HALES WATER TURBINES LTD HIT BY UK AID BUDGET CUTS

 

  ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT  UK OVER SEAS AID PACKAGES WAS ARRANGED BY UK RESEARCH AND INNOVATE THROUGH THEIR ENERGY CATALYST PROGRAMS.

  THE 2020 ENERGY CATALYST R8 FUNDING PACKAGE OF £20 MILLION GBP WAS DESIGNED AROUND PROVIDING EASY AND CHEAP ENERGY SYSTEMS TO REMOTE RURAL COMMUNITIES IN UP TO 60 COUNTRIES, MAINLY IN THE SUB-SHARIAN AFRICAN AND SOUTH EAST ASIAN AREAS.

THE HALES TURBINE 1MX1M MEC WATER TURBINES, COMPLETE WITH AN ATTACHMENT PACKAGE TO PROVIDE EASY DEPLOYMENT, SELF MAINTENANCE AND SELF OPERATION WAS DESIGNED ESPECIALLY FOR THIS USE, WITH FLAT PACK SHIPPING AND SIMPLE PART REPLACEMENT WITH THE TOOL KIT SUPPLIED, THESE UNITS, ALONG THE THE NEXT SIZED CONTRA-ROTATIONAL 2MX2M UNITS  WOULD ALLOW THESE UNDEVELOPED COMMUNITIES TO IMPROVE THEIR LIVING STANDARDS, HEALTH AND BUILD GREATER EXPECTATIONS FOR THEIR COMMUNITIES AND CONSIDER BUILDING A BETTER LIFE THEIR RATHER THAN RISK MIGRATION.

HOWEVER, THE AID BUDGET CUTS IN 2020 FROM 0.7% TO 0.5% HAS RESULTED IN UK RESEARCH A& INNOVATE DELAYING THE SELECTION OF WINNERS OF THE COMPETITION, DUE TO BE KNOWN IN DECEMBER 2020, WHILE THEY RE EVALUATE THEIR FUNDING.

WE ARE TOLD EACH MONTH THAT THIS £ 20 MILLION GBP FUNDING IS STILL CONSIDERED AND COMPETITORS  ARE ADVISED AT THE END OF EACH MONTH THAT IT IS STILL UNDER REVIEW.

LIKE A LARGE NUMBER OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT COMPANIES, HALES WATER TURBINES LTD IS "SITTING ON IT'S HANDS", SURVIVING, BUT UNABLE TO DO SERIOUS DEVELOPMENT WITHOUT CERTAINTY ON THIS FUNDING ROUTE AND OTHERS , WHILE KEEPING MORE THAN 50 PEOPLE INFORMED AT THE SEVEN WORLD WIDE UNIVERSITIES PARTNERED AND THE OTHER COMPANIES IN THE UK INVOLVED UP TO DATE.

HWT LTD , WHILE GREATLY LIMITED, IS STILL WORKING WITH OTHERS TO OVERCOME AND IMPROVE DESIGNS AND METHODS TO HARVEST THE HIGH TORQUE/LOW RPM ENERGY INTO EFFECTIVE ELECTRICAL GENERATION.

OUR LATEST TALKS ARE WITH THE EXCITING DEVELOPERS AT EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY WITH THEIR PATENTED LOW SPEED GENERATOR, SEE EXTRA BELOW.

Drive Train for Hales Water Turbine

Preliminary Study

Provided within this preliminary study are geared and direct drive C-GEN generator systems for a 6kW and a 100kW horizontal axis turbine. These designshave been assessed based on information provided by Hales Water Turbines. Further assessment would be required to optimise the mass, efficiency and operation further. This document is to be used as a guide only.

C-GEN Topology Overview

 

Figure 1. The C-GEN Generator Topology

C-GEN is an innovative multi-stage air-cored PMG technology developed at the University of Edinburgh that is applicable to direct drive, slow or medium speed drive train designs. The differentiating design features of the patented C-GEN design include:

•             An axial flux topology with C-shaped rotor core

•             An air-cored stator arrangement

•             Generator divided into several axial generator stages that are electrically independent

•             Generator rotor and stator divided into low weight standardised modules around the circumference

C-GEN is made up of light weight stator and rotor modules, Figure 1. The low generator and module weight of the C-GEN technology reduces O&M costs compared to traditional iron-cored, radial flux PMG systems. The maintenance of drive train components, if necessary, can be carried out with lighter lifting equipment or an internal turbine crane.

Hales Water TurbineConcept:

Hales Water Turbine (HWT) developers have provided the following information as an introduction to the device design.HWT have developed a single cylinder self-pitchingsix bladed turbine and a twin cylinder, contra-rotating turbine, which has yielded better efficiencies and is more robust than the single cylinder 6 bladed turbine. The turbine can easily be screened to protect the blades from large foreign objects.

The visual aspects are that the Turbine units are not only unobtrusive, but are of modular design and can be ‘stacked’ or placed in arrays. It was found that that the Hales Turbine, when place in arrays or ‘stacked’, did not affect the sea/river bed by rotational scouring. This type of ‘reaction’ turbine works very well in turbulent flows, and is fish and eel friendly. The Hales can be positioned on the sea/river bed, mid-height or floated just below the surface.

HWT are looking to utilise a marinised generator for subsea testing and are interested in the C-GEN machine due to its modularity, subsea flooded operation, direct drive option and high efficiency over a range of operational constraints. HWT are looking to install their current demonstrator device at EMEC for testing, and aim to deploy modular units in tidal estuaries, offshore tidal currents streams, rivers etc. Figure 2 

 

HALES WATER TURBINES LTD WILL CONTINUE TALKS WITH THE SEVERAL INTERESTED SITE DEVELOPERS AROUND THE WORLD AND IN THE UK WHO CAN SEE THE POTENTIAL OF THE HALES TURBINES DESIGN AND COULD RAPIDLY BE ADDED TO THE ENERGY CATALYST R/8 PROGRAM.

 

PAUL HALES 

DIRECTOR

HALES WATER TURBINES LTD