More and more companies are entering thetidal energyAmong those that make the most interesting (and effective) use of tidal energy, the Dutch start-up SeaQurrent has developed an underwater turbine called TidalKite. Last year he tested this sort of underwater “kite” on a ship canal in Ameland, the Netherlands, and the results were excellent.
How does the TidalKite underwater kite work?
TidalKite is a stable and floating device that uses the flow of water. The kite's wings amplify the flow of water, pushing it forward. The lift generated by the kite can be used to power an external application. The power take-off consists of a hydraulic cylinder and a hydraulic motor-generator combination. The pressurized liquid is expanded on the hydraulic motor-generator combination, which generates clean electricity, as a result of the hydraulic cylinder pulling the kite's pulling force. An undersea export cable transports electricity to the grid.
SeaQurrent
The TidalKite is intended to be moored to the seabed. It “flies” underwater through the current, operated by intelligent software, behaving just like a kite. A mode of operation that produces a subcurrent capable of driving a hydraulic motor connected to an alternator.
The latter transforms mechanical energy into electrical energy. End.
The tidal energy converter was designed to be more efficient and “scalable” with several rows of “wings” positioned one behind the other. This allows you to have a greater contact surface with the water, and to store more energy with each movement.
A practical system
TidalKite stands out for its high levels of efficiency and the ability to be positioned close to the coasts, without specialized vessels for either installation or maintenance. This means, among other things, that it is necessary to build less infrastructure (cables and so on). Not just advantages, which make this 'kite' suitable for both quieter waterways and tumultuous oceans.
Energy for several hundred families
As I often repeat in posts of this type, tidal energy differs from other forms of renewable energy such as wind and photovoltaic because it is totally predictable thanks to the tides, whose intensity varies with the position of the Moon with respect to the Earth. And in the case of the TidalKite, knowing that this totally underwater tidal turbine is capable of providing green energy to 700 homes without defacing the landscape can only bring added pleasure.
Monitoring carried out in the Wadden Sea, by the University of Groningen and ecologists, has revealed no negative impact on marine life. I can't wait to see this kite 'flying' on a large scale :)
