Tidal Current Technologies: Green and Renewable

Nasir Mehmood
College of Shipbuilding Engineering Harbin Engineering University Harbin, China thatsnasir@live.com Zhang Liang zhangliang@hrbeu.edu.cn
AbstractThe dependence on fossil fuels for energy production has come to an alarming stage. Energy demand continues to increase with growing population. Consequently fossil fuel reserves are continuously draining and the world is confronted with their extinction in near future. Burning fossil fuels has also put our environment on the edge of destruction. Energy resource depletion and devastation of environment has compelled researchers to explore renewable and green resources of energy. Tidal current technologies have salient advantages such as cleaner than fossil fuels, intermittent but predictable, security and diversity of supply, and limited social and environmental impacts. Tidal current technologies continue to develop and expand, yet needs time to prove their full potential. This paper presents the background for shift towards renewable energy, especially tidal energy. It outlines classification of ocean energy resources and tidal energy. This paper also documents todays popular tidal current devices and reports on the present status of ocean energy development. Keywords-renewable energy; green environment; current technologies; ocean energy; tidal energy tidal

I.

INTRODUCTION

The primary thirst of the world energy demands has historically been fulfilled by fossil fuels [1]. The energy demand is expected to increase with growing population. International Energy Outlook (IEO) 2010 report shows that (among fossil fuels), liquid fuels are the major energy source as shown in Fig. 1. Prices of liquid fuels are already on a rise as shown in Fig. 2. The liquids share of world marketed energy consumption is projected to fall from 35 percent in 2007 to 30 percent in 2035 due to inflation in liquid fuel prices [2]. Dependence on fossil fuels is escalating with growing population as energy demand is increasing, thus mounting burden on fossil fuel reserves. It is therefore alarming that these reserves will vanish soon in near future [3]. Fossil fuel not only augments the issues like security of supply, it has also caused extreme damage to the environment. Fossil fuels are the main source of anthropogenic emissions of CO2, Fig. 3 shows the CO2 emission by fuel type in the world. These CO2 emissions are responsible for greenhouse effect. As a result of greenhouse effect, global temperature increases since the heat from the sun cannot be radiated back into space. This rise in temperature is in turn responsible for rise of sea level and
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climate change [4,5]. Green environment, security of supply, and immense dependence on fossil fuels are reasons which necessitate the use of alternate energy assets such as renewable energy resources [6,7]. Preferably, an energy source should have minimum environmental effect and should be renewable [8]. As a result, renewable energy has acquired enormous attention in recent years as an alternate to fossil fuel in order to provide environment friendly and sustainable power production in future. Renewable energy broadly includes wind, solar, hydro, biomass and geothermal energies [9]. Tidal energy, a form of hydro energy, is a wide source of consistent energy [10]. Present efforts are focused on tidal current technologies that utilize the kinetic energy of tidal currents [11]. This paper presents the background for shift towards renewable energy, especially tidal energy. As ocean energy technologies are relatively new and applications are developing at very fast pace; concrete boundaries for classification, applications and conversion concepts have yet to be defined. In this paper, the author has presented these issues keeping in view currently available literature and industrial trends. Tidal current turbines are the most widely used devices to extract tidal energy. This paper discusses the components of a tidal current turbine and their support structures. This paper also documents todays popular tidal current devices and reports on the present status of ocean energy development.

Figure 1. World Energy Usage by Fuel Type, (Quardrillian Btu) [1].

