Power plant products |
Ultra-portable drone for WTG blade inspections
Sulzer & Schmid Laboratories AG, a Swiss company that is pioneering UAV technology for wind blade inspections, has launched its new 3DX ‘SmartPilot‘ drone solution, specifically developed to enable inspections in locations where site access or complex logistical barriers require a quick, highly portable blade inspection solution. SmartPilot can deliver semi-autonomous inspections using portable equipment that can be brought onsite easily and deployed immediately. “The compact design of 3DX SmartPilot makes it
particularly well-suited for inspections of wind farms operating in very remote locations but also for ad-hoc inspections … it is a plug- and-play solution [that is] highly flexible and will overcome most logistical and customs restriction” commented Tom Sulzer, Sulzer Schmid co-founder and CEO.
The drone is powered by Sulzer Schmid’s proprietary software. It is designed to deliver semi-autonomous inspections carried out by a drone pilot with the assistance of the 3DX software to ensure optimal flight paths.
The inspection data is uploaded, processed, and analysed in the ‘3DX Blade Platform’, an advanced data management system for blade inspections.
Heat-shrinkable cable joints
Nexans has released JTS, a new heat-shrinkable cable joint with triple layer tube. The triple layer tube means that installers need to heat only one tube, instead of three, for 12 to 24 kV applications, and two tubes instead of three for 36 to 42 kV applications. The effect is to simplify and shorten the installation process and minimise the risk of joint failure.
The JTS product is said to bring a range of innovative features and operational benefits, such as a short and slim design, advanced screen connection, armour continuity, and heavy wall tubing for high mechanical strength and impact resistance. It also provides stabilised UV protection
and protection against water penetration and chemical aggression.
It is compatible with single or three-core cables, with copper or aluminum screens. Its standard design was adapted for all types and
brands of mechanical connectors. Nexans has been investing for some time in the the R&D necessary to improving its heat-shrinkable technology. Jo de Buyst, Global Segment Manager for Joints at Nexans, commented: “Nexans has a strong track record in creating next generation power accessories … we continue to set industrial standards and European norms for power accessories. The JTS heat-shrinkable joint range is the latest example of this.” Nexans has several training centres in France, Belgium and the UK, to provide competency certified training for joints, separable connectors, and terminations, from 1 kV to 72.5 kV.
Trial of long–duration H2 energy storage
GHD has secured funding from the UK’s Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) for a project aiming to demonstrate the use of an innovative hydrogen storage system. The project is in partnership with LAVO Hydrogen Storage Technology Pty Ltd, with the provision of a demonstrator location supported by the University of Chester, Thornton Science Park, in the UK.
Funding has been provided through Stream 2 of BEIS’s Longer Duration Energy Storage Demonstration competition. The programme
forms part of the government’s 10 Point Plan for a ‘green industrial revolution’, from which £100m has been set aside to address ‘energy storage and flexibility innovation challenges’ within the £1bn Net Zero Innovation Portfolio. The programme will support the demonstration of innovative longer duration energy storage technologies that provide grid flexibility, with commercialisation as the ultimate aim. The project aims to demonstrate an energy storage system for hydrogen derived from grid electricity using what is described as LAVO’s innovative patented metal hydride technology, which saw its initial demonstration in Australia. This project will apply the technology at a larger scale to demonstrate how it can support energy storage for the UK electricity network by providing low cost, and low carbon, hydrogen to local users in the North West of England. The key characteristics of the project include demonstration of the economics of creating hydrogen in times of excess renewables
42 | March 2022|
www.modernpowersystems.com
electricity generation, and storing in long-duration energy storage medium (metal hydrides); a modular solution demonstrating scalability, providing benefits across multiple elements of an integrated energy system; a simple, stackable hydrogen energy storage device, able to supply low or zero carbon hydrogen to a wide range of configurations and applications; and cost- effective, safe and efficient low-pressure storage of hydrogen.
The project is located at the University of Chester in the North West of England, close by a number of existing and potential future hydrogen users, and linking with the North West Hydrogen Alliance and the HyNet industrial decarbonisation cluster.
Energy & Climate Change minister Greg Hands commented: “Driving forward energy storage technologies … will allow us to extract the full benefit from our home-grown renewable energy sources, drive down costs and end our reliance on volatile and expensive fossil fuels.”
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