Limits to tidal current power

Estimating the extractable power of tidal currents in channels is a practical question that has received attention recently. Analysis has clearly shown that the power potential is not given by the flux of kinetic energy, as has been commonly assumed. A general formula for the maximum available power...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inRenewable energy Vol. 33; no. 11; pp. 2485 - 2490
Main Authors Garrett, Chris, Cummins, Patrick
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01.11.2008
Elsevier Science
Subjects
Applied sciences
Energy
Energy of waters: ocean thermal energy, wave and tidal energy, etc
Exact sciences and technology
Natural energy
Tidal current power
Tidal current power
Renewable energy
Tidal current
Production capacity
Electric power production
Kinetic energy
Tidal energy
Computing method
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Summary:Estimating the extractable power of tidal currents in channels is a practical question that has received attention recently. Analysis has clearly shown that the power potential is not given by the flux of kinetic energy, as has been commonly assumed. A general formula for the maximum available power is reviewed, along with assessments of the reduction if only partial fences are used, as would be required for navigational and ecological reasons. In typical situations, the maximum power obtainable may be achieved with a surprisingly small number of turbines, especially if allowance is made for the flow reduction caused by drag on the supporting structures of turbines which reduces the maximum power available. Finally, the flow through tidal turbines is compared with the cooling water demands of nuclear reactors generating the same power.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 23
ISSN:0960-1481
1879-0682
DOI:10.1016/j.renene.2008.02.009