Tocardo Tidal Energy Turbines

Tocardo produces turbines which spin underwater due to tidal forces and produce energy.

Tidal energy is due to the gravitational forces of the moon, meaning it is much more predictable and stable than wind or solar, which fluctuate highly depending on short term weather conditions.

Their turbines can be implemented into many kinds of existing infrastructure. One project they have worked on is the Eastern Scheldt storm surge barrier. This massive 9KM long barrier controls how much water flows through the channel between two blocks of land to protect the Netherlands from flooding. It allows water to pass through certain sections, and blocks it off when necessary. The funnelling of the water between columns increases the waters speed as it passes through, making it the ideal place for Tocardo to place their turbines. A 50 meter long structure was implemented into the barrier with 5 turbines attached to it. The accelerated water passes between the columns and propels the turbines, generating clean power (Kastelein, 2019:7).

Scheldt Storm Surge Barrier

Image from (holland.com 2021)

The barrier has a 100MW capacity, enough to power roughly ~100,000 households. It is the largest tidal energy project in the world (Unden, 2020).

Here is a video of the storm surge barrier :

Tocardo also make subsea structures with turbines, pictured below.

Image from (Unen, 2020)

References:

Holland.com, Editors. “Oosterschelde Storm Surge Barrier.” Holland.com, Holland.com, 4 Aug. 2021, https://www.holland.com/global/tourism/destinations/provinces/zeeland/oosterschelde-storm-surge-barrier.htm.

Kastelein, Ron, and Nancy Jennings. “Position Paper: Effects of the Eastern Scheldt Storm Surge ... - Tocardo.” SEAMARCO Report 2019-01, 2019, https://www.tocardo.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Bijlage-Seamarco_FINAL.pdf.

Unen, Andries van. “Tocardo Is a Specialist in Tidal Power Generation Solutions.” Tocardo, 7 Oct. 2020, https://www.tocardo.com/.