A Preliminary Study and Analysis of Tidal Stream Generators

For a sustainable future, tidal energy can play a vital role. Tidal energy relies on the gravitational pull of the Moon and the Sun along with the centrifugal forces created by the Earth. Tidal barrage uses the potential energy from the tide and has been very successful in electricity production. With the help of a turbine, kinetic energy can also be harnessed from tidal currents to generate electricity. However, it is not economically feasible to use this type of technology for large scale production of electrical energy. It is important to note that the development of this technology is still in the early stage. This research paper provides a preliminary discussion of tidal energy generation using a few different technologies. Initial research has been done using Computational Fluid Dynamics and SolidWorks software on the tidal stream generator and tidal barrage system. Some of the key challenges are also identified in terms of the development of the tidal energy conversion system.