IN A JOINT DEVELOPMENT PROJECT, va-tech-hydro will test the prototye of a Straflo-Matrix turbine – developed by the company from the Hydromatix turbine – at the Energie AG-owned Agonitz power plant on the river Steyr in Austria.

The design of the Hydromatix turbine is based on a modular system, by which a number of smaller, identical turbine/generator units are installed in a common frame in a matrix arrangement. The Straflo-Matrix concept is the progressively advanced development of Hydromatrix. According to the company, the outstanding feature of the system is the design of the generator. The turbine runner also serves as the generator’s rotor, while the stator is fitted around the rotor in dry installation. The system will be installed at Agonitz next autumn, to be followed by a trial run over several weeks.