present a full-scale prototype of our hydro energy recovery solution for pressurized water networks. Instead of just dissipating the excess available pressure via throttling valves or tank inflow valves, the adoption of an Easy Hydro system allows the network operator to generate some valuable green electricity as a byproduct.

A big thank you to Tecnidro, SAER Elettropompe, to the organizers of the event and above all to the many who stopped by our stand during the three days! Stay tuned for the upcoming Easy Hydro events.

Easy Hydro designs an energy recovery turbine for an European water utility

Posted on February 20, 2023February 21, 2023 by Easy Hydro team

A few days ago, the Easy Hydro team has submitted a feasibility study to an European water utility. The scope of the study was to assess the technical/economic feasibility of recovering energy by installing a 9 kW water turbine at the inlet of a gravity-fed water storage reservoir.

The project will only require minor modifications to the existing pipework, and will allow our customer to generate clean electricity as a byproduct of their operations.

Before...
...after

If you have a potential hydropower site, please get in touch with us for a free-of-charge pre-feasibility study which will help to identify the best way forward!

Easy Hydro exhibits at the 2022 Energy and Mines Summit in Toronto

Posted on November 15, 2022November 16, 2022 by Easy Hydro team

Now in its 10th year, the Energy and Mines Toronto Summit is the annual meeting place for senior mining executives to meet with decarbonization, ESG, and renewables experts to discuss solutions and strategies for meeting net zero targets. This year’s expanded agenda reflected the urgency, priority, and complexity that mining companies are facing in trying to identify concrete steps to get to zero-emissions mining in line with ESG and climate commitments.

A delegation from Easy Hydro took part in the event, introducing the attendees to our innovative energy recovery technology which is particularly suitable for a water-intensive industry such as the extractive one.

New control system: a more robust, reliable and resilient solution for our turbines

Posted on May 16, 2022May 16, 2022 by Easy Hydro team

During the last weeks, our team has been testing a new control system for the operation of our Pumps as Turbines (PATs). As a company build out from many years of research, R&D remains one of our main pillars. In this case, the new control system will offer a more robust solution for our hydropower equipment. Additionally, it will increase the peak efficiency of the system whilst reducing maintenance. It will also enable us to offer a fully integrated cloud monitoring interface, where the operator can visualize and download historical data.
The tests were successfully completed on the laboratory test rig, confirming the technical feasibility of the new control equipment, as well as satisfying all the safety conditions for the right operation of the equipment.
The tested control panel will actually be installed in one of our coming installations soon.

Pumps as turbines for micro and pico hydropower applications

Posted on November 25, 2021November 25, 2021 by Easy Hydro team

Easy Hydro offers complete solutions for small run-off-river projects

Only 44% of the hydropower potential in Europe is currently exploited, with the remaining 56% made up of small sites for which the adoption of a conventional full-blown turbine would not be economically attractive. The novelty of the Easy Hydro approach is to reduce the complexity and cost of the installation in order to turn economically feasible sites down to the “Pico” scale (e.g. less than 5 kW of installed power)

Easy Hydro offers reliable, low-cost and easy to maintain hydropower converters specifically designed for Run-off-river sites. In order to achieve this, the turbine consists of a standard water pump with reversed flow direction instead of a specifically designed conventional turbine. This technology allows for conveniently exploiting untapped resources and generating CO2-free renewable electricity without damaging the environment.

Why is micro hydropower a viable and competitive solution?

Posted on June 11, 2021June 11, 2021 by Easy Hydro team

Renewable energy sources are experiencing impressive growth due to the economy’s decarbonization targets. In order to reach the goals set by the EU, it is very important to foster the application of different solutions to maximize green energy production. Micro hydro potential from water networks stands out as an untapped source of green energy, mostly wasted during the operation of water networks. But how competitive is micro hydropower when compared to other RES? A simple comparison of the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) between a 100kW PV array and different sizes of micro hydropower is presented below:

The annual energy yield of a 33 kW Easy Hydro turbine operating for 4,500 hours per year would be similar to the annual energy yield of a 100 kW PV array. The operational time of the water turbine could be even greater in most circumstances, surpassing the annual energy yield of the 100 kW PV array with just a third of its nominal capacity.
The LCOE obtained for these two systems was: 0.042 €/kWh for the water turbine and 0.05 €/kWh for PV.
When comparing the same nominal power output (100 kW – 4,500 hours of operation) this difference increases, decreasing the LCOE of the 100 kW hydro turbine down to 0.033 €/kWh.

This shows how micro hydropower, despite presenting a slightly greater capital expenditure, presents a greater value from the investment point of view with a more competitive LCOE.

Energy recovery from break pressure and storage water tanks

Posted on May 5, 2021May 5, 2021 by Easy Hydro team

How Easy Hydro turbines recover energy from on/off or ballcock inflow valves

Most large industrial water consumers are required to connect to the mains through a break tank in order to avoid backflows into the water distribution network. The inflow into such tanks is commonly regulated by a pilot or ball-operated inflow valve according to the level in the break tank itself. However, this approach is energy wasteful and highly inefficient since a stream of pressurized water is being brought to atmospheric pressure in the open-air tank before being distributed to the various industrial processes either by gravity or by further pumping.

An alternative method consists of using small-scale and modular hydropower turbines which can be placed in a bypass of a tank inflow valve and thus transform the dissipated pressure into usable electricity that can be consumed locally or exported to the grid. The type of turbine proposed is reliable and widely tested and consists of standard pumps running in reverse as turbines which only cost a fraction of a conventional custom-made hydro turbine.

Easy Hydro selected to take part in the 2021 EIT RawMaterials Accelerator

Posted on April 6, 2021April 6, 2021 by Easy Hydro team

Easy Hydro was one of the 12 startups selected for the Phase 1 of the 2021 EIT RawMaterials Accelerator programme, with a focus on further refining our business model and exploring the opportunities given by the market.

Our team will work under the guidance and coaching of the EIT RawMaterials Consortium over the next three months, with the target of stepping up to Phase 2 later in the year.

New research published: Multi-Country Scale Assessment of Available Micro-Hydropower in operating Water Networks

Posted on March 29, 2021March 29, 2021 by Easy Hydro team

Easy Hydro collaborates in a research to estimate the micro-hydropower potential in water networks across part of the EU

The Easy Hydro team has participated in a research focused on the quantification of the available energy recovery in water networks including drinking water, wastewater and irrigation across several EU countries as part of the REDAWN project. A total energy recovery potential ranging between 480 – 822 GWh was estimated, which would decrease the energy consumption of the water networks between 1.7 and 13%. This would significantly reduce the CO2 emissions associated with the water industry, whilst actively contributing to net energy efficiency gains.

Very interesting results, which will foster the adoption of micro hydropower solutions to counteract the effects of climate change and advance the EU targets regarding decarbonizing the economy.

The final document is available at: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/13/7/899