Numerical study of hydrodynamic mechanism of dynamic tidal power

Abstract

Dynamic tidal power is a new way of capturing tidal energy by building a water head using a dike perpendicular to the coast. This study explored the hydrodynamic mechanism of the water head across an intended dynamic tidal power dike system using the Delft3D-FLOW software module. The propagating wave was simulated in a rectangular domain with a horizontal sea bottom at a 30-m depth. A significant water head was created across the dike by blocking the water. The water head increased with increasing dike length and increasing undisturbed tidal current acceleration. The maximum water head for the dike with a length of 50 km, located 900 km from the western boundary, was 2.15 m, which exceeded the undisturbed tidal range. The time series of the water head behaved in a manner identical to the undisturbed tidal current acceleration. The distribution of the water head over the dike assumed an elliptical shape. A parasitic wave was generated at the attachment and scattered outward. The phase lag across the dike did not behave as a linear function of the detour distance. Keywords: Dynamic tidal power, Marine renewable energy, Added mass, Phase-shift, Coastal engineering, Delft3D