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March 2017

66.9-Meter Blades Delivered for Goldwind’s 3 MW Turbine

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LM Wind Power recently announced its newly developed 66.9-meter blades for Goldwind’s 3 MW wind-turbine platform, the GW3S, were installed successfully on the first prototype turbine.

The new blade was developed in record time with the installation taking place less than six months from project initiation.

The LM Wind Power blades have been selected as part of Goldwind’s strategy to provide advanced technology and high performing products that can serve the significant domestic market in China and support Goldwind’s ambitious globalization strategy. The blades will be produced at LM Wind Power’s plant in Qin Huang Dao in the North eastern part of China.

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“With this turbine, Goldwind aspires to lead the industry in availability and performance in the low-wind speed segment where rotor diameters are increasing in size,” said Goldwind executive VP Wu Kai. “Goldwind recognizes tailor-made blades as the best way to improve the competitiveness of the wind turbine, and LM Wind Power as a long standing, reliable partner, was an obvious choice. We are very pleased with the collaboration and fast execution of this new blade project.”

“We see the collaboration on the blades for the GW3S platform to be a milestone in our partnership with Goldwind,” said LM Wind Power’s CEO, Marc de Jong. “Our teams have worked closely together to develop the 136-meter rotor, and we are working on even more blade designs for this and larger turbine platforms. We look forward to supporting Goldwind in their growth plans and the continued innovation on new blade designs.” 

Source: LM Wind Power

For more information, go to www.lmwindpower.com

Test Systems Bring the Next Generation of Technology to Life

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Testing is crucial to innovation. While many new ideas are born every single day, not all can successfully make their way into the field. Key to understanding which ideas are economically viable is R&D test systems, and never has this been more crucial than in the manufacturing industry. Through using the test system, manufacturers can tailor products to specific performance requirements before installation and commissioning, helping to enhance performance in the field. They can also help to prove R&D and deliver lifecycle results, which are invaluable for developing new innovations.

Without test systems, manufacturers cannot ensure the quality and lifespan of products, nor can they understand the limitations of the components. When you consider, on average, that a wind turbine can cost more than 5 percent of the initial investment (excluding the cost caused by loss of production) or that a single equipment failure may shut down an entire power plant and cause a city-wide black out, safeguarding such investments is crucial.

By testing products at the research and development phase, as well as re-testing before product delivery — so called end-of-line testing — operators can significantly reduce the probability of running into problems out in the field. This practice helps accelerate the development cycle, improve productivity and cost efficiencies and plays a crucial role in bringing the next generation of technology to life.

Much like the power-generation industry, test requirements are changing as technology evolves. In the past, test systems were mechanical, but today, an electrical approach is favored within the industry because it results in higher performance and quality of testing due to the wider scope of testing scenarios it allows. With this in mind, manufacturers should seek out the companies with vast electrical and mechanical expertise that can act as trusted partners in testing products and innovations.  

Long-Term Success

It does take time to accumulate knowledge, experience, and insight into how to set up the most efficient and lasting test systems.

Having been in the test industry for more than 30 years, GE provides turnkey projects and takes care of the full lifecycle of the benches. Today it has more than 2,500 test benches installed globally across various industries such as marine, renewables, automotive, power generation, and oil and gas.

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At the heart of its practice is leveraging GE’s Power Conversion’s extensive electric engineering experience to provide a qualified test system with an optimized variable and flexible turnkey approach. Considering the ever-changing demand on electrical drive systems within test systems, GE’s Power Conversion is using its expertise to the most customized and flexible test system solutions.

GE also closely collaborates with customers throughout the lifecycle of a test system and avoids a “one-size-fits-all” approach: Each test system is designed to be bespoke and is best suited to test the specific product. This is key, since a test system must be reassembled on demand to adapt to the requirements and environments for testing new equipment.

As such, a good test system must be broad in scope, flexible, and variable while allowing the customer to tailor performance of product, providing space to imagine and create the next generation of innovation.

