HERI – Research Actions Database

Welcome to the HERI Research Actions Database. The database provides details of past and present research actions related to all aspects of hydropower. The database has been structured following the categorisation developed for the HYDROPOWER EUROPE research and innovation agenda, and Strategic Industry Roadmap.

The database contents have been collated from a variety of organisations working on research actions across all sectors of the hydropower industry. The information has been share freely and is available as open access. You can search the database or add details of new initiatives to the database via the buttons below.

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Demonstration of Sustainable Hydropower Refurbishment

Description

The main objective of ReHydro is to demonstrate how European hydropower can be refurbished and modernized to be fit for a leading role in the future power system respecting sustainability requirements and societal needs in a climate change context. A suite of monitoring and digital tools (performance, cavitation, machine health) implemented at demonstration sites will improve hydropower efficiency. Innovative concepts like retrofitting with pumped hydro and hybridization will make hydropower fit for future markets. ReHydro will demonstrate how biodiversity can be improved with new fish-friendly turbines, re-establishment of environmental flows, and monitored using new tools such as eDNA. Smarter use of water resources will also be implemented so that more services can be delivered to the power markets, while multi-purpose use of the water resources for navigation and recreation can be expanded and the ability to mitigate flooding and droughts is strengthened. The results from ReHydro will achieve all the expected outcomes specified in the call. The solutions will give European hydropower industries commercial advantages to utilise the global need for hydropower expansion. It is expected that ReHydro's exploitable results will create 700–1150 new jobs in the manufacturing industry, increasing the global market by 275 mill euros. ReHydro will introduce a new paradigm to boost European leadership and competitiveness in the hydropower industry and provide new sustainable solutions that are replicable at European and global levels.

Organisations

  • International Hydropower Association - Partner
  • EDF Hydro - EDF R&D - Partner
  • École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne - EPFL - Partner
  • vgbe energy e.V. - Partner

Funding

  • National funding
  • European funding

Specific Funding Sources:
N/A

Level of Action:

European

Applications

Small-hydro, Large-hydro, Run-of-the-River, Storage Hydropower, Pumped Storage

Keywords

Awareness, Communication, Dams, Digitalization, Ecology, Economics, Flexibility, Habitat modelling, Hydraulics, Hydropeaking, Maintenance, Modeling / Simulation, Policy, Pumps, River management, River morphology, Sediments, Sustainability, Turbines

Areas of Research

Research and Innovation Agenda

  • Developing and optimising hydraulic design and control strategies for pump turbines and waterway system in existing PSH
  • Enhancing flexibility of run-of-river power plants and using existing run-of-river cascades for energy storage
  • Developing design algorithm and innovative construction technologies for new PSH parallel to existing storage powerplants by using existing upper and lower reservoirs
  • Overall assessment models of run-of-river, storage and pumped storage power plants regarding market and socio-economic issues
  • Further improving the efficiency and operation range of variable speed pump turbines
  • Cost reduction of variable speed turbines and ternary set systems
  • New simulation tools (also for power system level modelling) for new harsher operation conditions in conjunction with the material properties of the machine sets
  • Development and application of a business model for flexibility to decarbonise the energy sector
  • Enhancing computer models to optimise the control system structures, including in run-of-river power plants
  • Developing novel environmental scanning methods and tools
  • Develop new online monitoring and diagnostic systems with intelligent sensors that predict the optimal maintenance interval based on the method of operation
  • Better understanding of the hydro-abrasion process and wear of hydraulic structures and its mechanical equipment to advance mechanistic abrasion models
  • Developing innovative and sustainable sedimentation management methods and solutions enabling sediment continuity at dams and weirs
  • Measures and approaches to protect biodiversity
  • Development and testing of solutions for improved biodiversity and fish protection
  • Evaluate, study and propose improvement of river ecology and fish habitat
  • Turbine design
  • Assessment of the general impact and contribution of hydropower to the biodiversity
  • Regional potential of reservoirs mitigating the consequences of floods and long dry periods and their combination with hydropower to mitigate the consequences of volatile renewable energy production

Strategic Industry Roadmap

  • Increase Awareness of European Citizens of the Importance of Hydropower Development
  • Protection of Biodiversity in Hydropower Projects by Innovative Compensation Measures
  • Provide Hydropower with Environmental Innovations thanks to Large Investments, such as Investment in Flexibility, to comply with the European Green Deal
  • Increase Resilience by Mitigating the Impact of Ageing and Maintaining the High Safety Level of Power Plants
  • Develop Technical, Social and Environmental Innovations for Supporting the European Green Deal
  • New Approaches to Identify, Assess and Manage Climate-Related Risks so that Operators and Developers are Prepared for the Impacts and Opportunities that may Arise from Climate Change

Last Updated: 13/11/2024 07:59

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ReHydro

Call Number

HORIZON-CL5-2023-D3-02-09

Project Number

101147310

Start Date
2024
End Date
2028

Budget Range
> €10,000,000

Project website

 

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Funded by
the European Union