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National Lab and University Collaboration for MHK
Lead Companies
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Sandia National Laboratory (SNL)
Lead Researcher (s)
- Chirta Sivaraman, PNNL
- Budi Gunawan, SNL
This project will enable early-stage research that furthers the development of transformative, reliable, and cost competitive MHK technologies and reduce critical deployment barriers, as well as to meet the long-term goal of reducing the cost of energy of MRE systems. The deliverables will empower effective and efficient MRE early stage (and higher TRL) R&D by codifying relevant best-practice knowledge and experience, leverage prior instrumentation development efforts, and fill gaps to decrease the timelines and costs for commercially viable technology. It will help accelerate the development, acceptance and deployment of MHK technology by leveraging prior investments by DOE, the offshore engineering and measurement community, the MHK sector, and the Navy, as well as, verify solutions in upcoming DOE funded testing campaigns.
Technology Application
Marine Energy
Research Category
Technology
Research Sub-Category
Hydrokinetic
Status
ongoing
Completion Date
TBD
- Marine Energy
Next Gen WEC PTO CO-Design
Lead Companies
Sandia National Laboratories
Lead Researcher (s)
- Ryan Coe
This work plan describes a project targeted at developing the next generation of wave energy converter (WEC) power take-off (PTO) systems by employing a “co-design” approach, in which predictionless WEC control is used to provide a framework for tuning system dynamics to minimize LCOE. This three year project will deliver dramatic reductions in LCOE by developing methods for co-design design of the full WEC system, which includes hydrodynamics, PTO, and control. WECs are unique from other existing energy generation technologies. Instead of converting relatively steady input mechanical energy that fluctuates about some mean (e.g., wind, nuclear, hydroelectric), WECs must absorb a purely oscillatory energy input. This unique quality necessitates the usage of advanced control to maximize energy generation and minimize levelized cost of energy (LCOE). Control strategies can be used to shape the dynamic response of a WEC to achieve resonance and increase energy absorption by as much as 200% (see, e.g., [1-3]). However, WECs comprise complex hydrodynamic, mechanical, electrical, and sometimes hydraulic subsystems, all of which must be properly designed to be capable of accurately implementing a control strategy in order to reap the benefits of advanced control. Additionally, energy absorption does not necessarily equate with energy generation.
Technology Application
Marine Energy
Research Category
Technology
Research Sub-Category
Wave
Status
ongoing
Completion Date
TBD
- Marine Energy
Ocean Observation Prize
Lead Companies
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Lead Researcher (s)
- Molly Grear
Water Power Technologies Office is developing a prize competition called the Powering the Blue Economy: Ocean Observing Prize (Ocean Obs Prize). This prize seeks new ideas and new technologies to reduce energy limitations for ocean observing, by extending range or duration of observations, reducing operational costs, or enabling entirely new data streams that will lead to better understanding of the ocean environment. The prize is a core element of the Powering the Blue Economy Initiative. PNNL will collaborate directly with NREL and WPTO to provide technical expertise to design, support, and execute the prize.
Technology Application
Marine Energy
Research Category
Technology
Research Sub-Category
Buoy
Status
ongoing
Completion Date
TBD
- Marine Energy
ORPC FOA Support 1663
Lead Companies
Sandia National Laboratories
Lead Researcher (s)
- Budi Gunawan
Marine and hydrokinetic (MHK) energy contributes to national energy objectives by providing clean energy to reduce oil dependency and lower carbon emission. The long-term water program goal is to significantly reduce the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for marine and hydrokinetic devices and enable significant deployment of grid-scale cost-competitive MHK by 2030. In 2017, the Department of Energy (DOE) Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) issued a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), entitled Marine and Hydrokinetic Technology Development and Advancement, to support MHK research and development for current energy converters (CECs). This project will use model-scale tank testing and fluid-structure-interaction (FSI) simulations to investigate the behavior of hydrofoils with large deflections and the effect of the radial and rotational deflections on cross-flow turbine performance with the ultimate goal of determining the maximum allowable deflections consonant with efficiency and a robust, durable structure. Care will be given to developing a robust, validated modeling and simulation approach, which will be used in the design of ORPC’s full-scale turbines, and will be applicable to the design of other MHK devices.
