Award Abstract #1033812 
 An Integrated Study of Ground Tethered Energy Systems

NSF Org:	CBET Div Of Chem, Bioeng, Env, & Transp Sys
Initial Amendment Date:	July 22, 2010
Latest Amendment Date:	April 10, 2015
Award Number:	1033812
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Gregory Rorrer CBET Div Of Chem, Bioeng, Env, & Transp Sys ENG Directorate For Engineering
Start Date:	September 1, 2010
End Date:	August 31, 2015 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$296,050.00
Investigator(s):	David Olinger olinger@wpi.edu (Principal Investigator) Gretar Tryggvason (Co-Principal Investigator) Michael Demetriou (Co-Principal Investigator) Islam Hussein (Former Co-Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	Worcester Polytechnic Institute 100 INSTITUTE RD WORCESTER, MA 01609-2247 (508)831-5000
NSF Program(s):	ENERGY FOR SUSTAINABILITY
Program Reference Code(s):	090E
Program Element Code(s):	7644

ABSTRACT

1033812

Olinger

Intellectual Merit

The overall objective of this proposed research is to gain fundamental understanding of ground-tethered wind energy (GTE) systems through modeling, advanced numerical simulation, and physical experiments on GTE system components. GTE systems are a scalable, next-generation concept for wind energy, where a rigid-wing glider or kite is held aloft by the wind and controlled in flight by an automatic control system. The glider or kite is connected to a flexible tether that transmits generated aerodynamic forces to a power generation system on the ground. The main advantage of GTE systems is that they may be able to generate energy in locations where wind speeds are too low to make wind turbines cost-effective. 

Although GTE systems are attracting attention from the US wind industry, relatively little work has been done to assess the technical challenges that must be overcome to provide cost-effective power. The work proposed here will lay the foundation for understanding how such systems behave though integration of analytical models and robust control solutions with numerical simulations of sufficient accuracy suitable for system design, wind tunnel testing on gliders and kite components, and evaluation of a GTE demonstration system. Specifically, the proposed numerical simulations would constitute the first computational fluid dynamics (CFD) study of ground tethered energy systems, fully accounting for the flexibility of the kite/wing and the influence of the tethers. The coupling of CFD simulations with developed analytical models and control analyses will predict the behavior and robustness of the GTE system under different conditions and control solutions. Robust control solutions that can control the kite to ensure optimal cross-wind motions when exposed to wind gusts and turbulence are the enabling technology for GTE systems. Overall, this integrated approach will seek to understand the control and aerodynamic properties of kite systems, and propose actuators, sensors and tracking controllers to yield optimal periodic trajectories in the presence of modeling errors and wind disturbances. Concurrently, the proposed work also seeks to advance fundamental knowledge in aerodynamics of flexible structures, novel control system applications, and numerical simulation of complex systems.

Broader Impacts

The education and outreach plan will provide a variety of experiences that will integrate the research outcomes with student learning. The proposed work will provide significant research experiences for undergraduate students at Worchester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) through design projects in existing courses, and the creation of an undergraduate course in renewable energy that will use the developed GTE simulations and experiments in course laboratories. The PI will also incorporate wind energy topics such as ground tethered energy systems and floating offshore wind turbines into the aerospace engineering segment of the WPI Summer Frontiers Program for high school juniors and seniors, which provides over 200 students per year with a two-week long college experience in various STEM disciplines. Finally, the PI team will prepare a book titled Ground Tethered Energy Systems for Power Generation.

BOOKS/ONE TIME PROCEEDING

Hussein, I., Olinger, D.J., & Tryggvason, G.,. "Stability and Control of Ground Tethered Energy
Systems", 09/01/2010-08/31/ 2011,  2011, "Paper AIAA-2011-6231, AIAA Guidance, Navigation, and Control Conference".

Isaacs, M., Hoagg, J.B. , Hussein, I., Olinger, D.J. "Retrospective Cost Adaptive Control of a Ground Tethered Energy Generation System", 09/01/2010-08/31/ 2011, "Proceedings of the IEEE Conference on Decision and Control. December 2011. Orlando, FL.
".

