A kinetic energy tidal generator in the Northern Territory-results

Favourable land formations in places with large differential tide heights can cause fast flowing tidal streams. One such tidal stream in the Northern Territory, with power densities as high as 6 kW/m/sup 2/, is the site of a kinetic tidal generator project. This paper presents the development of a high efficiency tidal generator to harness the kinetic energy present in the moving water and shows measured results from the site. It highlights the use of a high efficiency "lift" type turbine, a state of the art low-speed high-torque brushless DC machine type generator and synchronous rectifier, and a digital PID controller used to track the point of maximum power of the turbine.