Dynamic Design and Analysis of Surface-type Kuroshio Power Plant

This research presents a whole new concept of a surface-type Kuroshio power plant, which includes floating platforms, turbines and mooring system. Based on the power plant demands, we designed a new underwater turbine and analyzed its characteristics and performance. Finally, the structural stress was analyzed under normal operation condition.
This concept is designed based on the characteristics of Kuroshio current and shallow sea landform. The key components include the performance demand of the turbine, the function design of the floating platform and choosing of the mooring system. After the concept is devised, diffuser and turbine assembly are designed in detail. The geometry of the diffuser is set first, including area ratio and the outlet angle. Performance and forces are analyzed with flat cross-section and NACA hydrofoil cross-section, with NACA 6412 profile as the optimal choice. The assembly of turbine and diffuser is devised and analyzed to help understand the performance and characteristics. Powered by Kuroshio, this turbine could generate 684kW with its dual rotor, whereas 1140kN of drag is induced. The induced dynamic phenomenon is too minor to impact the turbine’s steady operation in ocean currents. After the fluid dynamic analysis, solid mechanical analysis is performed by finite element technique , producing a stress-strain distribution that illustrates the structural reaction when operating in ocean currents.