Ocean energy can be tapped in multiple forms such as: energy from waves, kinetic energy from tidal and marine currents, potential energy from tides, and energy from salinity and thermal gradient. So we can classify the ocean energy on the basis of resources such as: Tides, currents, waves, salinity gradient and ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) systems. A. Tides Energy from tides is mainly captured during the rise and fall of the sea level. Their rise and fall is due to the interaction of gravitational pull in earth, sun and moon system. Tide is accompanied by vertical water movement (rise and fall) and horizontal water movement (tidal current). Tidal range and tidal current have often been confused in literature in past, difference between tidal range and tidal current is that the tidal range is the difference between the high and low tide (potential energy) whereas the tidal current is the horizontal water movement (kinetic energy). Annapolis Tidal Power Plant, one of three tidal power plants in the world, came online in 1984. It has a capacity of 20 megawatts [12]. B. Currents Currents are generated not only by tides, but also from wind, temperature and salinity differences. The concept of tapping kinetic energy from ocean currents is the same as tidal currents. Marine and tidal current technologies share same principle of operation. Open center turbine utilizes the kinetic energy of currents to produce power [13]. C. Waves The effort to generate electricity from ocean waves has a long history, more than a thousand patents were registered for converting wave energy into power in 1980 [14]. However, the concept is very old. One of the earliest patents was registered by a Frenchman and his son Girard in 1799 [15]. Research on wave energy is underway around the globe e.g. [16-23] and this technology has been tested in many countries around the world [24-26]. Pelamis Wave Power is one of the devices that capture wave energy to generate power [27]. D. Salinity Gradient The research on extracting power from salinity gradient is in early phase. The devices are installed in several locations around the globe, but most are experimental. Due to limitation of space and focus of this article on tidal current technologies, only few methods for salinity gradient applications are mentioned here. There are four popular methods to extract energy from salinity gradient named as: Solar Pond, Pressure-Retarded Osmosis, Reversed Electrodialysis or Reverse Dialysis and Doriano Brogiolis capacitive method. Doriano Brogiolis Capacitive method is relatively new and has so far only been tested on lab scale. Statkraft opened a prototype osmotic power plant in Norway in Nov 2009 [28].
Figure 4. Classification of Ocean Energy.

Figure 2. World Oil Prices, ($ per barrel) [1].

Figure 3. CO2 Emission by Fuel Type in the World, (billion metric tons) [1].

II.

OCEAN ENERGY RESOURCES

Ocean energy is a kind of hydro energy. Ocean energy, an embryonic energy solution, has enormous potential for energy production in future. Ocean energy technologies are relatively new and applications are developing at very fast pace. As a result, concrete boundaries for classification, applications and conversion concepts have yet to be defined. This section is devoted to presenting these issues keeping in view current available literature and industrial trends. The classification of ocean energy is presented in detail in Fig. 4.

E. Oceant Thermal Energy Conversion Ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) technologies make use of a heat engine which uses the temperature difference between cold and hot water. Due to heat from sun, the water is warmer on the top and gets cooler as the depth increases. When the temperature difference between hot and cold water is 20 0C, the conditions for OTEC are most promising. These conditions are found near equator. The efficiency of heat engine increases with increase in difference in temperature. OTEC is still an emerging technology; Sagar-Shakthi is a closed cycle OTEC plant with a capacity of 1MW in India [29]. III. TIDAL ENERGY

B. Cross Flow Turbines Cross flow turbines also known as vertical axis turbines typically have two or three blades riding on a vertical shaft which forms a rotor. Axis of rotation is perpendicular to the incoming water stream. The incoming flow creates a lift on blades which is the driving force of rotor, rotor then rotates the generator for producing power. These turbines can be open or can be placed in a diffuser or shroud. In shrouded turbines, the concept is to increase the velocity of the incoming flow by using a specialized shape. C. Oscillating Hydrofoil /Reciprocating Devices Instead of using the rotational drive of turbine, it is also possible to capture tidal energy by using an oscillating hydrofoil. These devices make use of the lift/drag forces of the wing like hydroplane to move up and down. Oscillating motion is controlled by changing the angle of attack relative to incoming water. IV. TIDAL CURRENT TURBINE

Detailed classification of tidal energy and tidal current technologies/devices is shown in Fig. 5, which includes tidal current devices, tidal barrage and tidal fence. Since the main focus of this article is tidal current technologies so these technologies/devices are presented in detail. Tidal current technologies utilize devices that convert the kinetic energy of current to electric power. Tidal current devices are analogous to wind energy devices [30]. However differences exist since water is 832 times denser than air whereas flow speed is slower than air [31]. Tidal current devices function under water, they are subjected to higher structural loads than wind turbines. Tidal current turbines must survive the extreme structural loads, and have capability to generate power during both flood and ebb tides. A. Axial Flow Turbines Axial flow turbines, also known as horizontal axis turbines, typically have two or three blades riding on a rotor which is oriented in the direction of flow. Axis of rotation is parallel to the incoming water stream. The lift type blades are used to rotate the generator for producing power. These turbines can be open or can be placed in a diffuser or shroud. In shrouded turbines, the concept is to accelerate the velocity of incoming flow by using a specialized shape.

