SPOTLIGHT ON THE NETHERLANDS
FEATURE SPONSOR
EFFICIENT FISH FRIENDLY
WATER TURBINES A British and a Dutch company have joined forces in water power turbines and developed two products, Horizontal Axis Water Turbines, originally developed by Saunders Energy Ltd and the Vertical Axis Water Turbine of Dutch Water2Energy
STATE-OF-THE-ART BUSINESS
SOLUTIONS IN TIDAL ENERGY Tocardo is driven to develop state-of-the-art business solutions that maximise the potential of the tidal energy production worldwide
The company believes that this type of energy stands at the beginning of its development and its full potential, just like wind turbines 10 years ago. Their engineers are determined to deliver the best tidal power solution at the lowest cost of energy. They have followed a thorough step-by-step product development process and have built, installed and tested as many as 15 tidal turbines up until now.
FOCUS
The company focuses on reliability and affordability, so they consider the awarding from the Independent certification body DNV GL for Tocardo’s innovative bi-directional open rotor T2si tidal energy converter with a Statement of Feasibility as a major step.
The five T2 tidal turbines, have already been deployed in the Eastern Scheldt storm surge barrier, in The Netherlands and have shown performance as expected. The impressive results have led the company to announce that five T2s, 300kW rated turbines will be installed in the Minas Passage in Canada’s Bay of Fundy and at EMEC in the UK.
ACCREDITATION
Ofgem (the Gas and Electricity Regulator in the UK) has granted Tocardo the accreditation under the Renewables Obligation (RO) scheme for their 1.4MW EMEC deployment. The company entered the UK tidal scene with the InToTidal project kick-off and successful installation of Tocardo’s TFS (Temporary Foundation System) at EMEC. The successful deployment by Tocardo engineers is the start of the company’s planned 20-year commercial demonstration project in Orkney.
THE NETHERLANDS
In The Netherlands their tidal power plant in the Dutch Eastern Scheldt surge barrier consisting of five tidal turbines has been performing as expected during the first year. The project marked a major step in the development of tidal energy.
CONTINUAL DEVELOPMENT The development in tidal energy continues constantly. Tocardo engineers have already added a new device to our portfolio. The UFS (Universal Foundation System) for five 300kW-rated T2 bi-directional turbines is the perfect solution for offshore locations.
It’s a semi-submersive floating 1.5MW tidal power platform. The company successfully tested the scaled version of the UFS at the MARIN Basin and Ifremer’s offshore tank. The scale model passed the test with flying colours and behaved exactly like they expected and even better than that.
FUTURE CONFIDENCE Tocardo is confident about the future of tidal energy. The Netherlands could be a leader in this green industry and with the support of EWA they should make every effort to achieve this.
Tocardo 48
www.wavetidalenergynetwork.co.uk
Pro-tide fish friendliness test, Amerongen barrier on the river Rhine
ADVANTAGE
The advantage that Variable Pitch Control offers over conventional Darrieus turbines is demonstrated in the 2 diagrams below which show the differences in the driving force for the upstream quadrant of the blade rotation in a quasi-static situation (TSR – Tip Speed Ration = Zero). Left the Driving Force without Pitch Control. Right for controlled pitch.
At realistic Tip Speed Ratios, the pitch control is adapted for the rotational speed. The invention of Water2Energy uses a curve control which is less vulnerable than cam control.
SAFER FOR AQUATIC LIFE The turbines are proven to be safe for aquatic life and eco systems. The open structure of the Darrieus turbine and a lower TSR allows fish to swim through easily and the VAWT has been proven to harm less than 1% of fish swimming through the turbine. This is significantly lower than the 20% damage to fish caused by traditional Kaplan water turbines.
UNIQUE JOINING OF SKILLS AND TECHNOLOGIES The water turbine and energy conversion set up are the design work of Water Power Turbines, Water2Energy and Bakker Sliedrecht. It’s a unique joining of skills and technologies that ensures the most efficient conversion of streaming water into power and thence into electricity through a smart control system, combined with the benefit of being an eco and fish friendly product.
BENEFITS
» High yielding » Fish and Eco System friendly » Powerful energy conversion
Water Power Turbines combines many years of experience in tidal energy of both UK’s Sanders Energy and the Dutch W2E as well as extensive knowhow in the Maritime and Offshore Industry. In cooperation with Pro-tide (an EU Interreg project by UK, France, Belgium and the Netherlands) they tested several of the VAWTs.
Water Power Turbines (WPT) & Water2Energy (W2E)
30 – 50% MORE EFFICIENT The Vertical Axis Water Turbine (VAWT) is 30–50% more efficient than the traditional Darrieus water turbines because of the innovation of variable pitch control. By continuously adjusting the angle of the blades the turbine is always taking full advantage of the force of the water and is rotating smoothly.
SETTING TECHNOLOGY APART The improved level of power yielded by the innovative mechanism is further enhanced by the system for conversion to electricity through gearboxes and generators and then delivered to the grid through a smart system. The unique partnership between Water Power Turbines and Bakker Sliedrecht sets this technology apart from the competition.
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