Massive Swedish tidal kite, 1.2MW Dragon 12 tests ready for operation

by intengineering

1 comment
  1. Interesting development

    > The kite is moved by the wing’s utilization of the hydrodynamic lift force provided by the underwater stream. An onboard control system autonomously controls the kite in a predefined figure-of-eight trajectory, dragging the turbine through the water at a water flow several times greater than the stream speed.

    > The turbine shaft drives the generator, sending power to the grid via a cable in the tether and a seabed umbilical to the coast. According to Minesto, the subsea kite is intended to fly in the opposite direction of the main flow, attaining a relative speed several times that of the current rate. Compared to a stationary turbine, this speed increase minimizes the size of the kite and rotor necessary to capture energy. As a result, it is inexpensive to install, run, and maintain.

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