US Backs Marine and Hydrokinetics Sectors with Close to $25M

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has announced selections for up to $24.9 million in funding to drive innovative, industry-led technology solutions to advance the marine and hydrokinetics industry and increase hydropower’s ability to serve as a flexible grid resource.

Selected projects should also strengthen U.S. manufacturing competitiveness and build on department-wide initiatives to improve the capability of technologies to deliver value to the grid.

Projects were selected across four Areas of Interest (AOI)—Hydropower Operational Flexibility, Low-Head Hydropower and In-Stream Hydrokinetic Technologies, Advancing Wave Energy Device Design, and Marine Energy Centers Research Infrastructure Upgrades.

AOI 1: Hydropower Operational Flexibility

Projects awarded under this area of interest will quantify the flexible capabilities of hydropower and advance operational strategies to increase such flexibility to better serve an evolving grid.

AOI 1a, Quantify Hydropower Capabilities for Operational Flexibility

Electric Power Research Institute of Palo Alto, California, will develop an industry-recognized methodology and framework for calculating the flexibility that hydropower assets can provide, demonstrate the validity of the approaches and the viability of comprehensive application across the fleet, and establish a platform for future flexibility assessments. The project team will address flexibility from the levels of unit, plant, and cascading system of plants.

AOI 1b, Operational Strategies for Increasing Hydropower Flexibility

General Electric Company, GE Research of Niskayuna, New York, will analyze, model, and simulate operation of low-head Francis turbines to demonstrate their flexibility potential. The resulting analysis will be used to provide recommendations for extending the turbine operating range further into partial load operation through operational strategies that can be applied in similar plants across the fleet.

University of California, Irvine of Irvine, California, will develop a mathematical representation of flexible hydropower operation that accommodates various constraints and captures the underlying uncertainty from inflows and net load. The project aims to identify hidden capabilities for flexible operation that can contribute to system reliability and resilience.

Stevens Institute of Technology of Hoboken, New Jersey, will develop advanced modeling and optimization approaches to enable cascading hydroelectric systems to provide a suite of enhanced operational flexibilities. This project will focus on Portland General Electric’s system, and results will be applicable to other cascading systems.

AOI 2: Low-Head Hydropower and In-Stream Hydrokinetic Technologies

Projects awarded under this area will focus on the development of two types of technologies—standard modular hydropower (SMH) and current energy converters (CECs). CEC technologies extract kinetic energy from rivers without the need for a dam or diversion, whereas SMH technologies use dams or other structures with turbines to create head—differences in water elevation—and generate power.

AOI 2a, Modular Technologies for Low-Head Hydropower Applications will focus on the design and production of entirely new standardized, modular technologies for low-head (30 feet or less) hydropower applications that can balance performance, economics, and environmental sustainability.

Percheron Power of Kennewick, Washington, will develop an innovative, helical fish passage module with the ability to pass fish species both upstream and downstream of a low-head hydropower plant. The modular device, based on Archimedes’ screw principles, will manufacture the components in the United States using advanced manufacturing methods and dramatically lower the cost of fish passage solutions.

Natel Energy of Alameda, California, will advance the design of a fish-friendly, horizontal axial-flow, low-head generation module by leveraging existing industry approaches and technologies to minimize performance and cost risks. Its innovative runner hydraulic design has high fish passage survival rates without compromising efficiency while reducing overall installation costs.

Littoral Power Systems of New Bedford, Massachusetts, will partner with Whooshh Innovations to develop a fish passage module that can be used to accommodate multiple species simultaneously and can be easily integrated into Littoral’s SMH system. The prefabricated modular hydropower system, known as ZAO, is a kit of parts that can be flexibly configured for a variety of small, low-head hydropower projects.

University of Minnesota of Minneapolis, Minnesota, will advance the design of a sediment passage module based on an approach called “hydrosuction,” which uses siphon flow to continually pass sediment through the dam structure. This unique system will take advantage of advanced manufacturing, materials, and fabrication, and easily integrate with other SMH modules at low-head sites. The project will improve the performance of hydropower facilities and provide healthy ecosystems and recreation.

AOI 2b, Modular Technologies for River Current Energy Converter Applications will focus on developing and testing CEC systems that can be efficiently deployed and retrieved without the need for significant port or on-site infrastructure and specialized vessels.

Ocean Renewable Power Company of Portland, Maine, will develop and demonstrate a modular system where each turbine generator unit is installed as a standalone unit with the option for attaching adjacent modules to form either horizontal or vertical arrays. The modules can be used to fit specific river geometries and other river constraints.

ABB Inc. of Cary, North Carolina, will use a pair of vertical cycloidal rotor modules with independent blade control to deliver a 30-kilowatt (kW) power generation system. The rotor can propel and maneuver the floating platform at the deployment location.

Purdue University of West Lafayette, Indiana, will design a cross-flow cycloidal turbine in individual modules that can be connected hydraulically and use a single generator. The 20 kW project’s modular design can also be stacked to increase power output.

AOI 3: Advancing Wave Energy Device Design

Projects awarded under this area will drive performance improvements in WEC devices in preparation for open-water testing, where wave energy has the greatest energy capture potential and lowest unit costs.

Columbia Power Technologies of Charlottesville, Virginia, will develop a standards-compliant, fabrication-ready design of its next-generation WEC. Using composite materials to reduce capital expenditures and a permanent magnet generator to maximize efficiency, the project will design a scaled-up version of the existing Water Power Technologies Office-funded device that is set for testing at Hawaii’s Wave Energy Test Site.

CalWave Power Technologies of Berkeley, California, will design the next generation of its submerged pressure differential WEC. Using depth control and variable geometry for load shedding, the WEC will be capable of an annual average power output of 45 kW.

IDOM of Minneapolis, Minnesota, will build the next generation of its oscillating water column device, previously tested off the coast of Spain. The team will develop a more cost-competitive device by using advanced controls, improved structural design, and improved turbine design.

Stevens Institute of Technology of Hoboken, New Jersey, will design a 100 kW annual average electrical power WEC that utilizes two surge devices mounted on a single buoyant platform. The devices will be controlled by an integrated control system to maximize power production based on wave conditions.

AOI 4: Marine Energy Centers Research Infrastructure Upgrades Projects awarded under this area will upgrade necessary infrastructure at existing National Marine Renewable Energy Centers (NMRECs) to enable broader industry access and reduce technical barriers to incubating advanced marine and hydrokinetic technologies.

The University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, will ensure that a coordinated effort is made to enhance marine energy testing and address the highest priority testing infrastructure upgrades required by industry.

The NMRECs are organized as follows:

Pacific Marine Energy Center (formerly known as the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center),operated jointly by Oregon State University, the University of Washington, and the University of Alaska Fairbanks, facilitates the development of wave, tidal, and in-river energy converters through research, education, outreach, and environmental characterization, design, and operation of testing sites.

Hawaii National Marine Renewable Energy Center, operated by the University of Hawaii, emphasizes wave energy and ocean thermal energy conversion and boasts a collaborative wave energy test site with the U.S. Navy.

Southeast National Marine Renewable Energy Center, operated by Florida Atlantic University, focuses on oceancurrents and ocean thermal energy conversion and specializes in environmental baseline observation systems.