New design to capture ocean’s motion gets Carbon Trust funding
The Carbon Trust has awarded a Belfast-based company over GBP 153,000 to accelerate the development of its innovative electricity-generating wave energy converter. The converter aims to improve the efficiency with which energy is captured from the sea by harnessing power from both the vertical and horizontal motion of waves. The DUO WEC concept, developed by Pure Marine Gen Ltd, is designed to improve energy productivity and therefore drive down the cost of electricity generation. This should in turn accelerate the adoption of the technology.
The funding will be used to conduct mathematical modelling, carry out an iterative series of tank tests and produce design drawings for a prototype. In the longer term, Pure Marine plans to develop devices with a capacity of over 2MW which, deployed in large arrays, could have generating capacity of over 500MW, comparable with a small coal-fired power plant. A techno-economic analysis which also forms part of the project will provide a projection of energy costs from the device and a route map for further cost reductions.
The Carbon Trust is currently on the lookout for other technologies with significant carbon saving potential to receive up to £500k of grant funding through its Applied Research scheme. Three open calls are run each year and the deadline for the current one is 16th April 2009 at 5pm. Applications can be made at http://www.carbontrust.co.uk/appliedresearch.
Mark Williamson, Director of Innovations at Carbon Trust, said: “Pure Marine Gen’s DUO WEC design addresses the major challenge facing the growing marine energy industry – how to produce more energy at a lower cost. The UK’s marine energy sector is world-leading and by supporting innovative designs such as the DUO WEC the Carbon Trust is working to accelerate an industry which has huge economic and job creation potential.”
He added:
“Pure Marine Gen is benefitting from our Applied Research grant scheme which provides vital support to promising low carbon technologies and we are currently on the lookout for new and innovative carbon saving ideas.”
Dr Paul Brewster of Pure Marine Gen said: “The Carbon Trust’s support has helped us expand our Engineering team and work with a wider range of engineering specialists, which has fast tracked the development of the DUO WEC wave energy technology. In addition to our DUO WEC research projects, we have identified the best sites for deploying wave energy technology. The increased productivity benefits of the DUO WEC will enable us to capitalise on harnessing the ocean’s huge, untapped, indigenous renewable energy resources.”
Since 2001, the Carbon Trust’s Applied Research scheme has invested a total of £21 million in 155 projects that have clearly demonstrated potential to develop into viable commercial technologies that could reduce UK carbon emissions.
The scheme has provided grant funding to a wide range of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies including fuel cells, combined heat and power, bioenergy, solar power, low carbon building technologies, marine energy devices and more efficient industrial processes. Of the 95 projects completed to date, 70% have filed patents, secured follow-on funding or generated commercial sales, or are expecting to do so shortly.
In December the Carbon Trust announced five new projects to reduce the costs of marine energy component technologies by up to 20% as part of its £3.5m Marine Energy Accelerator programme. The Carbon Trust has previously provided applied research grants for 15 marine energy technologies, in addition to its £3m Marine Energy Challenge and providing £2m to support the operation of the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney.
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