Project description
Cyclonic converter generator: high power for onshore wind energy
Wind is a clean, inexhaustible energy source. Long-bladed turbines can capture more of the available wind than those with shorter blades. However, their transportation, installation and maintenance is neither cheap nor easy. The EU-funded YURAKAN project's CCG technology is based on the concept of a reduced and controlled cyclone inside a hollow structure, an artificial vortex from the horizontal wind. It integrates and concentrates environmental energies. Advantages of the CCG solution compared to conventional technology include scalability, onshore installation, smaller occupied surface, and the option to mount turbines close to each other. The technology also integrates wind with other energies, has a low noise impact, and is wildlife friendly.
Objective
Wind is an inexhaustible source of energy with potential to supply 20 times more power than what the entire human
population needs, and it has already surpassed any other source of renewable energy reaching 452 GW in 2016 of onshore
power installed capacity, which is forecasted to grow up to 922 GW in 2030 -6.7% of the world’s power consumption. Yet,
current technology requires to employ huge blades to obtain more energy. This is not efficient and safe as they need high
initial investment in the turbines manufacturing, transportation and ground works and a major portion of land, which
increases the rental costs and can displace farming from fertile land. Also, the blades are prone to erosion, requiring costly
operation maintenance and they can be a safety hazard to the people working in these wind farms when submitted to
tornados or hurricanes.
Our CCG technology is based on the concept of a packed and controlled cyclone inside a hollow tower, which rotates the
turbine blades on the top of the structure. In this way a CCG 30 MW unit (15x more than the most common turbines)
occupies 30x less space. Our CCG solution is simple and easy to build, consisting of a turbine generator and a reinforced
concrete structure, it can be installed using current road ways. Thanks to these features, CCG can be installed in onshore
locations, where winds >30 m/s, may occur. It will reduce by 50% energy costs compared with conventional horizontal-axis
wind turbines, i.e. LCOE (0.02-0.03 €/kW) CAPEX (750-950 €/kW)
Our target market will be existing onshore wind farms for repowering and planned wind farms, i.e. > 900 GW in 2022.
Thanks to the uniqueness of CCG, we expect to get at least a 1% penetration in the wind energy sector by 2024, which
means over 1 GW capacity installed with our technology and a ROI of 9.8. After testing the first prototype, to evaluate the
best market entry we need to perform a detailed feasibility study for what we are asking for support from the EC.
Fields of science
Programme(s)
- H2020-EU.3.3. - SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Secure, clean and efficient energy Main Programme
- H2020-EU.2.1.1. - INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Leadership in enabling and industrial technologies - Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)
- H2020-EU.2.3.1. - Mainstreaming SME support, especially through a dedicated instrument
Funding Scheme
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1Coordinator
35600 PUERTO DEL ROSARIO LAS PALMAS
Spain
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.