Located in the municipality of Alhama de Murcia, Alhama impulsion overcomes the Sierra de la Muela by pumping to a height of 116 m. It is the origin of Stretch III (Alhama-Lorca), the continuation of the main canal on the right bank pumping the necessary flow, according to demand, to the irrigation zones in the Guadalentín Valley and the province of Almería.
Since pumping in the impulsion is fixed, and given that the flow that arrives is variable, the station has been designed so that excess water can be stored in a regulation deposit to be later pumped to the aspiration chamber in the event of necessity and elevated to the canal. Two groups of pumps are installed with a unitary flow of 850 l/s.
Alhama impulsion detail
Alhama impulsion consists of five main groups of motor-pumps with a flow of 1750 l/s. and two groups of assistant motor-pumps with a flow of 500 l/s, giving a total flow of 8750 l/s.
Each group of main motor-pumps consists of an, three-phase asynchronous motor of 2750 kW fed with a tension of 10000 volts and having a maximum velocity of 750 r.p.m. coupled to a centrifugal, radial pump with a unitary flow of 1750 l/s. The auxiliary motor-pump group consists of a three-phase asynchronous motor, of 850 kW supplied with 10000 volts and with a turning speed of 1450 r.p.m. coupled to centrifugal pump with a flow of 560 l/s.
Pumps at Alhama impulsion
The three main groups connect to a common metallic collector, of initial diameter 900 mm increasing to 1800 mm at the connection with the concrete pipe and a length of 580 m. The other pumps, four main groups (two main and two assistant) are connected to additional collector of the same characteristics as that previously described.
