THE PERFORMANCE OF COUNTER-ROTATING TIDAL TURBINE IN DIFFERENT SEA STATES

Abstract

This paper will report on work being undertaken to evaluate the performance of the counter-rotating tidal turbine in a wave-current coupled operation environment based on Blade Element Momentum Theory (BEMT). The counter-rotating tidal turbine has two rotors rotating in opposite directions on the same axis. It has been proposed on the basis of the theory, which states that a configuration of two rotors having a similar swept area on the same axis has a higher maximum power coefficient than a conventional configuration of a wind turbine with a single rotor. BEMT is a reliable and effective theory for rotor design because it is based on solid physical principles and has a remarkably low computing cost.