Typical tidal current turbine has following components: x Tidal turbines can have two or more blades mounted on a hub, together known as rotor. The fluid flow over blades creates a lift or drag and thus forces the rotor to rotate. x Rotor is connected to a power shaft which transmits the torque. x Power shaft is connected to a gearbox which is used to get the required RPM from power shaft. x Power is then transmitted to a generator through gearbox. The rotating power shaft from rotor at desired speed causes the generator to produce power. x The power is then transmitted to land with the help of underwater cables. x All the parts are enclosed in a watertight capsule called nacelle, like in wind turbine technology. Nacelle is then mounted on support structure which bears the loads in harsh marine environment. Tidal current technologies extract the kinetic energy from ocean currents. The energy flux confined in an ocean fluid stream is directly proportional to density, cross-sectional area and cube of velocity of the fluid. Mathematically: (1) Energy Flux AV3 This energy is converted to power by tidal current turbines. The power of tidal current turbine can be calculated from following expression, similar to wind turbine [32]. (2) P = 0.5 Cp AV3 where Cp is percentage of power that can be extracted from a current, also called coefficient of performance, is the fluid density, A is swept area of the turbine and V is fluid stream velocity. V. SUPPORT STRUCTURES FOR TIDAL CURRENT DEVICES

Figure 5. Classification of Tidal Energy.

Choosing a suitable support structure depends on the size of turbine, water depth and seabed soil conditions. Gravity, piled or floating support structures are most commonly used for tidal current turbines shown in Fig. 6. In gravity support

of 1 MW lunar generation unit was successfully completed in 2008. B. Cross Flow Turbines 1) Open turbines a) EnCurrent turbine: EnCurrent turbine (Fig. 10) is developed by New Energy Corporation Inc based in Canada. The devices are cross flow (vertical axis), based on the design of Darrieus windmill. New Energy has successfully developed 5, 10 and 25 kW units, and work is underway on 125 and 250 kW units [37]. The devices are designed for rivers, manmade cannals and tidal currents. b) Enermar (Kobold Turbine): Kobold turbine (Fig. 11) is developed by Ponte di Archimede International S.P.A. based in Italy. Kobold turbine is a cross flow (vertical axis) turbine, with 5 meter blade height and diameter of 6 meters. Turbine rotation is independent of the direction of incoming current. The device is self-starting and has a high starting torque [38]. The blade pitch is controlled for enhanced rotor performance. 2) Shrouded Turbine Davis Hydro Turbine (Fig. 12) is developed by Blue Energy based in Canada. The device is a cross flow shrouded (vertical axis) turbine, consists of four fixed hydrofoil blades with 125 kW output. The blades are connected to a shaft that drives a variable speed generator. The turbine can operate through entire tidal range, cut-in speed is 1 m/s [39]. The system can be combined in arrays of up to 4 units.

Figure 6. Different kinds of support structures [33].

structure, large steel or concrete block is attached to the turbine and placed on sea bed which is very stable. In piled support structures one or two, steel or concrete pillars are used for holding the turbine. In floating support structures, turbine is secured at the bottom floating platform and also secured to seabed by using wires/chains. VI. POPULAR TIDAL CURRENT DEVICES