GE’s test systems solutions are also highly robust, capable of sustaining thousands of hours of mechanical and electrical stress. By simulating the extreme environment conditions or worse-case scenario, it will push the boundaries of the new equipment to the highest standard of reliability. GE has world-record test system solutions in the renewables industry. GE partnered with the Lindoe Offshore Renewables Center on one of the world’s most advanced facilities to test wind-turbine nacelles with an output power of up to 10 MW.

In doing so, it aims to build a test system that will support the wind industry as a significantly safer and reliable supplier of renewable energy. By thoroughly testing all components and products in the development cycle, operators can create robust structures that support power generation globally. 

Source: GE

For more information, go to www.gepowerconversion.com/industries/testing-solutions-services

Wisconsin Oven Ships 10 Ovens for Turbine Components Manufacturer

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Wisconsin Oven Corporation shipped 10 electrically heated enhanced duty walk-in series ovens, each a Model EWN. The ovens will be used for curing wind-turbine components.

The maximum temperature rating for all the ovens is 176 degrees F (80 degrees C). The chamber dimensions are 6’6” W x 4’0” L x 6’0” H.

The ovens have combination airflow which provides both horizontal and vertical upward airflow which maximizes heating rates and temperature uniformity of the product. Per the manufacturers request, the ovens required a temperature uniformity of ±2 degrees C, and they actually achieved ±1 degrees C in practice.  

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The ovens also include a Eurotherm Nanodac paperless digital recorder with 50 MB of flash memory. This feature allows the manufacturer to store three months of data at a time.

“We strive to design our equipment to provide the best quality part results for our customers,” said Mike Grande, senior application engineer. “In this case, we guaranteed a very tight temperature uniformity to help create consistent end results.”

Unique features of this batch oven include:

  • Temperature uniformity of ±1 degrees C.
  • Digital Eurotherm 3504 programmable temperature controller.
  • Increased recirculation fan CFM and HP to achieve the guaranteed temperature uniformity.
  • Additional thermocouple probes inside the ovens.
  • Increased heating chamber width by 6 inches to provide clear width of 79 inches with the doors opening at 90 degrees.
  • An additional pushbutton station at the front of the oven for operator convenience.
  • Increased heaters from 8 kW to 12 kW.

The walk-in ovens were fully factory tested and adjusted prior to shipment from Wisconsin Oven’s facility. All safety interlocks were checked for proper operation, and the equipment was operated at the normal and maximum operating temperatures.

An extensive quality assurance check list was completed to ensure the equipment met all Wisconsin Oven quality standards. The industrial conveyor oven is backed by Wisconsin Oven’s 5-year warranty. This warranty covers all materials for all components (less wear items). 

Source: Wisconsin Oven Corporation

For more information, go to www.wisoven.com

 

Senvion Orders More Than 300 MW in Australia

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Senvion, a leading global manufacturer of wind turbines, has signed a conditional contract with Nexif Energy for the EPC contracts and maintenance agreements for the 25 turbine Glen Innes Wind Farm in New South Wales and the 59 turbine Lincoln Gap Wind Farm in South Australia.

“We are particularly happy to announce this contract with Nexif Energy, only a short time after being selected as single preferred supplier,” said Jürgen Geissinger, CEO of Senvion. “This highlights the strong product fit Senvion can provide for Australian projects.”

Both wind farms will see the introduction of the new Senvion 3.6M140 turbine into the Australian market. Compared to its predecessor, the energy yield has been increased by up to 20 percent at wind speeds of 7.5 m/s, and the lifetime has been extended by 25 percent from 20 to 25 years. Improvements to the blades have resulted in lower sound in all operating modes. Combined, the projects will deliver more than 300 MW of clean, renewable energy to Australian consumers.

Since starting operations in Australia in 2002, Senvion has installed 218 turbines from the Senvion 2-MW series with a cumulated rated power of more than 440 MW.  

Source: Senvion

For more information, go to www.senvion.com

 

Ingeteam Takes Wind Converter Supplier Top Spot After Record Year

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Ingeteam, an independent global supplier of electrical conversion equipment, has achieved a new record year for the deliveries of its wind-power converters worldwide.

With nearly 5 GW of new capacity added in 2016 alone, a total of 36,414 MW of wind turbines have been equipped with Ingeteam’s technology since 1995, making the Spanish company the world’s No. 1 supplier of wind-power converters.

