Inspenet, July 5, 2023.
For years, the ability to supply unlimited electricity through wave energy , that is, that generated by sea waves, has been demonstrated through the development of various prototypes.
The latest advance in this regard comes from Germany, where tests of the Aurelia WINO have recently begun, a pilot project developed over three years by researchers from the Kiel University of Applied Sciences, in whose construction apprentices from German Naval Yards and ThyssenKrupp have participated. Marine Systems. This prototype takes advantage of the energy potential of waves, which make a floating body move vertically in relation to a buoy.
Christian Keindorf, professor of engineering and project manager, says that “the operation in simplified terms can be compared to the principle of a bicycle dynamo.”
This project, financed by the German Government and the EU with 533,000 euros, has had as its first result a generator 12 meters high and around 8 tons in weight. However, the final plant will be eight times larger than the prototype, with the aim of generating several megawatts, something that no plant of this type has yet achieved.
Engineer Andreas Glaß joined the project as a research assistant in January 2020 and was tasked with supervising the entire process,
“We had to do numerical calculations in hydrodynamics and structural dynamics, we did experiments in the wave and flow laboratory at the Institute of Shipbuilding and Maritime Technology, we developed the prototype and in the end they allowed me to supervise the production. Mastering all these technically demanding tasks was a unique opportunity for me”, he explained.
This is how the wave power plant works
The operation of the Kiel wave power plant is simple. The waves allow it to move vertically in relation to a rod buoy, similar to that used in reservoirs and cisterns for homes, blocks and industrial tanks. This movement drives a lifting rod on which are mounted two linear generators, which pass through a magnetic field and, according to the principle of induction, generate electrical energy.
The first uses that are proposed for this type of wave plants is the electrical supply of natural and artificial islands, aquatic farms on the high seas or measurement stations.
However, Keindorf is committed to hybrid farms in which wave power plants are installed between offshore wind turbines. In this way, areas that are reserved for wind energy production anyway could be used more efficiently.
Although at the moment a plant of this type cannot compete with the efficiency of wind and photovoltaic, according to the researchers it is a minimally invasive element from an environmental point of view.
The next step is to obtain more precise figures on the energy potential of this type of solution and greater funding from public and private institutions.
The Japanese model for generating unlimited electricity
The Kairyu project, developed for more than 10 years by the Japanese company IHI Corporation and the Organization for the Development of New Energy and Industrial Technology (NEDO), instead of taking advantage of the force of the waves, generates electricity thanks to marine currents.
Weighing over 330 tons, Kairyu has a 20-meter-long fuselage and is flanked by two cylinders of similar size, each housing a power generation system connected to 11-meter-long turbine blades.
Its configuration is comparable to that of an aircraft, since it has a main body similar to the fuselage and is made up of three cylindrical floats, each equipped with a propeller that rotates in the opposite direction to the others, in order to counteract the moments of torsion and keep the position of the generator stable under water.
The Kairyu system has been designed to use the powerful Kuroshio Current, one of the most intense in the world, which flows along the eastern coast of Japan. To achieve this, it will be anchored to the seabed and will float at a depth of almost 50 meters below the ocean surface.
In order to make the most of the currents and ensure an optimal position, the device has a mechanism that adjusts the angle of the blades of the turbine rotors based on the speed of the ocean current. This makes it possible to generate electricity in a highly efficient way.
Its potential is 100 kilowatts and it has proven its effectiveness after passing a test for which it has been submerged for three and a half years. If all goes well, its implementation will be from the year 2030.
Source and photo: https://www.elespanol.com/omicrono/tecnologia/20230703/revolucionaria-central-electrica-europea-tener-energia-ilimitada-gracias-olas-mar/774422894_0.html
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