By,

N Venkata Srinath,
MS Power Systems.

Introduction
Tide is a periodic rise and fall of the water level of sea which

are carried by the action of the sun and moon on the water of
the earth.
Here, the large scale up and down movement of sea water

represents an unlimited source of energy.

The main feature of the tidal cycle is the difference in water

surface elevation at the high tide and at the low tide.

If this differential head could be utilized in operating a

hydraulic turbine, the tidal energy could be converted into

electrical energy by means of an attached generator.

Tide
Tides are produced mainly by the gravitational attraction of

the Moon and the Sun.

Earth is able to hold onto everything except the water.
Since the water is always moving, the Earth cannot hold onto

it, and the moon is able to pull at it.

About 70% of the tide producing force is due to the moon and

30% to the sun.

The moon is the major factor in the tide formation.

Components of Tidal Power Plants

There are three main components of a tidal power plant i.e.
The power house.
The dam or barrage.
Sluice-ways.
The turbines, electric generators and other equipments are the

main equipments of power house.

The function of dam is to form a barrier between the sea and

the basin or between one basin and the other in case of

multiple basin.
The sluice ways are used either to fill the basin during the high

tide or empty the basin during the low tide. These are gate
controlled devices.

Classification of Tidal power systems

Single basin arrangement

Single ebb cycle system

Single tide cycle system
Double cycle system
Double basin arrangement

Single ebb cycle system

When the flood tide comes in, the sluice gates are opened

to permit sea-water to enter the basin or reservoir, while the

turbine sets are shut.
The reservoir thus starts filling while its level rises, till the

maximum tide level is reached.

At the beginning of the ebb tide the sluice gates are closed.
Then the generation of power takes place when the sea is

ebbing and the water from the basin flow over the turbine
into lower level sea water.

Single tide cycle system

In single tide

cycle systems, the generation is affected

when the sea is at flood tide.

The water is admitted into the basin over the turbines.

As the flood tide period is over and the sea level starts

falling again, the generation is stopped.

The basin is drained into the sea through the sluice ways.

 Flood operation scheme need larger size plant, operating for

shorter period and hence less efficient as compared to ebb

tide operation.
The ebb operation plant will be of smaller size, but will

operate over a large period.

The main disadvantage in both the ebb-cycle as well as the

tide cycle systems is the intermittent nature in their

operation.
A system can be geared to generate power, both during the

ebb and the flood tides with the help of single basin only.
This system is known as the double cycle system.

Double
cycle
system

The power generation is affected during the ebb as well as in

flood tides.

The direction of flow through the turbines during the ebb and

flood tides alternates, but the machine acts as a turbine for

either direction of flow.
In this method, the generation of power is accomplished both

during emptying and filling cycles.

Both filling and emptying process take place during short periods

of time, the filling when the ocean is at high tide while the water
in the basin is at low tide level, the emptying when the ocean is
at low tide and the basin at high-tide level.
The flow of water in both directions is used to drive a number of

reversible water turbines, each driving an electrical generator.

 Though the double cycle system has only short duration

interruptions in the turbine operation, yet a continuous

generation of power is still not possible.
These problems are solved to some extant in the two-basin

scheme.

Double Basin Arrangement

It requires two separate but adjacent basins.
In one basin called upper basin, the water level is

maintained above that in the other, the lower basin.

Because there is always a head between upper and lower

basins, electricity can be generated continuously.

Power in single basin tidal system

Pav (watts) = W/time = 0.5gAR2/time .
Where
A = basin surface area
R = Range(head/height available)

Power in a double cycle system

P(HP) = (Qh/75)*

Where
Q = average discharge
h= head available.

Advantages
The biggest advantage of the tidal power is inexhaustible.
It is completely independent of the rain or continuous dry of

any number of years.

Tidal power generation is free from pollution, as it does not

use any fuel and also does not produce any unhealthy waste
like gases, ash, atomic residue.
These power plants do not demand large area of valuable

land because they are on the sea shore.

Limitations
The variability in output caused by the variations in the tidal

range.
The tidal ranges is highly variable and thus the turbine have

to work on a wide range of head variations. This affects the

efficiency of the plant.
Sea water is corrosive.
Construction in sea or near too sea is found difficult.
Cost is not favorable compared to the other sources of

energy.

