UK firm’s cost-effective yaw system ready for deployment subsea

Following the completion of acceptance testing, UK-based tidal energy company Proteus Marine Renewables’ (PMR’s) Yaw System for tidal turbines is now en route for deployment subsea.

PMR has carried out the acceptance testing at DePe Gear Company. The design results from the collaboration with Involution Technologies and SKF. According to PMR, the new Proteus Yaw System is at least 40% more cost-effective than previous models, has a higher load capacity, and has been tested with a test rig for turbines with up to a 3 MW output.

“This system represents a significant advancement in our technology, combining cost-efficiency with superior performance. The successful testing is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our team and partners. We extend our gratitude to all who were involved in the development, build, and testing of this remarkable system. We look forward to seeing its performance in the field,” said Nick Sargent, PMR’s Senior Component Specialist. 

The cost-effective system optimizes turbine performance by rotating the turbine around the tower axis to align the rotor with the flow, maximizing power capture and minimizing fatigue loads, said PMR. 

The Proteus Yaw System locks the turbine’s heading with a toothed coupling during power generation and disengages during slack water periods to allow adjustment to a new angle. The “fail-safe design” protects against potential ‘free-yaw’ events in case of a fault during yawing.

A new bearing design and integrated dynamic seal, supplied by SKF, enables reliable rotation. This sealing arrangement has undergone load and rotation testing, showing zero leakage. The system’s redundancy of critical sensors and actuators ensures fault tolerance, proven during functional testing that validated redundant operating modes and response to fault scenarios, said PMR.

“We are a technical partner to Proteus for over a decade and have been providing rotating equipment to Proteus from early on. To see that the new and optimised Yaw system is successfully tested and validated is a rewarding moment for the entire development team. We are looking forward to seeing that the system gets validated also in a sub-sea environment in order to advance it further to serial manufacturing,” said Michael Baumann, Global Application Account Manager, Ocean Energy at SKF.

Central to the PMR’s offerings are the AR-series subsea tidal turbine generation systems, designed for safe and efficient handling in challenging offshore environments, delivering high energy yields with minimal environmental impact. With options customizable up to a 3 MW output, the turbines are optimized to suit local conditions and client requirements, said PMR.

Proteus Marine Renewables was formed in October 2022, following the sale of a majority stake in SIMEC Atlantis Energy’s Advanced Tidal Engineering and Services division (ATES).

The sale is a management buyout and allows Proteus Marine Renewables to grow its product and services offering across a broader scope of marine renewables while keeping its immediate focus on tidal energy.