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Marine Renewable EnergyDevicesTo date there are only a few technologies that have progressed as far as the full-scale deployment and testing. However, there are several companies with operations in the UK presently actively involved in the construction of such devices, supported in their endeavours by numerous financial channels including the UK Government and private investors. A number of technologies developed in UK waters have been outlined below. Follow this link if you would like to see a summary of how each device works.
Aquamarine Power The first full-scale 315kW Oyster was officially launched by Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney in November 2009, when it began producing power to the National Grid for the first time.
Oyster is a simple mechanical hinged flap connected to the seabed at around 10m depth. Each passing wave moves the flap, driving hydraulic pistons to deliver high pressure water via a pipeline to an onshore electrical turbine. Multiple Oyster devices are designed to be deployed in utility-scale wave farms typically of 100MW or more. Aquamarine Power is building a programme of joint venture wave farm site development activities with major utility partners, such as Scottish & Southern Energy, to support the growth of Oyster and uses its proprietary computer modelling system to identify and develop the best sites for wave energy production around the globe. For further information please visit the Aquamarine Power website www.aquamarinepower.com To see videos of Oyster in operation please visit www.youtube.com/aquamarinepowerltd
AquaEnergy Group
AquaBuOY combines elements of two prior, successfully ocean-tested, technologies – the IPS Buoy and the Swedish Hose-pump. It builds upon the proven advantages of both systems, while advancing the state-of-the-art in design efficiency, functionality and reliability.
Click here to see an animation showing how the PowerBuOY works (requires Flash plug-in) For further information please visit the AquaEnergy Website: http://aquaenergygroup.com or email: aqua@aeg-ltd.com
Atlantis Resources Corporation
The AR series turbines are commercial scale Horizontal Axis Turbines designed for open ocean deployment in the harshest environments on the planet. AR turbines feature a single rotor set with highly efficient fixed pitch blades. The AR turbine is rotated as required with each tidal exchange. This is done in the slack period between tides and fixed in place for the optimal heading for the next tide. AR turbines are rated at 1MW @ 2.65m/s of water flow velocity. The AR-1000, the first of the AR series, was successfully deployed and commissioned at the EMEC facility during the summer of 2011. For further information on Atlantis please visit the Atlantis website.
Marine Current Turbines (MCT)
An experimental 300kW test system, called "Seaflow" (as shown above) was successfully installed off Lynmouth in Devon in May 2003 and continues to deliver vital data. This is the world's first successful offshore tidal turbine and is the first step in developing this entirely new clean method of power generation. Seaflow is unique among "wet renewable" technologies in having met its design specification in full (it has actually exceeded its rated power of 300kW and consistently exceeded its rotor design efficiency) as well as having remained operable in open sea exposed conditions for almost three years.
The Seagen twin rotor turbines, rated at approximately 1MW, incorporate a patented system for raising the rotors and power train above the surface of the sea for ease of maintenance (as illustrated above right). It is hoped that the first commercial demonstration array as illustrated top right will be installed by the end of 2008. MCT is also exploring opportunities for demonstration projects in other parts of the world including North America and S E Asia in parallel with the first UK commercial array. MCT also has plans for more advanced "Second Generation" technology which can be scaled to higher (or lower) power levels than Seagen and applied in a greater range of flow conditions. MCT is dedicated solely to the development of commercially viable marine current turbines and has a number of commercial strategic partners and shareholders, including EDF Energy, Guernsey Electricity, BankInvest, Seacore and Bendalls Engineering. The Seaflow project was financially supported by the UK DTI (Department of Trade and Industry) and the European Commission and Seagen is also being supported by the DTI. For more information go to: www.marineturbines.com
Ocean Power Technologies
The primary product of OPT for the utility industry is the PowerBuoy, which is a patented, scaleable energy conversion system engineered to obtain wholesale amounts of electrical power from wave energy. Ocean trials were conducted off the coast of New Jersey from 1997 onwards to demonstrate the concept of a floating buoy capturing energy and then converting it into electricity. The technology is on a growth curve towards full-scale commercial application, the first example of which is the 50kW PowerBuoy recently installed in Hawaii, in a scheme to be scaled up to 1MW.
For further information please visit the OPT Website: www.oceanpowertechnologies.com or email: mrdraper@oceanpowertech.com
OpenHydro Group
The Open-Centre Turbine is designed to be deployed directly on the seabed, located at sufficient depth to present no hazard to navigation. Installations are silent and invisible from the surface. Farms of Open-Centre Turbines will provide a significant supply of clean, predictable, renewable energy.
During 2006, OpenHydro became the first company to install a tidal turbine at the EMEC facility in Orkney, Scotland, UK. The turbine in Orkney is installed within a dedicated, twin-piled test structure enabling the unit to be raised and lowered. In 2007 agreements with Alderney Renewable Energy Ltd and Nova Scotia Power Inc for tidal farm deployments were announced. In May 2008 the Open-Centre Turbine became the first tidal device to export power onto the UK grid.