Indian Scenario
India is surrounded by sea on three sides.
The most attractive locations are the Gulf of Cambay and the

Culf of Kachchh on the west coast where the maximum tidal

range is 11 m and 8 m with average tidal range of 6.77 m and
5.23 m respectively.
The Ganges Delta in the Sunderbans in West Bengal also has

good locations for small scale tidal power development. The

maximum tidal range in Sunderbans is approximately 5 m with
an average tidal range of 2.97 m.
The identified economic tidal power potential in India is of the

order of 8000-9000 MW with about 7000 MW in the Gulf of

Cambay(10.8m) about 1200 MW in the Gulf of Kachchh (7m)
and less than 100 MW in Sundarbans.(4m)

 In, 1970, the CEA had identified this tidal project in the Gulf of

Kachchh in Gujarat.
The investigations were formally launched in 1982.
More than twelve specialized organizations of Govt. of India

and Govt. of
investigations.

Gujarat

were

involved

in

the

field

of

The techno-economic feasibility study has been completed in

a very scientific and systematic manner and the feasibility

report completed in 1988.
The proposed tidal power scheme was an installation of 900

MW project biggest in the world, located in the Hansthal

Creek, 25 Kms. from Kandla Port in Dist Kachchh of Gujarat
State.

 The Durgaduani Creek of Sundarbans

site is selected for

tidal energy project because there the difference between
the high tide and the low tide is 4 meters and this is
considered to be good for tidal energy projects.

The 3.75 mw capacity Durgaduani Creek tidal energy

project is a technology demonstration project.

The cost of the project is Rs 48 crore, the project is to be

completed in 36months, Work on the project started in

September.

WAVE
Ocean and sea waves are caused indirectly by solar energy

like the wind.

Wave energy derives from wind energy, which drives in turn

from solar energy.

As stated earlier, the wind energy is caused by the uneven

solar heating.
Wave energy is much more concentrated than that solar

energy.
Devices that convert energy from wave can therefore produce

much higher power densities that solar devices.

 The power in the ocean waves have been part of the human

experience for thousands of years.

However, the history of attempts to exploit this power for

human purpose has been extensive.

It was the recent energy crisis that prompted serious

attempts at harnessing the waves for the production of

electricity.

Power density
P/A = 0.5g a2.f
Where
a= amplitude

Wave energy conversion Devices

Wave energy conversion by floats
High level reservoir wave machine

 Wave motion
is primarily
horizontal, by
but the
motion of the
Wave
energy
conversion
floats

water is primarily vertical.

Mechanical power is obtained by floats making use of the

motion of water, and then electrical power is generated.

The very first Wave Power Plant was set up off of Portugals

coast and the new power plant contains three individual

giant rubber tubes to harness wave power. Named as
Pelamis Wave Energy Converters (PWEC), the partially
submerged power generators are 3.5 m in diameter and are
140 m long. They can each individually produce 750 KW of
energy.(September 23, 2008)

High level reservoir wave machine

The pressurized water is

elevated to a reservoir
above the wave generator.
The water in the reservoir

is made to flow through a

turbine coupled to an
electric generator, and then
back to sea level.

Advantages
The wave energy has the advantage over wind or solar that

the energy has been naturally more concentrated.

High power density.
It is a free and renewable energy source.
Wave power devices do not use large land masses.
These devices are relatively pollution free, because they

remove energy from the waves.

Limitations
The major disadvantage of wave energy, as compared to

wind, is that the energy is available on the ocean.

The extraction equipment must operated in a marine

environment will all that implies in terms of maintenance,

life time, and reliability.
The energy must be transported a greater distance to shore.
Wave, energy converters must be capable of withstanding

very severe peak stresses in storms.

Capital investment, repair and replacement cost are high.

Indian scenario
The Indian Wave Energy Program started in 1983 at the Indian

Institute of Technology, Madras.

Oscillating Water Column (OWC) type of device was most suitable

for Indian conditions and a 150 kW pilot plant was actually built
and commissioned in October 1991 in the breakwater of the
Vizinjham Fisheries Harbor near Trivandrum in Kerala.
In

1993 the National Institute of Ocean Technology was

established within the IIT-M campus and it took over the wave
energy program.

The Maharashtra Govthas set upa small wave power plant in 2

coastal villages in Ratnagiri district. A pilot of sorts it will produce

between 15 to 20 kW of power

References
Books
G.D.Rai

Non-Conventional
energy
sources
Khanna
publishers.
John & Tony renewable energy resources Taylor & Francis
group.

Websites
Ecofriend <www.ecofriend.org>
Youtube <www.youtube.com>
The indic view (alternate energy and the indian

infrastructure and energy sense) indicview.blogspot.com