The number of tidal power and other offshore renewable energy installations is set to grow significantly around the UK coastline over the coming decades.
However, launching state-of-the-art devices into often turbulent ocean flows has the potential to pose a range of challenges for the tidal energy industry, including uncertainty around how they may interact with the environment.
To address that, a team of scientists used a combination of aerial drone technology and boat-based surveys to map out the complex tidal flows encountered by the world's most powerful tidal turbine - Orbital Marine Power's O2, sited in the heart of the Orkney Islands, Scotland.
Unlike conventional tidal stream turbines, the O2 floats on the sea surface, anchored by mooring lines to the seabed. The platform is over 70 meters long and is connected to the grid at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), with estimates that it could power 2,000 UK homes per year.
The study included highlighting how changing tidal flows, that exceed 8 knots, could impact the device and its performance, but also how the O2's wake downstream could impact the placing of other turbines as well as marine habitats.
Through this, the scientists provide new insights around the optimal placement of tidal stream turbines, while emphasising the importance of site-specific assessments at potential turbine sites to help bridge the gap between real-world measurements and computer simulations.
They also hope their approach can be used to address uncertainties surrounding interactions with the natural environment and marine habitats.
A previous study by the lead authors found that a turbine wake generated a predictable foraging hotspot for nearby breeding seabirds, however if the turbine arrays are too tightly packed it could restrict the movement of some marine fauna.
In addition to seabirds, the authors encountered orcas travelling past the turbine during one of their drone surveys, demonstrating the importance of addressing this.
The study, published in Nature Communications, was conducted by researchers from the Marine Biological Association (MBA), the University of Plymouth, and the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) Shetland.
/University Release. This material from the originating organization/author(s) might be of the point-in-time nature, and edited for clarity, style and length. Mirage.News does not take institutional positions or sides, and all views, positions, and conclusions expressed herein are solely those of the author(s).View in full here.