Ingeteam’s record performance was particularly impressive in large emerging wind markets, despite intense competition.

Deliveries to India and Brazil reached a peak volume of 1,268 MW and 837 MW, respectively, in 2016.

According to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) of India, the country’s total wind-power capacity has reached more than 28 GW, with an additional 3,612 MW installed in 2016 alone.

Ingeteam ended 2016 with more than 35 percent of the wind-power capacity installed in the country that year. To date, 9 percent of all wind-power capacity in India is equipped with Ingeteam’s technology.

By December 2016, more than 10,740 MW was being generated by wind farms in Brazil, according to data from GWEC.

In 2016, installed capacity has increased by an additional 2,014 MW, which represents a 41 percent market share for Ingeteam for that year and 23 percent of the total market to date. 

Source: Ingeteam

For more information, go to www.ingeteam.com

Exceed 4MW+ Gearbox Passes Overload Test

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Moventas has been developing a new product to the Exceed technology. The Exceed product platform was launched in 2014 with a 3MW+ gearbox with the best weight/nominal torque ration in the market. A new Exceed 4MW+ will now be joining the product family.

The Exceed 4MW+ gearbox successfully completed a long-time overload test in January at Moventas Research and Technology center in Finland. The results in this lifecycle simulating test were great, with highest loads being more than double of the nominal power. Vibrational and sound behavior, operational functionality parameters, and load sharing on gears were on excellent level.

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The 4MW+ gearbox has gone through an intensive verification process supervised by classification body, turbine manufacturer, and Moventas experts. Next, the first gearboxes will be installed to a wind turbine for further validation measurements in actual operating conditions.

The new 4MW+ gearbox continues the success of the Moventas technology roadmap to implement the proven Moventas technologies with new innovations and design methods in the Exceed series to lower the cost of energy in wind-power generation.

Moventas already has delivered more than1-GW Exceed technology gearboxes in the 3MW+ class, and the newcomer is another significant step to provide small-size, light-weight, and high-torque-density gearboxes to yet another power range of wind turbines.  

Source: Moventas

For more information, go to moventas.com

Siemens 8-MW Wind Turbine Up and Running

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Siemens Wind Power has installed the latest version of its offshore direct drive wind turbine at the national test center in Østerild, Denmark — according to plan. The SWT-8.0-154 is rated at 8 MW and equipped with the proven 154-meter rotor. The prototype was certified by DNV GL in January, confirming all relevant safety features for test operation. The new offshore turbine was installed on a steel tower at a hub height of 120 meters. The prototype will be used for both mechanical and electrical testing. The final type certificate is expected for 2018.

With the full commissioning of the prototype, Siemens will enter the final development phase for the new turbine that allows for up to 10 percent higher annual energy production (AEP) under offshore wind conditions than the 7-MW model. The upgrade to 8 MW enables a rated power increase of more than 14 percent from 7.0 to 8.0 MW. Similar to the previous upgrade from 6.0 MW to 7.0 MW, the 8-MW turbine will benefit from the established supply chain and proven offshore direct drive technology components. Since the higher rating will be achieved with only a few component upgrades, including a new cooling concept and a new control system, customers will again benefit from key value drivers including fast time-to-market and low risk.

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“The installation of the SWT-8.0-154 prototype in Østerild is an important milestone in the success story of our offshore direct drive wind turbines,” said Michael Hannibal, CEO of Offshore at Siemens Wind Power. “The evolution based on our platform strategy demonstrates that innovation to lower the cost of wind energy can work without compromising the proven reliability of a technically mature product.”

The offshore direct drive is the youngest Siemens wind-turbine platform. It has already made an impact: Recently 100 years of combined operation were reached with 2.5 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity produced. The total energy yield harvested by Siemens offshore direct drive generators installed by the end of 2016, corresponds to the energy demand of all households in the city of Munich for an entire year. This amount of electricity has been produced in less than six years, starting with the first SWT-6.0-120 prototype to large offshore projects now in operation such as Westermost Rough in the U.K. and Gode Wind in German waters. At the same time, Siemens’ Offshore Direct Drive platform helped to avoid 1.25 million metric tons of CO2 emissions. This corresponds to the emission of all cars in a city the size of Munich over a period of four months. The latest model SWT-8.0-154 is expected to enter serial production in 2019.