Technology Application
Marine Energy
Research Category
Technology
Research Sub-Category
Tidal
Status
ongoing
Completion Date
TBD
- Marine Energy
Oscilla FOA 1663
Lead Companies
Sandia National Laboratories
Lead Researcher (s)
- Ryan Coe
The overarching goal of this project is to successfully improve, build, test and validate an improved, higher power density LHD at 1:10 scale with power dissipation and active control implemented.
Technology Application
Marine Energy
Research Category
Technology
Research Sub-Category
Wave
Status
ongoing
Completion Date
TBD
- Marine Energy
Predictive Online Monitoring of Polymer Tendons (PrOMPT)
Lead Companies
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Lead Researcher (s)
- Leo Fifield
Wave energy convertors (WECs), such as the Oscilla Triton-C, depend on flexible, polymeric connecting mooring lines, ropes, or tendons, for their energy harvesting mechanism. Operational stresses, such as abrasion, can limit the fatigue life of tendons, leading to early or unexpected failure. Installation, operation, and maintenance (IO&M) costs could be reduced with incorporation of sensing features that indicate tendon degradation to extend inspection intervals and provide forewarning of impending failure. In this work, we demonstrate preliminary abrasion sensing capability of polymer tendons and evaluate opportunities for online monitoring of these and similar polymer ropes used in waterpower technologies.
Technology Application
Marine Energy
Research Category
Technology
Research Sub-Category
Wave
Status
ongoing
Completion Date
TBD
- Pumped Storage
Pumped Storage Hydropower (PSH) FAST Commissioning Prize Technical Analysis
Lead Companies
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
Lead Researcher (s)
- Scott DeNeale (denealest@ornl.gov)
The US energy landscape has undergone major changes over the past 10 years and will continue to see significant changes in future decades as the power grid increases its reliance on variable renewable energy resources. Because of the inherent variability of these resources, renewable energy growth may require additional energy storage capacity to provide flexible load-following capabilities and other grid services that can quickly adjust to changes in energy demand and generation. Pumped storage hydropower (PSH)—one such energy storage technology—uses pumps to convey water from a lower reservoir to an upper reservoir for energy storage and releases water back to the lower reservoir via a powerhouse for hydropower generation. PSH facility pump and generation cycling often follows economic and energy demand conditions. Across the United States, 43 PSH facilities are in operation and 55 projects are in various permitting or licensing stages. Altogether, the 43 operational projects provide the wide majority (95%) of utility-scale electricity storage in the United States. These facilities also provide significant power and nonpower grid benefits, including large-scale electrical system reserve capacity, grid reliability support, and electricity supply-demand balancing through quick-response capabilities and operational flexibility. PSH systems can accomplish these at a scale (e.g., size) and cost that makes these systems highly attractive from a technical standpoint. Although these research concepts are still in their infancy, they demonstrate promising potential as future PSH energy storage technologies. Although PSH has many advantages, development in the United States has effectively stalled since the 1990s, partially because of the magnitude of project costs and financing interest during development and construction, the length of time from project investment until project revenue begins, permitting challenges, construction risks, competition from other storage technologies (e.g., batteries, hydrogen storage), and electricity market evolution and uncertainty. In short, the time, cost, and risk associated with modern PSH development have resulted in limited growth in the United States recently, despite the growing energy storage demand stemming from increased wind and solar power deployment. Technology innovation is needed to help reduce PSH commissioning time, cost, and risk, particularly during the post-licensing phase of project development. To address challenges facing the PSH industry and to improve PSH commissioning timelines, the US Department of Energy (DOE) Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) initiated the PSH Furthering Advancements to Shorten Time to (FAST) Commissioning Prize project.
Technology Application
Pumped Storage
Research Category
Technology
Research Sub-Category
Future Grid
Status
complete
Completion Date
2020
Don’t see your waterpower research?
Have questions about WaRP?
Contact Marla Barnes at: marla@hydro.org