Economically Sustainable Wind Energy
electrical rating. For example, the direct-drive generator used in Enercon’s 6Mw turbine weighs in the region of 450 tonnes and the company has since focused on producing 2 and 3Mw turbines exclusively for the onshore industry. At 450 tonnes, problems rapidly develop with transportation and installation in offshore environments, particularly with the availability of lifting ships capable of deploying such weights. Day rates for such specialised offshore vessels are substantial and can lead to dramatic increases in offshore wind project installation costs.
Superconductors – The Future
The wind industry has come up against some very harsh technical limitations where gains on one front (reliability) are offset by losses on another (increased weight and size). In situations like these, real breakthroughs in technology are needed to break the paradigm. In the case of wind industry generators this may come from a set of materials called superconductors (see Figure 3).
Superconductors conduct electricity with no electrical resistance and, as well as being 100% efficient (no heat losses from resistance to electron flow), they can carry more than 100 times the amount of electricity of copper wires. Put another way, only one-hundredth of the material is needed for any given electrical application (see Figure 4). As a result, superconductors can be used to replace the bulky copper poles found in direct-drive generators to bring about substantial size and weight reductions that produce a radically different financial equation for direct-drive turbines. In doing this, manufacturers can produce direct-drive generators (with high reliability) that are approximately one-sixth the weight of copper- based machines (enabling the use of high-rated equipment in offshore environments).
Encouraging work has already been carried out producing this new class of generators that can break through the restrictions of traditional technology. This year, German utility E.On will become the first power producer to put a superconductor-based generator into commercial use. Built in the UK by Converteam SAS using superconductor technology from Alternative Investment Market (AIM)-quoted Zenergy Power, the hydropower generator is expected to herald the development of an important new technology sector for power generation (see Figure 5). In addition to the E.On project, Converteam and Zenergy Power are developing a 10Mw class direct- drive superconductor generator that will weigh 80 tonnes compared with the 450-tonnes of a copper-based 6Mw machine.
If successful, the use of superconductors in generators is thought to have the potential to reduce offshore wind power costs by 25%, simply by reducing the amount of steel in the turbine tower and the amount of concrete poured into the foundations of the unit. Cheaper transportation and shipping costs will also play a major factor in cutting wind farm development costs.
Conclusion
Given the extensive research already carried out and the emergence of working demonstration models, it may just be a matter of years before the financially-attractive role played by superconducting technology in producing large-scale offshore wind power becomes obvious to everyone. n
MODERN ENERGY REVIEW – VOLUME 2 ISSUE 2
TRANSPORTATION AND INSTALLATION
WITH A SINGLE VESSEL JUMBO OFFSHORE
Jumbo Offshore’s core business is transportation & installation of heavy or large offshore structures. We handle installation work from above sea level down to water depths of up to 3,000 m or more.
When it comes to renewable energy, Jumbo is able to transport and install various types of offshore wind turbine foundations and tidal generators.
The Jumbo Javelin vessel on DP that has installed transition pieces for wind turbines, it can do so in combination with a
Jumbo Offshore has access to 14 Heavy Lift Vessels, two of which have DP2: Jumbo Javelin and Fairplayer.
WWW.JUMBO-OFFSHORE.NL
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