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An assessment of using variable blade pitch for moored ocean current turbine flight control

Journal Article · · International Journal of Marine Energy
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [3];  [4]
  1. Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL (United States); Florida Atlantic University
  2. Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL (United States)
  3. Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State Univ. (Virginia Tech), Blacksburg, VA (United States)
  4. University of New Orleans, LA (United States)

This study investigates the possibility of using active individual blade pitch control for positioning moored ocean current turbines within an array. Using a numerical simulation of a representative ocean current turbine it is shown that harmonic blade oscillations with amplitudes of 1.5° can be used to displace an ocean current turbine laterally by a distance equal to one rotor diameter, when the mooring cable length is approximately 30 times the diameter of the rotor blade. For current flow directions that would result in a downstream turbine operating in the wake of an upstream system at a distance of 10 diameters, this technique could be used to reduce the power loss of the downstream system from about 50% (caused by the reduced flow speed available in the turbine wake) to the 1.2% power loss associated with the suggested control approach.

Research Organization:
Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE; National Science Foundation (NSF)
Grant/Contract Number:
EE0004200
OSTI ID:
1986594
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1341141
Journal Information:
International Journal of Marine Energy, Journal Name: International Journal of Marine Energy Vol. 13; ISSN 2214-1669
Publisher:
ElsevierCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (11)

Individual Blade Pitch Control for Load Reduction journal January 2003
Design of a prototype ocean current turbine—Part I: mathematical modeling and dynamics simulation journal August 2006
Experimental characterisation of flow effects on marine current turbine behaviour and on its wake properties journal January 2010
Numerical Simulation of an Experimental Ocean Current Turbine journal January 2013
A 20 KW open ocean current test turbine conference January 2008
Hydrokinetic power resource assessment of the Florida Current conference September 2010
Design and analysis of an ocean current turbine performance assessment system conference October 2012
Two-reaction theory of synchronous machines generalized method of analysis-part I journal July 1929
Methods for Increasing Region 2 Power Capture on a Variable-Speed Wind Turbine journal November 2004
Design and Analysis of a Rotor Blade Optimized for Extracting Energy From the Florida Current
  • VanZwieten, James H.; Oster, Carey M.; Duerr, Alana E. S.
  • ASME 2011 30th International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering, Volume 5: Ocean Space Utilization; Ocean Renewable Energy https://doi.org/10.1115/OMAE2011-49140
conference October 2011
SS Marine Renewable Energy – Ocean Current Turbine Mooring Considerations conference May 2015

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