Upgrading of a Norwegian pressurized sand trap combined with an open air surge tank

In 1988 the Tonstad power plant (Norway) was upgraded from 640 to 960 MW. The headrace system to the reservoirs was not upgraded except for an additional pressure shaft, surge tank and an additional sand trap. Even with about 50 % higher discharge in the main tunnel, the sand traps worked adequately after the commissioning. However, in recent years, higher flexibility of demand is challenging the power plant and has resulted in events with flushing of sediments to the turbines. Higher flexibility demands also challenge the current surge tank design. During one event, free surface flow is believed to have occurred in the sand trap since severe damage to two of the turbines was observed. This contribution presents the background of the power system situation at the Tonstad power plant and the current flexibility demands of the power market and its challenges for the hydraulic system, as well as the proposals to solve the sand trap issues and the oscillation demands for the surge tank. The paper discusses the possibility of utilizing a model predictive controller with real-time flow simulations to solve the challenges without structural reconstruction, and possible options should structural reconstruction be necessary. The contribution compares analysed options for improving the efficiency of sand traps. Finally, an outlook is offered to future demands for flexibility in hydropower plants with increasing supply of renewable power sources.