SBIR Phase I: PAX Rotor Development for Flexible Power Take-Off

该项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力在于开发一个灵活的微型水力发电系统，为偏远和发展中地区的个人和小社区/合作社提供清洁、可靠和负担得起的能源。它承诺在瓦特和千瓦级的竞争解决方案中具有明显的性能优势，同时提供最低的总拥有成本。这与全球海洋流体动力（MHK）市场有关，该市场适用于世界河流，潮汐，洋流甚至人工建筑（如灌溉运河和污水管道）的能源发电。MHK能源是水力发电的一种社会和环境友好型替代方案，因为不需要水坝来提取能源。这个市场是潜在的有利可图的，但仍然是非常新生的，由于高技术成本，关注涡轮机的生存能力，鱼类友好性，并在允许这些部署的困难，特别是在美国和西欧。这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目将转化为一个稳定的MHK转子仿生为基础的设计，可以支持灵活的动力输出配置。基线设计是通过对哺乳动物心血管系统的超高效、低湍流流动几何形状进行逆向工程而创建的。当应用于MHK转子时，所产生的几何形状允许从更长的流动水延伸中转换能量，这可以导致与传统MHK转子类似的功率/能量产生，但所需深度为一半。在项目期间，将改变形状，以实现可预测的稳定设计，并在可变流量条件下实现最大输出效率。拟议的研发计划是一项主要的研究工作，利用计算流体动力学（CFD）、原型设计和水箱测试等方法，确定导致可预测、高性能MHK转子设计的变量。此外，对这种设计的更深入理解也将扩大迅速兴起的仿生学领域的知识体系。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this project lies in the development of a flexible micro-hydro energy generation system that can provide clean, reliable and affordable energy for individuals and small communities/cooperatives in remote and developing regions. It promises to have clear performance advantages over competing solutions at Watt and Kilowatt scale while providing the lowest cost of total ownership. This is relevant to the global marine hydrokinetic (MHK) market which applies to energy generation from the world's rivers, tides, ocean currents and even manmade constructions such as irrigation canals and effluent pipes. MHK energy is a socially and environmentally friendly alternative to hydroelectric power as no dam is required to extract energy. This market is potentially lucrative but is still very nascent due to high technology costs, concerns over turbine survivability, fish friendliness, and difficulty in permitting these deployments, especially in the US and Western Europe.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will transform a biomimicry-based design into a stable MHK rotor that can support flexible power take-off configurations. The baseline design was created by reverse-engineering the ultra-efficient, low-turbulence flow geometry of mammalian cardiovascular systems. When applied to a MHK rotor, the resulting geometry allows for the conversion of energy from a longer stretch of flowing water, which can lead to similar power/energy generation to that of traditional MHK rotors but with half the required depth. During the project, the shape will be varied to result in a predictable, stable design with maximum efficiency of output under variable flow conditions. The proposed R&D plan is a primary research effort in identifying the variables that lead to predictable, high performance, MHK rotor design utilizing such methodologies as computational fluid dynamics (CFD), prototyping and water tank testing. In addition, greater understanding of this design will also expand the body of knowledge in the rapidly emerging field of biomimicry.