World premiere : GEPS Techno in a partnership with the Legendre Group and Ifremer, has managed to combine port protection and Marine Renewable Energy production
July 2022, after tank tests, a prototype of a positive-energy coastal dike is submerged for tests in the harbor of Brest for several months. The origin of this project: the Legendre Group, which commissioned GEPS Techno to harvest wave energy and integrate this device into a port dike. Ifremer supported the project by allowing trials in tanks and then at sea. Another example of the success of Innovation lab for blue economy!
How does a positive energy dike
The principle is to equip a coastal protection dike with a wave energy system, equipped with an oscillating flap activated by the waves. This allows to convert waves energy into sustainable and local electricity.
The 1/4 scale prototype measures almost 4.5m high and wide, and 6m deep. Installed on a fixed support, it is completely submerged at high tide. According to initial calculations, the device captures up to 60% of wave energy. It is equipped with sensors to measure the waves, the energy production and the resistance of the structure.
If it’s a prototype, what is the project timeline ?
Initiated in 2020, the first phase of this project consisted in testing the process using a 1/15th scale prototype, immersed in Ifremer’s deep water wave tank in Brest. This step validated the design of the prototype and confirmed the first numerical calculations, with an estimate of up to 60% capture of wave energy.
The second stage consists of testing this new prototype on a quarter scale, this time on Ifremer’s in situ testing station in Sainte Anne-du-Portzic, near Brest from July 2022 for a few month.
The third stage of the project will consist of carrying out tests on a prototype four times larger: almost 20 m wide and high, in concrete this time, for a production estimated in the range of one megawatt. The construction of this full-size prototype is planned for 2023 for a launch in 2024, on a site in Brittany which remains to be defined.
Many opportunities for energy positive dikes
Producing renewable energy in ports opens up the possibility of :
- Make a marina autonomous
- Supply port industries in energy
- Produce hydrogen with wave energy