Clean offshore power is about to be transformed by a new generator system from CGEN Engineering, Tech Xplore reports.
Offshore energy technologies — whether they're powered by wind, waves, or tides — all collect kinetic energy, the energy of motion. To use that to power homes and businesses, the energy has to be transformed into electricity. That's where the new generators come in.
According to Tech Xplore, CGEN Engineering has developed a generator system that is modular and stackable. In other words, a single installation can utilize multiple generators. That way, if one is damaged or needs an upgrade, the others can stay online while workers address that individual unit.
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By eliminating long downtimes and making it possible to overhaul the system a piece at a time, the new generator will make offshore energy more affordable — lowering costs by an estimated 10% to 15%. That could lead to lower power bills and more widespread adoption of these non-polluting energy technologies.
Generator systems made using this modular technology are also projected to last 30% to 40% longer than conventional generators, and cost 50% to 70% less to maintain over their lifetimes.
As Tech Xplore explained, the technology was originally created by Professor Markus Mueller of the University of Edinburgh's School of Engineering. Dr. Joseph Burchell, a Research Fellow in the School of Engineering and CGEN's managing director, helped to develop it further alongside mechanical and manufacturing engineer Mike Galbraith. Together, they tested the technology at increasingly large scales — up to one megawatt, or enough power for hundreds of homes.
"We believe our technology directly addresses critical gaps in the U.K.'s offshore renewable energy supply chain," said Burchell, per Tech Xplore. "We aim to collaborate closely with manufacturers and original equipment manufacturers to scale up the production of our technology, ultimately expanding the Scottish and U.K. supply chains to meet the growing needs of the sector."
CGEN is also teaming up with other companies, including Mocean Energy, which will use the modular generator technology in its Blue X wave energy machine.
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