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Tidal Testing Centre (TTC)
Identification
Hosting Legal Entity
Tidal Testing Centre
Location
Sluiskolkkade 2, Den Oever, PO: 1779 GP, Noord-Holland (Netherlands)
Structure
Type Of RI
Single-sited
Coordinating Country
Netherlands
Status
Status
Current Status:
Operational since 2012
Scientific Description
The Dutch Tidal Testing Centre (TTC) provides opportunities for tidal stream testing at intermediate scale. It offers testing in a sluice gate, open water push tests with a barge and at the dedicated offshore floating site.Besides these services, TTC is involved in several funded research projects both in national and international consortia. It collaborates with other test facilities such as ECN, NIOZ, EMEC and others and in international networks, for example on the development of standards in the International Electrotechnical Commission IEC to help advance the marine energy industry.

RI Keywords
Tidal stream energy, Hydro-kinetic, Floating platform, Discharge channel, River current turbines, Marine energy, Tow tests, Energy dams, Ocean energy, Energy dikes
Classifications
RI Category
Marine & Maritime Engineering Facilities
Earth, Ocean, Marine, Freshwater, and Atmosphere Data Centres
Energy Engineering Facilities (non nuclear)
Safety Handling facilities
Acoustic monitoring stations
Scientific Domain
Engineering and Energy
Services
Sluice gate testing

TTC offers developers access to two separate sluice gates. The sluice gates act like a ducted channel with water flows up to 5 m/sec depending on the hydraulic head over the gates. The basic function of the sluice gate is to discharge water from the IJsselmeer to the Wadden Sea, twice a day at times of low water on the sea side (ebb). Testing facilities available on site are a feed-in electrical grid-connection with a capacity of 160 kVA. Data acquisition and video link services are available via the network of Tidal Testing Centre.

Push testing in open water

TTC offers the unique possibility to tow or push turbines at large scale through still open water. This can be a useful test to determine performance at controlled speeds as a reference for tests carried out in more turbulent waters. The tests will typically provide an upper band of the performance of the turbine. Turbines with a diameter up to 4m can be towed or pushed with a barge on the IJsselmeer lake. This lake has negligible current. With a dump load on board, up to 100kW of power can be dissipated. At the Wadden Sea turbine diameters up to 10m are possible. Since these waters are under the influence of the tides, tests are best performed during slack tide offer a shorter test window. The turbine and its auxiliary equipment will be installed at the nearby harbor of Den Oever on the barge "De IJsselmeer". TTC can manage the full process on behalf of developers.

Equipment
Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler

Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP)

Collaborations
Networks
International Energy Agency implementing agreement on Ocean Energy Systems
Date of last update: 12/07/2013
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