About 150 Siemens offshore direct drive wind turbines have been handed over to customers. More than 600 units of Siemens’ offshore direct drive wind turbines have been sold since the launch of the large gearless turbine in 2011.

The innovative product platform incorporates the unique technical experience from more than 2,300 installed offshore turbines and nearly 1,300 onshore direct-drive wind turbines. 

Source: Siemens Wind Power

For more information, go to www.siemens.com/wind

Boom Booster Kit Increases Lift Capacities for Turbine Construction

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Big construction activity recently took place nearby the small town of Lüderitz, Germany. A number of large, 149-meter hub-height wind turbines were erected to help supply clean, renewable energy for the city and surrounding north-central Germany region.

Heavy lifting specialist Franz Bracht Kran-Vermietung GmbH of Erwitte, Germany, mobilized its crew and high capacity crane equipment to Lüderitz, including the Terex Superlift 3800 lattice boom crawler crane, to quickly and efficiently install the new power-generation equipment. Crew members transported enough boom and jib components plus superlift structure and counterweight for the 165-meter boom configuration required for the turbine erection process.  

For this installation, however, the massive crawler crane was equipped for the first time with a new type of boom configuration and frame option that increased crane capacity and improved rigging efficiency.

“With the new options, we can achieve a performance increase of 30 percente, meaning we get more lift capacity,” said Eric Jahn, six-year crane operator for Franz Bracht.   

Increased Radius

Standing between Franz Bracht’s crews and turbine erection were curbstones that forced crews to slightly adjust the lift plan on the Lüderitz application.

“The curbstones surrounded the wind turbine, which kept us from getting as close as we would have originally liked for the lift,” Jahn said. “However, the Boom Booster kit enabled us to erect the tower sections without a problem.”

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The new Boom Booster kit increases the stiffness of the main boom by increasing boom width from the standard 3 meters to a width of 3.5 meters. Up to seven booster sections with 12-meter lengths can be installed on the crane’s main boom, allowing it to reach a maximum hook height of 174 meters. The boom kit comes standard with the Terex Cranes fall protection system, and its design allows two additional boom sections to “slide” into the Boom Booster kit during transportation to eliminate the need for at least one truckload.

“This can result in up to 1,000 euros in transportation savings, depending on the crane configuration,” said Guntram Jakobs, product marketing manager for Terex Cranes.

Work Done on Time

Even with curbstones requiring the use of a longer lift radius, the Superlift 3800 crane easily handled the task. Turbine erection advanced quickly and seemingly nothing could stop Franz Bracht from completing construction at the wind farm, until a major snowstorm with high winds slowed progress to a crawl.

Even with the mid-season storm delaying progress for nearly three weeks, Franz Bracht still was able to complete the work on time and within budget using the Terex Superlift 3800 crane with the new Boom Booster kit.

“My coworker and I have been operating the crane for about two months, and we can definitely tell the difference with the Boom Booster kit,” Jahn said. “We’re really looking forward to working every day with this crane. The bottom line is that a tremendous crane has been made better and more powerful.” 

Source: Terex Cranes

For more information, go to www.terex.com

Soul Jack-Up Vessel Is the Next Step Up For Offshore Wind

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Ulstein and SeaOwls have launched a pioneering heavy-lift jack-up vessel design. The cruciform structural layout makes the solution more than 10 percent lighter than conventional designs. The concept aims to install the next generation 10-12 MW wind turbines in the same time frame as used today for installing 6-8 MW units.

SeaOwls and Ulstein launched Soul at the Offshore Wind Journal Conference in February. In combination with a high capacity crane, Soul enables operators to take the next step in developing offshore wind farms.

“The development of this novel jack-up vessel is the logical next step in our strategy to widen our portfolio and become a leading company in supporting the offshore wind industry with more efficient assets,” said Tore Ulstein, deputy CEO at Ulstein Group.