Pelamis, Pelamis Wave Power (PWP) PWP was established at the beginning of 1998 by Dr Richard Yemm to develop the Pelamis Wave Energy Converter. This device is known as a 'point absorber' and can effectively focus energy from a wide area by interacting with an area of waves much larger than its physical size. As it is flexibly moored it swings head-on to the incoming waves and can therefore span successive wave crests. Video footage of Pelamis in action (2.7 MB © OPD) For more information go to: www.pelamiswave.com
Sperboy™
With a minimum number of moving parts, which are above the surface of the sea, maintenance requirements are minimised and energy is produced at a very competitive rate. Current research is looking to extend the life of the vessel to some 50 years and includes several initiatives to deliver higher levels of power. Consequently the device has considerable potential for further reducing the cost of delivered power. The absence of large quantities of invasive products such as oils and lubricants coupled with minimal impact on seabed ecosystems makes the device environmentally friendly. SPERBOY™ has completed the Marine Energy Challenge, where independent consultants investigated its performance in terms of power capture as well as carrying out a detailed study of both capital and maintenance costings in arriving at their prediction for the cost of delivered power. The device is now ready to exploit the very successful and encouraging results of this 'Challenge' and will now proceed to the deployment of full-scale prototypes.
For further information see www.sperboy.com
Stingray and the EB Frond, The Engineering Business (EB)
Stingray uses the flow of the tidal stream over a hydroplane to create an oscillating motion that operates hydraulic cylinders to drive a motor that, in turn, drives an electrical generator. This device is a seabed mounted machine, to be situated typically in any water depth up to 100m.
The EB Frond, on the other hand, is a seabed mounted nearshore wave energy device designed for installation in 20-35 metres of water. A paddle-like collector on the end of a long lever is placed close to the sea surface and driven by the waves to produce hydraulic power similar to that of the Stingray. In September 2002 EB tested the Stingray generator offshore in the Yell Sound off the Shetland Islands in the Highlands. The 180 tonne, 150 kW machine was installed and removed safely and data collected for analysis to aid the further development of both the demonstrator and commercial units. The 3rd phase of the development programme, a reinstallation of the demonstrator in the Yell Sound, has also been completed in 2003 and included a more flexible control system to allow the performance of the generator to be accurately controlled and recorded over a longer period. The EB Frond is not at such an advanced stage of development but the phase 1 physical testing has been undertaken at scales of 1/33rd and 1/25th in the Lancaster University test tank, the academic partners in the project. Phase 2 is proposed for development in which a larger model will be deployed in more varied and extreme wave conditions. EB state that if this is successful it should lead to the design, build and installation of a full-scale demonstrator in a real near-shore wave environment, possibly as early as this year. Future plans for the Stingray include a 5MW pre-commercial Stingray farm to be connected to a local power distribution system in order to test an innovative system for smoothing the flow of electricity from the oscillating devices. For more information go to: www.engb.com
TidEL, SMD Hydrovision
At present SMD Hydrovision is in the process of testing a 10th scale device in a specially developed tidal facility at NaREC. The results of this testing will feed into the development of a full-scale prototype with 15 meter diameter fixed pitched blades driving the turbine powertrains that are housed within a pod. For more information go to: www.smdhydrovision.com/products
Wave Dragon
Wave Dragon consists of three main elements:
When waves have been channelled by the reflectors, they overtop the ramp and fill the reservoir, which is situated at a higher level than the surrounding sea. This hydraulic head is used for power production through the hydro turbines. Wave Dragon is unique among wave energy converters as it harnesses the energy in the water directly via water turbines in a one-step conversion system. A very simple construction in which, importantly, the turbines are the only moving parts. Click here to see a video of Wave Dragon in operation (.mpg file, 7.3MB)
For further information please visit the Wave Dragon website: www.wavedragon.net or email: info@wavedragon.net
The Wave Rotor, EcoFys, Holland
www.ecofys.nl/nl/expertisegebieden/product_systeemontwikkeling/waverotor.htm
Wavegen
The LIMPET (Land Installed Marine Powered Energy Transformer) is the smallest of Wavegen's shoreline energy modules, generating 0.5MW of power for local communities. At the end of 2000 it successfully fed electricity into the local Islay electricity network having secured a 15-year Power Purchase Agreement with the major public electricity suppliers in Scotland.
More recently Wavegen has collaborated with SEV, a Faroese energy company, with the intention of bringing wave energy to the Faroe Islands. The boards of both companies have agreed to form a joint venture company to oversee the initial design and engineering phase of the project with a value of £600,000. Phase two will see the construction of the wave power station in a cliff wall using a series of Wavegen's air turbine power generation modules. This project is reported to be worth up to £7m and could provide a maximum capacity of up to 100MW. Wavegen state that this will form the blueprint for wave power stations in similar locations both in the Faroes and other parts of the world. For more information go to: www.wavegen.com Wavegen also have a test facility. |
Aquamarine is now developing the next-generation Oyster 2 device which will consist of a 2.5MW ‘pod’ of three linked wave energy devices powering a single onshore hydro-electric generator. Aquamarine Power plans to deploy its first commercial Oyster devices by 2013. 
The Pelamis is a semi-submerged, articulated structure composed of cylindrical sections linked by hinged joints. The wave-induced motion of these joints is resisted by hydraulic rams, which pump high-pressure oil through hydraulic motors via smoothing accumulators. The hydraulic motors drive electrical generators to produce electricity. Power from all the joints is fed down a single umbilical cable to a junction on the sea bed. Several devices can be connected together and linked to shore through a single seabed cable. 
