ALPHEUS

The Alpheus project aims to improve the stability of the electricity grid by storing energy in hydropower. The possibilities to do this in the countries bordering the North Sea are nevertheless limited by the limited depth of the North Sea and the rather flat topography of the coastal environment.

Status

Past

Duration

Apr 2020 - Mar 2024

Type

DBC as an observer

Some renewable energy sources (such as solar and wind) do not produce electricity constantly. In addition, the amount of energy produced can vary greatly. It is therefore important to provide sufficient storage capacity for when a surplus of electricity is produced.

The Alpheus project, which stands for Augmenting grid stability through Low-head Pumped Hydro Energy Utilization and Storage, is therefore examining the possibilities that the North Sea offers for storing energy through hydropower.

Concept

The project partners are committed to hydropower storage with limited head. In order to enable such hydro storage in the immediate North Sea environment, an upgrade of the technological means (pumps and turbines) and infrastructure (civilian buildings) is imperative.

Within this context, three promising technologies are specifically considered

Reversible pump turbine with shaft-driven counter-rotating variable-speed propeller;
Reversible pump turbine with rim-driven counter-rotating variable-speed propeller; and
Reversible volumetric pump turbine.

Partners: Delft University of Technology, IHE Delft Institute for Water Education and Blue Turbines (the Netherlands); Universite de Pau et des Pays de L'Adour (France); Chalmers University of Technology and Uppsala University (Sweden); Advanced Design Technology (United Kingdom); Ghent University (Belgium); Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) (Norway); Technische Universität Braunschweig (Germany); en Universita degli Studi della Tuscia Viterbo (Italy)