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“Combining the vast track record in heavy-lift vessel designs from our Dutch Ulstein branch with SeaOwls’ experience in jack-up technology, resulted in an innovative jack-up vessel concept based on proven technologies.”

Scaling-up conventional heavy-lift jack-up vessel designs proves challenging due to the disproportional weight increase compared to gain in variable deck load (VDL).

“We noticed this created uncertainty with turbine manufacturers, wind-farm operators, and installation contractors on how to install the future generation wind turbines, as floating vessels are not a viable alternative,” said Erik Snijders, founder and managing director at Rotterdam-based SeaOwls. “So we went back to the optimal jack-up design, a square platform with the legs spaced out as much as possible. Rotating the platform by 45 degrees provided a natural bow shape with two legs and the crane on vessel center line.”

“This seemingly simple twist in the design allowed to make a huge improvement in operational aspects as well,” said Bram Lambregts, deputy managing director at Ulstein Design & Solutions BV. “With the main crane around the stern leg, optimal main deck reach and over-the-side lifting capabilities are created. And as the hull now houses much larger leg footings, bearing pressures on the seabed are reduced, while the wake of the spud cans does not interfere with the inflow to the propulsion thrusters.”

The Soul series will come in various sizes, allowing the transport of three to six of the 10-12 MW wind turbines. Still, all loading and installation operations can be performed without the need of ballast water. 

Source: Ulstein Group

For more information, go to ulstein.com

Two Sites Announced for Iowa’s Wind XI Project

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MidAmerican Energy plans to build new wind farms in Boone, Greene, and Mahaska counties in Iowa. The two new wind farms will be the first Wind XI project sites selected for construction.

MidAmerican Energy plans to begin construction in April on the Beaver Creek wind project in Boone and Greene counties and the Prairie wind project in Mahaska County, with completion scheduled for the end of 2017.

The wind farms are part of MidAmerican Energy’s Wind XI project and will add 338 MW of new wind generation capacity in Iowa: the Beaver Creek wind project will consist of 85 turbines, which will add 170 MW of wind generation capacity and the Prairie wind project will have 84 turbines and add 168 MW of wind generation capacity.

MidAmerican Energy announced plans in April 2016 to invest $3.6 billion for the Wind XI project. It is the largest economic development investment in Iowa’s history.

The project calls for the construction of 1,000 wind turbines that will add 2,000 MW of wind-generation capacity in Iowa.

The company is working with developers, county officials, and landowners at potential wind-farm sites in other Iowa counties for the balance of the Wind XI project. Construction on these projects would start in 2018 and 2019, and sites will be announced at a later date.

Construction on the entire Wind XI project is expected to be complete by December 2019.

“MidAmerican Energy is not asking for an increase in customer rates or financial assistance from the state to pay for the Wind XI project,” said Bill Fehrman, president and CEO of MidAmerican Energy. “For our customers, the benefits of Wind XI are very clear: clean energy produced right here in Iowa, using an abundant natural resource. We believe the best way to meet the energy needs of our customers is to provide safe, reliable, affordable, and environmentally responsible energy.”

The Wind XI project is expected to produce $1.2 billion in economic benefits for Iowa communities as a result of landowner easements and property tax payments over the next 40 years.

Additionally, during construction, thousands of jobs are expected to be added to Iowa’s economy, and hundreds of new permanent jobs will be added when the expansion is complete.

With its investment in the Wind XI project, MidAmerican Energy’s wind generation each year will be equal to 85 percent of the energy used by its retail customers in Iowa, bringing it within striking distance of its 100 percent renewable energy vision. 

Source: MidAmerican Energy Company

For more information, go to www.midamericanenergy.com

 

Power Generation with Magical Inspiration

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The science behind producing renewable energy may sometimes seem like magic.

That bit of poetic license has not been lost on the creative team behind Accio Energy.

It’s with a wink and a wave of a metaphorical wand that it takes its name from the summoning spell used in the world of Harry Potter: Accio.

“We are inspired by Harry Potter,” said Accio Energy CEO Jennifer Baird. “It’s a summoning spell, and we think that sometimes what we’re doing is summoning energy out of the air.”

