Scotland has some of the best marine renewable energy resources in the World. The Atlantic Ocean delivers abundant wave energy to its western shores and the regular tidal flows between the Atlantic and North Sea create a very high tidal current energy resource. Wave and tidal energy will be important contributors to a diverse and secure future energy mix because they are predictable or increasingly able to be forecast.
There are full-scale prototype wave and tidal energy generators at sea, connected and delivering energy to the UK network and other prototypes are nearing installation, although not yet in arrays. 2010 began the decade of increasing deployment of marine energy technology, with ambitious targets set to see up to 2000 MW of wave and tidal current generators installed in UK waters by 2020. Scotland’s universities have been at the forefront of marine energy conversion and delivery since the 1970’s and, with other UK partners, are leading the global challenge to create, develop and deploy wave and tidal-current generators in the seas around its shores.
ETP's areas of expertise
The Energy Technology Partnership unites the efforts of Scotland’s around 100 university research staff in marine energy. Their skills include: wave and tidal resource analysis and characterisation; numerical modelling and tank scale-testing of device, structural and coastal hydrodynamic interactions; marine device design, test and development; power-take-off design, test and development; control and network interaction modelling; environmental monitoring & impact prediction and economic studies and modelling. They train scientists, engineers and economists to doctoral level and every year graduate over 100 top-flight new staff for the UK and European offshore renewable energy sector. They lead or are leading partners in nearly every national and international research programme.
ETP's contribution to research and strategy
Members of the ETP have produced or contributed to many foresighting and strategy documents including the: ETI/UKERC Marine Technology Roadmap; DECC UK Marine Action Plan; Scottish Government Roadmap for Marine Energy Development; Oceans of energy: European Ocean Energy Roadmap 2010-2050 and the European Science Foundation: Marine Board Vision Document (2010). They have carried out a wide range of industrial studies and collaborative projects with device developers including MCT, Pelamis, Aquamarine, Checkmate Sea Energy, Ocean Power Technology, Green Ocean Energy, (Wave) OpenHydro, Voith Hydro, Nautricity, Scotrenewables, Nova, (tidal) and enjoy research partnerships with companies including EdF R&D, David Brown Gearbox Systems, Sgurr Energy, Rolls-Royce, National Grid, EDF Energy, Converteam, Scottish Power and Scottish & Southern Energy. They collaborate in prestigious international relationships with partners in the USA, Canada, New Zealand, Taiwan, China, Norway and France including: working with Governments, National Funding Councils and Agencies; developing R&D Roadmaps and Test Protocols, joint research and development projects, test programmes, staff and student exchange.
Research facilities
Energy Technology Partner universities’ staff, students and partners operate unrivalled laboratory facilities to support the research, development and training, including: their unique curved wave tank, flow table, large and small wave flumes; the second largest hydrodynamic test tank in the UK measuring 76×4.6×2.5m with waves up to 0.7m and towing carriage speeds up to 5m/s; linear and rotary direct drive generator test rigs that emulate the characteristics of a wave energy converter; facilities for environmental survey at the International Centre for Island Technology on Orkney and 20 and 10m research vessels in Oban. They host the EPSRC-funded UK Centre for Marine Energy Research and are about to construct a world-unique All-UK Waters Current and Wave Tank (30m dia x 5m deep) that will combine 0.7m, 2s period waves with 0.8 m/s currents in any relative direction allowing testing of marine devices and offshore structures at scales between 1:40 and 1:10.
The European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney is a world-unique facility with full-scale network connected berths for seven tidal generators offshore from Eday and five fullscale network connected wave berths off Billia Croo. These sites are exposed to currents and waves typical of some of the most productive but demanding conditions in European waters. Nursery sites are also being developed for sea trials of large scale (but not fullscale) prototype devices.
Future directions
To meet the ambitious targets and expectations of installed capacity there will need to be a significant up-scaling of manufacture and installation of first-, evolved- and secondgeneration marine energy technologies. The nature and scale of interaction with the marine natural environment will rapidly increase and must be predicted, gauged and managed to be sustainable. The Marine Alliance for Science & Technology for Scotland (MASTS) pools the research capacity in marine science to provide the academic platform and knowledge base for marine governance and commerce. Staff in the ETP universities work closely with MASTS to ensure the environmental sustainability of increasing deployment as the sector and installed capacity of marine generation expands.
The economic implications of establishing marine energy technology in the manufacturing sector, with consequences for the supply chain and the energy supply market must also be understood, gauged and managed. Pioneering research in the ETP is enabling comparisons of levellised costs, and predicting future macroeconomic effects on the regional and Scottish economies.
Scotland’s heritage, human capacity and facilities in naval architecture, marine and offshore engineering uniquely position it to become the birthplace and breeding ground for a new industry built around manufacture of marine energy technology, growing its supply chain and installation infrastructure and developing its education and training base.