Scottish firm Ecosse IP (EIP) has announced the arrival of its latest product, Mass of Water Turbine (MOWT), designed to generate energy from slow-moving water.
The MOWT technology, patent-pending, is designed for use in rivers, estuaries and subsea current & tidal environments, offering an energy solution with minimal environmental impact, EIP explains.
Currently, MOWT measures 5 meters long x 1 meter high, weighs less than 1 tonne, and can be fitted with an integrated battery pack and built-in ambient lifting technology.
Modules can be added to MOWT to increase its size, and larger utility-scale MOWTs are planned for the future as an alternative to tidal barrages.
According to EIP, due to its unique low-speed energy capture, it has no detrimental effects on fish and other subsea creatures.
MOWT is positioned using a small vessel such as a multi-cat, and the in-built ambient lifting technology allows for simple installation and recovery.
MOWT can generate power when floating on the surface, semi-submerged or on the river/seabed. The existing MOWT model can generate between 5-10kW in 1m/s flow to power subsea assets. Large-scale MOWT will have a power output of several megawatts.
There are many applications for MOWT including powering subsea assets, as an alternative to tidal barrages and supplying energy to communities by harnessing kinetic energy from slow-moving water.
The MOWT technology will apply to offshore energy, renewables, utilities, aquaculture, marine and defence sectors.
Mike Wilson , CTO and Stuart Moir , project engineer are co-inventors and the driving force behind EIP’s latest product development.
“Delivering simple economic solutions to customer problems underpins everything that we are about at EIP. The team is constantly looking at how to do things differently – designing and engineering innovative solutions for current and future customers,” Wilson said.