Accio Energy’s logo even contains a lightning bolt — if the Harry Potter spell reference was a little too vague.

But lightning also can be a symbol for electricity, and Accio Energy’s power-producing technology actually has a lot in common with a storm as it produces electrohydrodynamic (EHD) wind energy.

Emulating Nature

“It works with physics that are similar to a thunderstorm,” Baird said. “In a thunderstorm, you have rotating winds that separate positive and negative charges at the top and the bottom of a cloud. That builds up a large electrical potential and eventually you get a bolt of lightning. In our technology, we’re pumping seawater up into a whole series of panels, and the wind is actually blowing through that panel as the panel emits a cloud of positivelya charge droplets. The wind blows that cloud away and builds up a large electrical potential up to 200,000 volts or more.”

When the charged droplets in the panels return to the ocean, electrons are left behind on the structure. Accio Energy harvests the electrons by adding a load to the system, according to Baird.

The energy-producing structures from Accio Energy are a radical departure from traditional wind turbines.

“It doesn’t have any blades, so there are no rotating parts,” Baird said. “We’re using the principle of separation of electric charge to actually generate electricity. And the whole point of doing that is that we think we can cut costs out of the process of making electricity offshore.”

That process dovetails into Accio Energy’s main goal: make more offshore power generation possible.

“Most of the people on the planet live near shorelines,” Baird said. “And it puts the power generation near the people and ultimately reduces some of the transmission costs.”

The biggest challenge for offshore wind has been cost, according to Baird.

Unique Structure

Part of the appeal behind EHD wind energy is its unique structure, according to Baird. Once constructed, it can be larger than a football field. But its components are more easily transported than pieces of a turbine can sometimes be.

“Our panels are modular, so you can put a whole bunch of them in a standard container truck and ship them around the world as opposed to having to basically shut down the roads to move the big turbine parts around,” Baird said. “So while our structures are still quite big, they go together a little bit like Legos. They go together in a modular way.”

A hurdle that traditional turbines sometimes face is simply where they end up. Residents who live near traditional wind farms sometimes complain about turbines obstructing the view, but EHD wind energy may be able to minimize that.

“We have a floating design, and because we have a floating design, that gives us some flexibility as to where we can site these,” Baird said. “And we can site them a little bit farther out to sea, so you won’t have viewscape issues.”

Baird said Accio Energy, which started in 2008, is not looking to replace traditional turbines, but to possibly add to an electrical grid using wind energy that wasn’t feasible in the past.

“There will be locations that are a good fit for our technology where it will be much more cost effective to use our technology versus wind turbines,” she said.

R&D Stage

Accio Energy’s EHD technology is still in the research and development stage, and Baird said the company has a ways to go before the system can be implemented commercially.

“At the end of the day, our No. 1 challenge is funding the technology development,” she said. “This is a new, different way of doing (energy production). We’re the world’s leader. We have 10 different issued patents on this technology globally, but it’s not done.”

Another part of that challenge is EHD’s continued development.

“Things have been going extremely well, development wise, but we have to go through the process of scaling it up, and that’s a real challenge because it’s not like turbine technology,” Baird said.

Turbine technology is well understood and well characterized where the industry can be fairly confident with simulations.

“We’re still developing the technology, and even though we have good indications that it can work on a large scale, it hasn’t yet done that,” Baird said. “So we have some steps to go through to prove the technology.”

Early 2020s

If Accio’s timetables do go according to schedule, Baird said she hopes to see big-scale demonstrations in the early 2020s. But, she added, timelines are always funding dependent.

But funding for the project is so far positive, according to Baird.

Accio Energy recently was awarded a $4.9 million grant from the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) for a two-year scale-up project. Part of that will go toward Accio’s first small-scale test off the coast of Maine.

But with EHD’s potential of positively affecting an energy producer’s bottom line by simplifying manufacturing and construction, the future of this new way to create renewable power seems bright.

“You can cut cost,” Baird said. “Big wind-turbine blades are complicated structures. It’s a little bit like manufacturing an airplane. We are a lot more like a car radiator. So we’re a lot more like manufacturing cars.”