Quick answer. Start with the head and flow you can actually supply, not the turbine you want. A turbine only behaves like itself at its design point, so your supply - from the mini turbine service unit, a laboratory pump set or a mains supply - decides which machine suits you: a Pelton wheel wants high head and low flow, Francis moderate head and flow, Kaplan and propeller machines low head and high flow. Then confirm, for every turbine in the TTS series, whether it is self-contained or designed to sit on the service unit - the most common ordering mistake in this range.
Twelve items in the TTS series: a mini turbine service unit, five instrumented demonstration units with computer interface covering Pelton, Francis, Kaplan, axial flow propeller and axial flow impulse machines, and six test sets - mini, compact and full size - for Pelton and Francis turbines. Between them the range covers both families a syllabus needs: impulse machines, where a jet strikes buckets at atmospheric pressure, and reaction machines, where the flow is pressurised through the runner.
Start with the first item on the list, not the turbine you want. The mini turbine service unit supplies water, flow measurement and control to the mini turbines; several units in this range are designed to sit on it rather than to work alone. Ask us, for every turbine you are considering, whether it is self-contained or needs the service unit, and whether the service unit you are quoting can supply it. This is the single most common ordering mistake in this range.
A turbine only behaves like itself at its design point. Run it outside the head and flow it was built for and every reading a student takes is off-design - which is a perfectly good lesson once, and useless as a laboratory exercise repeated weekly. So establish the envelope before choosing the machine, in this order.
| Step | What it determines |
|---|---|
| 1. What head and flow can you actually supply? | From the service unit, a laboratory pump set or a mains supply. This is a fixed property of your building and equipment, and everything else follows from it |
| 2. Which machine suits that envelope? | A Pelton wheel wants high head and low flow; Francis suits moderate head and flow; Kaplan and propeller machines suit low head and high flow. Matching machine to envelope is both the purchasing decision and the engineering lesson |
| 3. How is the machine loaded? | No load, no curve. See the next section - this is where these units differ most |
| 4. How are head, flow, speed and torque measured? | Efficiency needs all four at the same instant. Three of them is a different quantity reported under the same name |
A turbine with nothing to work against spins at no load and tells you almost nothing. The characteristic curves - power, torque and efficiency against speed - come from loading the shaft and measuring what it takes. Ask exactly what the brake is, because the three common answers are not equivalent.
A simple band or rope brake is cheap, robust and perfectly adequate for teaching the shape of a curve, but its friction changes as it warms up, so readings drift during a run and repeatability between groups is poor. An eddy current brake or a dynamometer gives a stable, settable load and a direct torque reading, which is what the demonstration units with computer interface are generally built around. A generator with a resistive load bank is the third route and has a teaching advantage of its own: it turns the exercise into a small hydroelectric set, which suits a renewable energy syllabus and connects to electrical measurement.
Whichever it is, ask how torque is measured and read, whether speed is read by tachometer or encoder, and whether the load can be held steady long enough for a student to take a complete set of readings at one operating point.
Runaway speed. If the load is removed while water is still being admitted, a turbine accelerates until windage and friction balance the input, and that runaway speed is substantially above the rated speed. So the load is never removed while the machine is running under flow, and the water is shut off before the brake is released. Ask what the stated maximum safe speed is, whether an overspeed indication or trip exists, and whether the coupling, shaft and runner are guarded for someone standing where a student stands. On the generator-loaded units, note that disconnecting the electrical load has exactly the same effect as releasing a brake.
Cavitation in the reaction machines. Francis and Kaplan runners work on pressurised flow and can cavitate when the pressure at the runner outlet falls too low, which erodes the runner and changes the readings. Ask whether the unit has a draft tube with a measurable pressure, whether the setting of the machine above the tailwater can be varied, and what the recommended operating limits are. For a syllabus that examines cavitation and draft tube function, that adjustability is the feature worth paying for.
Five units are supplied with a computer interface. The benefits are real: simultaneous readings instead of one dial at a time, curves drawn as the load is varied, and runs that can be compared. Four questions decide whether that lasts. What does the software do beyond logging, and can data be exported in a format a spreadsheet reads? What are the licence terms and the cost of an additional seat? Will it install on the operating system your laboratory actually runs - ask for a demonstration on a machine of that specification? And can the experiment be completed by reading gauges and a tachometer if the computer or the software fails? Teaching equipment outlives software generations, so a rig that can only be read through a computer has a shorter working life than its steel suggests. Ask how the transducers are calibrated, by whom and at what interval.
Water, a sump, a drain and a floor that tolerates spillage; space to stand around a rotating machine with instruments; and a pump supply that is usually three phase on the full-size sets, with the starter and overload arrangement confirmed for your supply. Expect noise, particularly from a Pelton jet and from any machine being run towards cavitation.
One rig serves one group, and a full set of readings at several loads takes most of a practical session. A class of thirty in groups of five needs six sessions on one rig, or more rigs. That number, not the specification, usually decides what a department should buy - and it is why the mini and compact sets exist.
Six records are three Pelton units and three Francis units, distinguished only by the words mini, compact or nothing at all. The differences are genuine - size, head and flow range, instrumentation and whether the unit stands alone - but they are not visible in the listing. Ask for the specification sheets side by side and compare on four things: the head and flow envelope, the brake type, the instruments fitted and the footprint.
Two data faults we would rather flag. One product name has "propeller" misspelled as a single-l form, so a search for propeller turbine may not find it; and every product name in this listing is in capital letters, which is a presentation fault on our side rather than anything about the products. The dependency of the mini turbines on the service unit is also not stated anywhere in the listing, which is why it is the first thing said on this page. Quote the code and the full product name together, and ask for the head and flow envelope and the instrument list to be confirmed on the proforma invoice.