A. Axial Flow Turbines 1) Open turbines a) Evopod tidal turbine: Oceanflow Energy is extensively involved with axial flow (horizontal axis) turbine technologies. Oceanflow Energy is currently involved with 35kW Evopod [34]. This version is based on a scaled up version of the unit which was successfully tested in Strangford Narrows. A 55kW version of the same unit can be developed for sites with faster flow. The 55 kW version will be grid connected for heating or electricity. Oceanflow Energy is also involved with a twin-turbine version of its Evopod. The 1/40th scale model was tested in Newcastle University. The unit would be fitted with twin 1.2MW gennerators at full scale. Each generator would be coupled to a three-bladed turbine of 16m diameter. The unit would be capable of generating 2.4MW for flow speeds of 3.2m/s and above. The turbine is shown in Fig 7. b) Deltastream turbine: DeltaStream Turbine (Fig. 8) is developed by Tidal Energy Ltd based in Cardiff, Wales, UK. The company is funded by ECO2 and Carbon Connections [35]. The 1.2MW device developed by Tidal Energy Ltd consists of three, three-bladed axial flow (horizontal axis) turbines. The diameter of each turbine is 15 m. The device is mounted on a triangular frame and has low center of gravity for stability. 2) Shrouded turbine Rotech Tidal Turbine (RTT)shown in Fig. 9, is developed by Lunar Energy Ltd based in UK. It is a 1 MW axial flow shrouded (horizontal axis) bi-directional turbine enclosed in a symmetrical venturi duct. Turbine diameter is 15 m, with duct length of 19.2 meters. RTT captures the energy in ocean currents and converts this energy to electricity by venturi effect. RTT has a gravity foundation which makes it rapidly deployable with almost no seabed preparation at depths greater than 40 meters [36]. RTT also has a size advantage since it is 5 times in size compared to other turbines units using pile foundations. The dry testing

Figure 7. Evopod Tidal Turbine [34].

Figure 8. DeltaStream Turbine [35].

Figure 9. Rotech Tidal Turbine [36].

Figure 10. EnCurrent Turbine [37].

Figure 11. Kobold Turbine [38].

Figure 14. Ocean energy research and development in different countries of the world [41].

Figure 12. Davis Hydro Turbine [39]

C. Oscilating hydrofoils Stingray (Fig. 13) is developed by The Engineering Business Ltd based in United Kingdom. The technology is based on converting kinetic energy from tides to hydraulic power. The device consists of a hydroplane with an angle of attack, designed to oscillate which forces hydraulic cylinders to extract and retract. These motions generate high pressure on oil, used to drive a generator to produce power. Stingray devices have a gravity based foundation and normally installed in depths to 100 meters [40]. The Engineering Business Ltd successfully deployed its first 150 kW prototype device in September 2002 in UK. The Engineering Business Ltd is currently working on its 3 MW precommercial unit. VII. PRESENT STATUS OF OCEAN ENERGY DEVELOPMENT IEA-OES presented a detailed evaluation of the ocean energy conversion technologies in the world in Ocean Energy: Global Technology Development Status [41]. IEAOES reports on the participation of countries in developing ocean energy conversion systems. Fig. 14 shows that UK is leading the way; followed by USA, Canada and Norway respectively. Fig. 15 presents the maturity of technology in respective oceans energy resources. Tidal current technologies are being explored extensively on two levels i.e tidal stream and tidal barrage. Many universities and organizations are contributing to the research for green energy. The research team at Harbin Engineering University is engaged in round the clock efforts to ensure green future to save environment.

Figure 15. Technology maturity of various ocean energy conversion devices [41].

CONCLUSION This paper has presented the need and potential of tidal current technologies. Depleting fossil fuel resources, their rising cost and adverse environmental effects leave the world with one choice that is to find alternate energy resources. These alternate energy resources should ideally be renewable with minimal environmental effects. Tidal current technologies are answer to mankind worst fears of energy resources depletion and devastating destruction of environment. This paper discusses the classification of ocean and tidal energy. The paper has also presented popular tidal current technologies in use today. The author has also reported on the present status of ocean energy technology development. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This research is financially supported by National Special foundation for Ocean commonweal (grants 200805040) and for Ocean Renewable Energy (grants GHME2010GC02, ZJME2010GC01, ZJME2010CY01), and 111 Project foundation from State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs of China and Ministry of Education of China (grants B07019). REFERENCES
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