Lockheed Martin to Test Tidal Energy Turbine
Dan Heilman | October 27, 2016A business unit of Lockheed Martin Corp. will create tidal turbines to withstand the turbulence of the Earth’s oceans in a manner similar to how its machines survive conditions of outer space. The company will work with Atlantis Resources Ltd. on the project, Bloomberg News says.
The AR1500 system will have pitching blades and full nacelle yaw rotation capability.Part of the purpose for developing the AR1500 tidal turbine is to apply Lockheed Martin’s military knowledge to civilian markets, along with its knowledge of renewable-energy technologies. Design of the turbine was completed by Lockheed Martin in 2014, Bloomberg says.
Tidal turbines resemble underwater windmills, except that rotors are driven by consistent, fast-moving currents. This causes the rotors to harness the power of the currents to drive generators, which produce electricity.
The AR1500 will have a rated capacity of 1.5 megawatts at tidal flows of 3.0 m/s. It is intended to withstand conditions likely to exist in the Pentland Firth in Scotland and the Bay of Fundy in Canada. Lockheed Martin says the AR1500 will have pitching blades and full nacelle yaw rotation capability to help it operate in highly energetic locations.