Abstract
The marine energy industry is in its early stages but has a large potential for growth. One of the most significant challenges is the reduction of operation and maintenance costs. Magnetic gears (MGs) offer the potential for long periods between maintenance intervals due to their frictionless torque transmission which could reduce these costs. This study presents a summary of the state of the art in MG technology and then investigates its potential for marine energy applications. A brief overview is given of the state of the marine energy industry and the environment in which marine energy converters (MECs) operate. A short history of MG development over the past century is then presented followed by a discussion of the leading MG technologies and their relative advantages. In order to demonstrate the potential of MGs in marine applications, the current technologies, i.e. mechanically geared and direct drive machines, are examined in terms of sizing, reliability and economic value using previous studies on a similar technology, namely wind. MGs are applied to four types of MECs to demonstrate how the technology can be incorporated. The potential to deploy at scale and potential obstacles to this are then discussed.
Highlights
With an estimated 95 TWh/year of tidal energy and 69 TW/year of wave energy in the UK alone [1], combined marine energy presents a promising economic opportunity and has led to the development of numerous devices focused on harnessing this resource
A leading issue facing Magnetic gears (MGs) deployment is the high cost of the permanent magnet (PM) material meaning that high torque systems are currently expensive and in a new industry, like wave and tidal energy, this factor could result in devices being uncompetitive
6 Conclusion A review of MG technology has been presented in the context of their applicability to a selection of marine energy devices
Summary
With an estimated 95 TWh/year of tidal energy and 69 TW/year of wave energy in the UK alone [1], combined marine energy presents a promising economic opportunity and has led to the development of numerous devices focused on harnessing this resource. When compared to onshore renewable technologies, wind in particular, a key obstacle is the significantly higher operation and maintenance (O&M) costs associated with any offshore installation [2] including specialised equipment, heightened health and safety requirements, and the need for weather windows to perform necessary maintenance and repair procedures. This is exacerbated by operating in the harsh environments usually associated with marine energy, i.e. high wave height, strong tidal flows and a highly saline environment. These associated costs have resulted in a focus on low failure, robust systems
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