16 MW dual wind super turbine comes into operation

Ocean Interesting Engineering. This turbine can provide electricity for more than 30,000 households annually, according to the manufacturer, Minh Duong Smart Energy Company.

Demand for clean energy is driving many advances in the renewable energy industry. Chinese manufacturers continue to build larger wind turbines that can withstand strong winds during storms. However, the improvements are not limited to the device’s durability but also the design to provide higher power levels.

Minh Duong Company in Trung Son for the first time revealed its plan to produce a dual wind turbine in 2020 when it created a small prototype 1/10 of the real size. Over the past few years, the company has developed a full-size prototype and installed it in July this year at Duong Giang Thanh Chau IV farm. The design uses a V-shaped tower to support two 8.3 MW turbines, providing a total capacity of 16.6 MW. The whole cluster is 219 m high and 369 m wide. The system has a water displacement of 15,000 tons when operating at a depth of 45 m. This floating turbine platform is the first system to use ultra-high performance concrete with a durability of 115 MPa.

Using a dual turbine system comes with many unprecedented challenges, forcing Minh Duong company to solve it with a number of design initiatives. They use counter-rotating propellers and conduct thorough analysis to optimize operations. OceanX’s two turbines are synchronized to operate at the same frequency and state. That helps enhance the turbine’s ability to convert wind power into energy. The design also has a 4.29% increase in power production compared to a single turbine sweeping a similar area.

Additionally, OceanX uses a single-point mooring system, which requires the cable system to have a higher range of motion. Minh Duong Company overcomes that requirement with a cable design that eliminates all joints, helping to improve system performance, erosion resistance and safety. Another important feature of the OceanX turbine rig is automation. The turbine can start automatically with its own control system, allowing it to operate independently with an estimated output of 54,000 MWh/year.