Massive New Tidal Turbine

Again, we are starting to see the real thing and it is going into and environment which is highly predictable which is wonderful if you are in the power business.

At least this machine looks as is it can stand up to the conditions.  All the usual marine problems will be there but we can assume they have working strategies. At least it is now big enough to make me a believer.

If this works out properly and proves out economically, then we will see thousands been built.  That predictable flow of power is awfully attractive to utilities who are also bucking wind.

What I still find hard to get used to is the speed today with which a large machine can be designed and sent to the cutting shop and fabricated and installed.  Years have become months.  There was barely a sniff of this work a couple of years ago.

Odds are, much larger is also now been worked on.

Massive New Tidal Turbine is World's Largest

Written by Philip Proefrock on 13/08/10

http://ecogeek.org/component/content/article/3261

The world's largest tidal turbine, standing more than 5 stories tall, has beenunveiled in Scotland before being installed in the waters off Orkney later this summer. The Atlantis Resources Corporation's AT-1000 turbine is 22.5 meters (73 feet) tall and has a rotor diameter of 18 meters (59 feet) and weighs 130 tonnes. It will produce 1 MW of power from a water velocity of 2.65 meters (8.7 feet) per second. This is considerably larger than the river turbines other locations have proposed.

"The giant turbine is expected to be environmentally benign due to a low rotation speed whilst in operation and will deliver predictable, sustainable power to the local Orkney grid." The turbine blades will only turn at a rate of 6 to 8 revolutions per minute.

The tidal turbine project is connected to a plan for a data center located in northern Scotland and intended to be powered entirely by tidal power. Tidal power offers a predicatable, reliable energy source. Water is 832 times as dense as air, making it possible to draw similar amounts of energy from a much smaller turbine unit. However, the harsh marine conditions that underwater equipment must face has made development of tidal energy a slower process.

Giant tidal turbine successfully installed on the seabed at the EMEC facility

Tuesday, 24 August 2010

August 24th, Orkney: Atlantis Resources Corporation has successfully deployed its AK1000™ tidal turbine – the world’s largest rotor diameter tidal turbine - on its subsea berth, in 35 meters of water at the European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney, Scotland. The installation follows the turbine unveiling ceremony, held in Invergordon on August 12th  and attended by officials and dignitaries from seven different countries.  After the event, Atlantis, in conjunction with Hallin Marine, mobilised the 22.5 meter tall, 1300 tonne structure on to the DOF vessel, the Skandi Skolten, to be taken to Orkney.  Once there, it took  just seven days to install the gravity base structure, over 1000 tonnes of ballast blocks and finally, the turbine nacelle, complete with its twin set of 18 meter diameter rotors. Drew Blaxland, Chief Technology Officer at Atlantis, commented: “The entire team at Atlantis, together with our onshore and offshore technology and construction partners, is delighted with this installation programme. The large rotor diameter of the turbine and the tight tidal windows we had to operate within presented significant challenges, but these were overcome with meticulous preparation, a ‘can-do’ attitude and the discipline to apply the right resources to what was a major offshore engineering operation.” The AK1000™ will now undergo electrical connection to the power export cable recently laid by EMEC at its facility, located at the Fall of Warness in Orkney. These operations are expected to take up to two weeks, depending on weather conditions. Atlantis has established a dedicated control centre on the Island of Eday from which the AK1000™ turbine can be controlled and monitored. “This is yet another significant step towards proving to stakeholders, project sponsors, regulators and the general public that tidal power is the most exciting  emerging technology in the renewable power generation mix”, said Atlantis CEO, Tim Cornelius. “The installation of tidal turbine systems is a key component in achieving economic viability for tidal power projects.  Atlantis has proven that with adequate planning, appropriate resource and the adoption of technology developed over the past 20 years in the oil and gas industry, commercial scale turbines can be installed safely and cost effectively, even in the most challenging of open ocean locations.” The AK1000™ now starts a commissioning and operation program that will last up to three years and the power generated from it will be dispatched into the local grid in Scotland.