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Rotor and shaft are connected with a flexible joint (teetering hinge) that drastically reduces mechanical fatigue values. Also, the higher rotational speed reduces overall weight.
About
INNOVATION Compared to the state of the art 3-bladed technology, Seawind technology has: - A flexible joint between the rotor and the shaft (teetering hinge) which leads to lower mechanical fatigue values, a simpler design and a lighter drive train. - A higher rotor rotational speed which generates lower torque hence, a lighter drive train. - Less moving parts. Seawind technology has 2/3 less yaw drives. - Less active mechanisms. Seawind technology has a passive teetering hinge whilst 3-bladed have an active pitching mechanism. Hence Seawind has lower capex and opex. The technology was initially developed by NASA and is inspired by the helicopter teetering hinge. MARKET The largest green energy reservoir is offshore floating wind which is untapped today. Less than 14 floating turbine prototypes are being tested today. The 3-bladed technology and their rigid rotor are suffering from gyroscopic forces especially when turbines get larger. The current turbine players in floating are Siemens Gamesa and MHI Vestas. GE is still producing bottom fixed solutions. Seawind can take a leading position in this untapped market because: - With the unique teetering hinge of Seawind, the gyroscopic forces are eliminated. - Furthermore, Seawind's overall turbine head weight is 25% lighter than the competition hence, a lower overall cost.
Key Benefits
LOWER TURBINE CAPEX - 25% lower - 25% lower turbine head weight - 2/3 less yaw drives - Less active mechanism - Higher rotational speed leading to lower turbine head weight - Simpler technology due to the introduction of the teetering hinge LOWER TURBINE OPEX - 25% lower - Lower mechanical fatigue values due to the teetering hinge and higher rotational speed (less torque) LOWER TURBINE CARBON FOOTPRINT - 25% lower - 25% less material and no rare earth by design ACCESS TO NEW AND UNTAPPED MARKET - OFFSHORE FLOATING WIND - The unique, flexible teetering hinge allows the turbine to face rough seas and high wind speed with drastic lower mechanical fatigue values.
Applications
The target market is the WIND OFFSHORE FLOATING MARKET in deep waters (more than 50 metres deep). Whilst this market is untapped today, it represent the largest green energy "reservoir". Technical reserves of offshore floating wind are 18 times larger than the current global electricity generation today (source: IEA).