Blue Energy Development

Darrieus wind mill:

We have reinvented the Darrieus Windmill (patented in the 1920's), creating and underwater vertical-axis hydro turbine engineered for rigorous marine applications.

The key component of the Blue Energy Power System is the Davis Hydro Turbine. Reinvented by eminent Canadian aeronautic and hydrodynamic engineer Barry V. Davis, the Davis Turbine is based on the undeveloped 1927 patent on a vertical axis windmill by French inventor Georges Darrieus.

The development lineage of the Davis turbine is directly linked to two engineering marvels that preceded its development - the famous Avro Arrow supersonic jet developed by the Canadian government, and the D'Havilland Bras D'Or 400 naval destroyer produced by the Canadian navy. Barry Davis was an aerospace engineer on the Avro Arrow and chief hydrodynamicist on Bras O'Dor Hydrofoil project. The hydrofoil propulsion system on the Bras D'Or allowed the 225 tonne ship to ride atop the water at a top speed of over 65 knots and paved the way for future design work on the Davis Hydro Turbine. Barry Davis also worked as Design Section Chief on Canadair's new RJ55 jet airplane.

Blue Energy's predecessor, Nova Energy Ltd., successfully built and field-tested two experimental test units and three prototype Davis Hydro Turbines through a $1.3 million, 10-year collaborative R&D program with the National Research Council of Canada. An additional unit was developed in 1984 with private funds, and deployed the following year in the Florida Gulfstream.

The technical feasibility of the Davis Hydro Turbine is supported by independent technology assessments.

Funding extended to the Blue Energy Ocean Turbine by the Canadian National Research Council was curtailed in the late 1980s. However, at that time, Dr. Bruce D. Pratte, Director of NRC's Coastal Engineering Program stated that:

"It was felt that the (Blue Energy Ocean Turbine) technology was sufficiently well proven that the next step in its evolution should be market driven, requiring investment by the private sector, utilities, or other governments."

Hydraulic Test Flume:

Preliminary tests were carried out on a Vertical Axis Water Turbine in the National Research Council Hydraulics Laboratory test flume in Ottawa during 1981 and 1982. The results of the tests conducted on the Model A and Model A-1 were encouraging, indicating the desirability of carrying out further model testing, design, development, cost studies to better define the performance and application suitability of this type of ultra-low head hydroelectric generating device. The preliminary trials were directed toward establishing the enhancement effect when a vertical axis turbine is mounted in various types of ducts. Results indicated that power outputs of the ducted turbine were up to 5 times greater than when the turbine was mounted in a free stream.

20 KW "B1":

A contract was awarded to build a 20 kW Vertical Axis Hydro Turbine in early 1983 for installation in the Seaway of Cornwall in Ontario and to connect it to the Niagara Power Corporation grid. The site was not very suitable, as it was too shallow and had currents of insufficient velocity. Nevertheless, the unit performed quite well, producing up to 20 kW on the grid. The generator was a vertically mounted induction unit driven by a variable speed gearbox. The generator alone had an efficiency ranging from 26% to 52.5%. The mechanical and electrical efficiency of this system (carefully established on an National Research Council dynamometer) was in the order of 45%, so that the turbine alone was actually producing about 45 kW. The B1 unit was then turned over to the Design Authority and was tested for two seasons by National Research Council.

100 KW "B2":

In 1984 another contract was awarded to design and build a 100 kW Vertical Axis Hydraulic Turbine, as a restricted flow unit with all the flow going through the turbine. This unit was mounted on a head pond control dam face with the flow controlled by two sluice gates controlled from a downstream power station. The site was Sheet Harbor, Nova Scotia, which had up to 19 ft of water depth and a 16 ft. height variation at the dam face. The B2 was connected to the Nova Scotia Power Corporation grid and had the usual motor overload relays and disconnects. In addition we added our own safety shutdown systems for vibration, power loss, disc brake auto on, fire warnings and bearing water supply failure shutdown. Performance did not exceed 70 kW, because of duct restriction, but had extensive running time and good correlation with predictions based on the model testing data.

4KW VEGA:

In 1984 a Texas businessman was enthusiastic about using vertical axis turbines to capture the energy in the Florida Gulf Stream, with the effect of producing electrical energy for the production of hydrogen and oxygen by electrolysis to fuel the Challenger space shuttles. He called this idea VEGA (Venturi Energy Generating Apparatus) and funded Nova Energy Ltd. to produce a vertical axis turbine model to generate power at a depth of 200 feet to avoid super tankers. The Davis Turbine Vega-I prototype was successfully employed in the first corporate venture to generate power from the Florida Gulf stream. Electric power was produced for the first time on April 15th, 1985.

5KW TOR5:

In the spring of 1987 the TOR 5 (5kW) run-of-river unit was constructed and tested at the entrance to Porters Lake in Nova Scotia. This unit was mounted on a retractable drum on a standard 18 ft. fiberglass boat hull which provided floatation, a self mooring capability, space for auxiliary equipment and maintenance personnel, trailer capability and propulsion to the selected site. Power was successfully generated, although the site proved too shallow and hazardous for proper operation. Further tests were postponed pending future site selection.

Read about Davis Hydro Turbine here.

Read the History of Development of the Davis Hydro Turbine here.