A substantial tidal power testing facility is looking to simulate decades of harsh sea conditions

May 18, 2022: A £4.6 million ($5.64 million) facility that can test tidal turbine blades under strenuous conditions has been officially opened. Those behind it hope it will accelerate marine energy technology development and lower costs.

At the end of last week, the University of Edinburgh said the site was the “world’s first rapid testing facility for tidal turbine blades.”

It added that the FastBlade facility would use a 75 metric ton reaction frame that was able to apply “powerful forces on turbine blades more than 50 feet long.”

FastBlade is a partnership between aerospace firm Babcock International and the university backed by a grant of £1.8 million from the U.K. government. The testing center is located in the town of Rosyth.

The university said that tests on blades would be undertaken “using a system of powerful hydraulic cylinders which in less than three months, can simulate the stresses placed on the structures in the two decades at sea.”

Conchúr Ó Brádaigh, head of the university’s engineering school, said FastBlade would be “the first dedicated fatigue test facility for tidal turbine blades.”

He stated it would also “help maintain the globally which led the position of Scottish tidal turbine developers in the race to find sources of clean and secure power.”

The University of Edinburgh said the FastBlade technology could also be harnessed to test wing components for aircraft and lightweight bridge sections.

Scotland has a long association with the North Sea oil and gas production. Still, in recent years it’s also become a hub for companies and projects focused on tidal power and marine energy in general.

These firms include tidal energy firm Nova Innovation and Orbital Marine Power, which is working on what it says is the “most powerful tidal turbine in the world.”

In waters north of the Scottish mainland, the archipelago of Orkney is home to the European Marine Energy Centre, or EMEC, where wave and tidal energy developers can test and assess their tech in the open sea.

European installations of tidal and wave energy increased in 2021, as the ocean energy sector saw deployments revert to pre-pandemic levels and a substantial increase in investment.