Whether the unit is self-contained or requires the service unit, and which service unit; the head and flow envelope and the design point; the runner type, size and material; the brake or dynamometer type and how torque is read; how speed is measured; stated maximum safe speed and any overspeed protection; guarding of coupling, shaft and runner; for reaction machines, the draft tube arrangement and whether the setting is adjustable; what the computer interface logs, licence terms, system requirements and whether manual operation is possible; instrument list with stated accuracies; sump capacity and water requirement; motor voltage, frequency, phases, starter and plug arrangement; mass, footprint and packed dimensions; consumables and spares with prices - nozzles, buckets, runners, seals, bearings, brake parts; and the warranty, commissioning and local service position. For any certification stated here, contact us for the latest copies of the relevant certificates before you tender on it.
Related ranges: the pump test set workshop for pumps, which is where a turbine laboratory usually gets its supply; the hydraulics bench workshop, which lists five bench-scale mini turbines driven from a hydraulics bench; the flow measurement workshop for flumes, pipe losses and flow metering; mechanical engineering trainers for machines and mechanisms; and the test and measurement workshop for instruments. The full set is listed under workshop training equipment. For a quotation, tell us the destination country, the head and flow you can supply, the class size in one session and the syllabus or tender specification you are working to.
Ask for every turbine you are considering. The mini turbine service unit supplies water, flow measurement and control to the mini turbines, and several units in this range are designed to sit on it rather than work alone. That dependency is not stated anywhere in the listing, which makes it the single most common ordering mistake in the TTS series. Ask whether each machine is self-contained or needs the service unit, and whether the service unit you are quoting can actually supply it, and have the answer confirmed on the proforma invoice.
The one that matches the head and flow you can supply, which is a fixed property of your building and equipment. A Pelton wheel, an impulse machine where a jet strikes buckets at atmospheric pressure, wants high head and low flow. A Francis turbine, a reaction machine with pressurised flow through the runner, suits moderate head and flow. Kaplan and propeller machines suit low head and high flow. Run any of them outside its envelope and every reading is off-design - a good lesson once, useless as a weekly exercise. Matching machine to envelope is both the purchase decision and the engineering lesson.
Ask exactly what the brake is, because the three common answers are not equivalent. A band or rope brake is cheap, robust and adequate for teaching the shape of a curve, but its friction changes as it warms, so readings drift during a run and repeatability between groups is poor. An eddy current brake or dynamometer gives a stable, settable load and a direct torque reading, and is what the demonstration units are generally built around. A generator with a resistive load bank turns the exercise into a small hydroelectric set, which suits a renewable energy syllabus. Ask how torque and speed are read.
Runaway speed first. If the load is removed while water is still being admitted, a turbine accelerates until windage and friction balance the input, substantially above its rated speed - so the load is never removed under flow, and the water is shut off before the brake is released. On generator-loaded units, disconnecting the electrical load has the same effect. Ask the stated maximum safe speed, whether an overspeed indication or trip exists, and whether the coupling, shaft and runner are guarded where a student stands. Expect noise too, particularly from a Pelton jet.
Ask before ordering. Francis and Kaplan runners work on pressurised flow and can cavitate when the pressure at the runner outlet falls too low, which erodes the runner and changes the readings. Ask whether the unit has a draft tube with a measurable pressure, whether the setting of the machine above the tailwater can be varied, and what the recommended operating limits are. For a syllabus that examines cavitation and draft tube function, that adjustability is the feature worth paying for, and it should be confirmed in writing on the quotation.
Six records are three Pelton and three Francis units distinguished only by the words mini, compact or nothing at all. The differences are genuine - size, head and flow range, instrumentation and whether the unit stands alone - but they are not visible in the listing, so ask for the specification sheets side by side and compare the head and flow envelope, brake type, instruments fitted and footprint. Then do the class arithmetic: one rig serves one group, a full set of readings takes most of a session, and thirty students in groups of five need six sessions or more rigs.
Ray Export is a manufacturer and exporter of laboratory, scientific and educational equipment based at Plot No. 449, HSIIDC Industrial Area, Saha, Ambala, Haryana 133104, India. Enquiries: [email protected], +91-9817319615.
Written by Palak Mall, Senior Content Writer. Technically reviewed by Arvind Kumar, Lab Equipment Specialist, 12+ years in laboratory and testing instrumentation. Last updated: 17 October 2026.
Specifications - head and flow envelope and design point, runner type and material, brake or dynamometer, speed and torque measurement, maximum safe speed and guarding, draft tube arrangement, data logging and motor supply - are confirmed in writing on the quotation. For calibration records, standards or approvals, contact us for the latest copies of the relevant certificates. No price is quoted on this page. Listing notes: six Pelton and Francis records are distinguished only by the words mini, compact or nothing; one product name misspells propeller with a single l, so a search for propeller turbine may miss it; every product name is in capital letters; the dependency of the mini turbines on the service unit is not stated in the listing; and the page text gives no individual TTS codes.
A seat top unit with 0.37kW diffusive pump and capacity tank for giving water supply to and bolster the smaller than usual turbine showing unit. Weight and stream sensors, interface box for control supply and simple to computerized flag converter. This is to be utilized with singular smaller than normal turbine.
MINI PELTON TURBINE DEMONSTRATION UNIT, Computer Interface.
Stainless steel runner, nozzle and casing with transparent window, speed and torque sensors. Maximum output : 40W from 0.37kW pump. To be used with computer
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A 2.2 kW pump, stainless steel runner, nozzle and casing with transparent window. Storage tank and measuring instruments. Maximum output : 450W
0.37 kW pump, bronz runner, adjustable guide vanes. Non corrosion metal housing and transparent window. Storage tank and measuring instruments. Maximum output : over 25 W.
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