FOUNDING PARTNER PROFILE
Based in Oxfordshire, HR Wallingford has state-of-the-art facilities for numerical and physical modelling, along with a team of over 200 expert staff who have an extensive track record of undertaking renewable energy work in the UK, Europe and globally.
SERVICES
HR Wallingford’s portfolio of services to the renewable energy industry includes support of site selection through energy resource modelling and understanding of local environmental conditions (metocean) assessment through numerical and physical modelling. This includes data collection of the environmental effects of proposed schemes, for example, on tidal flows, water levels, sedimentation, underwater noise, fish as well as scheme optimisation for towing installation and maintenance operations.
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
Commercial services to the tidal energy and barrage industry are backed up by extensive investment in research and development. HR Wallingford has worked with a wide range of government agencies and departments in supporting the development of this sector over the last 20 years. As well as headquarters in the UK, a network of offices around the world are well placed to support the renewable energy industry across the globe.
VITAL TOOLS FOR THE TIDAL ENERGY INDUSTRY
Advancing tidal resource modelling
HR Wallingford developed SMARTtide (Simulated Marine Array Resource Testing), a unique suite of two dimensional (2D) hydrodynamic models of the UK’s continental shelf, including the North West European coastline. The model was commissioned and funded by the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) with the purpose of creating a valuable tool in site selection, layout design and development, as it assesses the interactions between tidal energy systems (tidal stream and tidal range) at high resolution.
Samantha Dawson, Sector Lead for Renewables commented “In 2015 SMARTtide was awarded ‘Most Promising New Tool to Support Developers and OEMs’ at the International Tidal Energy Awards and has been used successfully to provide a review of energy yield calculations for tidal lagoon developments around the UK. This is an exciting time for tidal energy and we look forward to seeing the progression of tidal arrays and lagoons in the water.”
UNDERPINNING CONSENT WITH SOUND VALIDATED MODELLING
HR Wallingford has also developed a hydro-acoustic model for mitigation and ecological response (HAMMER toolkit), for use in marine environmental impact assessments. It is compliant with the most recent guidance on underwater sound measurement and modelling and has been peer reviewed, validated and benchmarked against collected data and other models. The HAMMER toolkit combines UnaCorda, a predictive acoustic propagation model (incorporating seabed bathymetry, sediment type, hydrodynamics, salinity and temperature gradients) developed in conjunction with Loughborough University, with HR Wallingford’s unique ecological response models for individual marine species (HydroBoids).
Using individual/agent based modelling (I/ABM) techniques, developed and validated with the University of Exeter, the HAMMER toolkit is able to predict the response of a target species to underwater sound during the initial stages of a project. This early consideration allows appropriate management and mitigation measures to be identified, and provides clients with a compliant and robust plan in order to minimise and where possible, remove these impacts.
LAGOON POWER
HR Wallingford has assessed, through modelling, the energy yield potential for more than thirty tidal lagoons. Assessment has involved working with developers, regulators, potential investors, and turbine manufacturers, bringing the skills of computational modelling and civil engineering to develop costs,
power generation, environmental impacts (hydrodynamics, sedimentation, water quality, fish through turbines, etc.), and feasibility studies for different projects. Specific projects have included Tidal Lagoon Power (Swansea), DECC 2009 Tidal barrage and lagoon studies, as well as a considerable number of confidential projects.
FAST FLOW FACILITY
The Fast Flow Facility is one of the world’s largest marine test facilities. This unique, dual channel flume delivers a world- leading capability in wave, fast tidal current and sediment modelling.
Understanding the complex way waves,
currents and sediments interact is vital to the successful delivery of projects in the marine environment. The Fast Flow Facility allows the company’s scientists and engineers to examine these interactions at a larger scale, and in more detail, than has previously been possible, helping to more effectively optimise designs for clients, and minimising the water- based risks for these projects.
TRAINING UP THE NEXT GENERATION
HR Wallingford together with the Universities of Edinburgh, Strathclyde and Exeter, and the Scottish Association for Marine Science form a partnership to deliver the EPSRC/Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) funded Industrial Doctorate Centre in Offshore Renewable Energy (IDCORE). The HR Wallingford IDCORE Summer School programme provides both IDCORE students and professionals with an industrial and commercial perspective regarding the issues involved in the development of offshore renewables. The innovative programme aids to develop and strengthen the supply chain by providing the next generation of post docorate engineers and scientists with a hands-on, industry-focused course supported by cutting edge research and technology.
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www.wavetidalenergynetwork.co.uk PAGE 27
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