Prototype Tidal Turbine Site Investigation

IXSurvey conducted a series of geophysical site investigations at five locations on behalf of Scottish Power Renewables and Hammerfest Strom AS, as part of the high-profile development of offshore renewable energy in Scotland. SeaZone Chartered Vector data was used in the planning stage of the project providing background mapping, with SeaZone's GeoTemporal Editor software being used for the analysis and interpretation of current profiles and flow data.

"The use of SeaZone geographic data and software has enhanced many stages of marine survey and enabled a more dynamic vision of operations and analysis of survey data and modelling," commented Rebecca Seymour, GIS Specialist at IXSurvey in Edinburgh.

The geophysical oceanographic survey programme comprised approximately 100 days fieldwork in the Sound of Islay and the Pentland Firth and around the Orkney Isles. The surveys were to locate areas suitable for the installation of a prototype tidal turbine device and its cables to shore, and were conducted using multi-beam echo-sounder, side-scan sonar, sub-bottom profiler and a vessel-mounted acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP). Despite strong offshore winds and currents of over 12 knots with extensive turbulence and eddying, IXSurvey were able to produce detailed sonar mosaics with the use of GAPS USBL, an advanced positioning system.

IXSurvey returned to Orkney in spring 2009 to install a heavy-duty seabed frame equipped with an ADCP to measure currents throughout the water column and a single-point current meter to measure turbulence 6m above the seabed. Throughout the project lifecycle, SeaZone Charted Vector and SeaZone HydroSpatial data was used for site planning and to present the survey results and project conclusions. SeaZone GeoTemporal Editor was used for the analysis and interpretation of current profiles. An ongoing part of the project is conducting a suitability analysis of turbine designs and positions.

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