Material Selection for Vertical Axis Tidal Current Turbine using Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM)

Abstract

Marine renewable energy technology has attracted many stakeholders to develop due to its enormous resources and future potential advantages. One of them is the vertical axis tidal current turbine technology, which converts the kinetic energy of flowing seawater to be electrical energy. To operate the vertical axis tidal current turbine, especially its metallic components of the supporting structure, it is required to endure the aggressive and corrosive marine environment. Thus, deciding the good and suitable material for this application is very important in order to reduce the risk and hazards from the sea environment. The purpose of this paper is to decide the best metal material for the support structure of the vertical axis tidal current turbine. Therefore, the material candidate and their properties were firstly reviewed and discussed. Then, the material selection was processed through Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM) and formulated via the method of a Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to the Ideal Solution (TOPSIS). The result of material selection was carbon steel AISI 1045 as the selected material instead of other candidates such as carbon steel AISI 1018, stainless steel, and nickel aluminium bronze. Thus, it is expected to perform well to be used for the support structure and endure the marine hazards during the vertical axis tidal current turbine application.