News: Wave Energy makes sense with sensors and Synectic Design's help.

Date Added: 28/01/08

SYNECTIC DESIGN SOLUTIONS NEWSLETTER

NEWSLETTER SPECIAL: Electricity from the Sea, Synectic Design Ltd helps Pelamis Wave  Power.

The worlds largest wave farm  has been given the go ahead by the Scottish Parliament to produce green energy.
The challenge of developing effective and efficient forms of renewable energy is one being tackled by numerous engineers and scientists throughout the world. The leading UK companyin this field is Pelamis Wave Power Ltd., based in Edinburgh have designed and built a device to create electricity using offshore wave power.  Wave power works by converting the kinetic energy of the sea into electricity through a generator system.

In 2003 Pelamis (formerly Ocean Power Delivery)  were trying to prove the potential of their device.  They contacted Synectic Design through Interface Force Measurements, one of our technical partners who knew that we would be able to cater for their specialist requirements.  The company required a device to measure structural stresses and amplify the signal for monitoring and further data processing. Synectic Design’s design team adapted a standard SY011 versatile in-line bridge amplifier to meet their  requirements.

Seventy of these units are currently being used in the Pelamis full-scale wave energy converter prototype.  Our units are located next to the strain gauge bridges and are encapsulated in a waterproof box; at certain points during operation they are operating underwater.  The full scale prototype wave energy converter is 150 metres long, with our instrumentation units located along its length. Our measurement units are used to validate the structural integrity of the full scale model at specific points within the structure. All of the data is collected at just 4 data acquisition nodes along the model. This means that signals from our unit have to travel about 25 metres and up to 60 metres in some locations. Sending signals such distances while not a problem in itself, can become problematic when the electronic systems are operating in extreme conditions.  (The North Sea can provide those) and then there is the need to avoid electromagnetic interference from power cables running through the model. 
Having proved themselves with standard products tweaked to suit the project, Synectic Design were asked to produce a bespoke product.  The issue with strain gauged components is that over time the zero point drifts.  Pelamis need to be able to tare off any drift to set a new Zero point.  The SY046 was developed to meet this need digitally tareable amplifier for remote control operation, so that the wave power unit can be monitored and adjusted through simple logic signals an applied voltage pulse or closing contact  can reset the zero.  The first shipment of this product is working succesfully in the commercial system built for the Portuguese government 
Arnaud Fourmon, the Project Engineer from Pelamis Wave Power said that the main advantages of Synectic's units are:
 Low cost compared to similar lab based equipment.  A compact and robust design.  The high quality of the output signal, allowing fewer data acquisition modules.  The progress of the trials can be seen on Pelamis Wave Power’s website at www.pelamiswave.com.

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