MAXBlade project launched

The €10 million project – funded by the European Union and UK Research & Innovation – aims to deliver a range of innovations to improve the performance of tidal turbines and reduce costs. MAXBlade will investigate the full lifecycle of tidal turbine blades, from materials, manufacture and operation, to decommissioning and recyclability. The project’s long-term aim is to ensure the European composite sector becomes the international leader in tidal blade manufacture.

The project plans to increase the area harnessed by Scottish tidal technology company Orbital Marine Power to generate power – known as the rotor swept area – by 70 per cent, to more than 1,000 square metres.

“Orbital is delighted to be involved with so many great partners on this truly cutting-edge project,” said Andrew Scott, Chief Executive Officer at Orbital Marine Power. “MAXBlade will deliver tidal energy into a future, low-carbon energy mix at lower costs while, at the same time, benefit UK and European businesses from long-term industrial opportunities that will come from this new, sustainable industry.”

MAXBlade will increase the length of the turbine blades from 10 to 13 metres –making them the longest of their kind in the world. The team believes that boosting blade length will have the single greatest impact on reducing the cost of tidal energy. Modelling by the University of Edinburgh’s Institute of Energy Systems estimates £40billion could be generated for the UK economy by harnessing wave and tidal energy. The project will involve a two-year design and development phase, followed by an 18-month build, during which blades will undergo advanced structural testing at FastBlade.

The technology will then undergo two years of real-world testing at the European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney. Two of Orbital Marine Power’s O2 floating platforms – the world’s most powerful tidal turbines – will each be fitted with four of the newly developed blades. n

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