Controlling doors that are part of a system used to manage the flow of fish around a hydroelectric generation dam.

Portland General Electric, located in Portland, Oregon, is a power utility provider for North-West Oregon. They operate ten wholly-owned and four jointly-owned hydroelectric, natural gas, coal and wind power plants.

Portland General Electric (PGE) controlled their fish diverter doors with hydraulic actuators but needed to replace these units in an effort to reduce environmental hazards at their hydroelectric generation dam. The fish diverter doors are part of a system which allows fish in the river on one side of the dam to move through the facility and get to the river on the other side of the dam. Because the fish and water that run through this system are deposited back into the river, PGE needed to eliminate the risk of hydraulic fluid leaking into the system. They required a solution free of toxic fluids that also removed the need for a continuously running power unit.

Portland General Electric (PGE) purchased two Exlar Tritex II actuators to control their fish diverter doors. This all-electric actuator solution eliminated the risk of river pollution due to leaking hydraulic fluid. Exlar’s Tritex II actuator also removed the need for a continuously running hydraulic power unit. Through the use of Exlar’s expert software, PGE gained dynamic control of the speed and frequency of the fish diverter doors. Exlar provided the perfect solution for this application because they offered the right set of features and support the customer needed. PGE was not familiar with servo type motion but found the Tritex II Expert software easy to use. The simplicity of this software allowed PGE to utilise all of the features of the Tritex II actuators without the extensive training typically required to use these types of products. After experiencing the capabilities and simplicity of this product, PGE decided to use Exlar’s Tritex II actuator for a second project.

• Eliminated risk of river pollution from hydraulic fluid
• Reduced energy usage
• Gained more control over the diverter doors