Nematbakhsh, A., Olinger, D.J., Tryggvason, G.,Hussein, I.,. "Computational Modeling of Future Wind Power Installations", 09/01/2010-08/ 31/2011,  2011, "Proceedings of the ASME/JSME/KSME Joint Fluids Engineering Conference, AJK2011-FED. Paper AJK2011-1701, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan, July 24-29, 2011.".

Olinger, D.J., Hussein, I., & Tryggvason, G.. "Airborne Wind Energy Research at Worcester Polytechnic Institute", 09/01/2010-08/31/ 2011,  2011, "Airborne Wind Energy Conference 2011, Leuven, Belgium, May 2011. Abstract at http://www.awec2011.com/book- of-abstracts/, page 46.".

Hussein, I., Olinger, D.J., & Tryggvason, G.,. "Stability and Control of Ground Tethered Energy
Systems", 09/01/2011-08/31/ 2012,  2011, "Paper AIAA-2011-6231, AIAA Guidance, Navigation, and Control Conference".

Isaacs, M., Hoagg, J.B. , Hussein, I., Olinger, D.J. "Retrospective Cost Adaptive Control of a Ground Tethered Energy Generation System", 09/01/2011-08/31/ 2012, "Proceedings of the IEEE Conference on Decision and Control. December 2011. Orlando, FL.
".

Nematbakhsh, A., Olinger, D.J., Tryggvason, G.,Hussein, I.,. "Computational Modeling of Future Wind Power Installations", 09/01/2011-08/ 31/2012,  2011, "Proceedings of the ASME/JSME/KSME Joint Fluids Engineering Conference, AJK2011-FED. Paper AJK2011-1701, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan, July 24-29, 2011.".

Olinger, D.J., Hussein, I., & Tryggvason, G.. "Airborne Wind Energy Research at Worcester Polytechnic Institute", 09/01/2011-08/31/ 2012,  2011, "Airborne Wind Energy Conference 2011, Leuven, Belgium, May 2011. Abstract at http://www.awec2011.com/book- of-abstracts/, page 46.".

Hussein, I., & Olinger, D.J.,. "Observability Properties of a 3D Ground Tethered Energy System using Orientation and Tether Length Observations Only", 09/01/2011-08/31/2012,  , -"Proc. of the AIAA Guidance, Navigation, and Control Conference, Paper AIAA-2012-XXXX",  2012, "-".

Olinger, D.J., Goela, J.S., & Tryggvason. "Development of Ground-Tethered Wind Energy Systems", 09/01/2011-08/31/ 2012, , -"Airborne Wind Energy Concepts",  2013, "Springer- Verlag".

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Award Abstract #0853579 
 An Integrated Study of Floating Wind Turbines

NSF Org:	CBET Div Of Chem, Bioeng, Env, & Transp Sys
Initial Amendment Date:	April 3, 2009
Latest Amendment Date:	April 3, 2009
Award Number:	0853579
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Ram Gupta CBET Div Of Chem, Bioeng, Env, & Transp Sys ENG Directorate For Engineering
Start Date:	July 1, 2009
End Date:	June 30, 2013 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$299,991.00
Investigator(s):	David Olinger olinger@wpi.edu (Principal Investigator) Gretar Tryggvason (Co-Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	Worcester Polytechnic Institute 100 INSTITUTE RD WORCESTER, MA 01609-2247 (508)831-5000
NSF Program(s):	ENERGY FOR SUSTAINABILITY
Program Reference Code(s):	0000, 090E, OTHR
Program Element Code(s):	7644

ABSTRACT

CBET-0853579

Olinger

For wind to play a significant role in meeting the energy need of the US two considerations must be accounted for: The energy must be generated close to where it is needed and it can only be generated where the wind blows. The energy is needed in cities on the costs and the wind blows more steadily off shore. Wind turbines placed in shallow ocean water on rigid platforms do however raise environmental concerns and may degrade the natural beauty of beaches and coastlines. These concerns often lead to significant delays in construction and installation. Floating, far-offshore wind turbines, located farther from land in deep water, would eliminate these environmental concerns, while at the same time tapping into even greater wind power potential.

While the potential for floating wind turbines is vast, they pose major engineering challenges. Not only must the turbines be stable and structurally sound when forced by large ocean waves, they must also be economical to build. The present study will develop integrated computer simulations and physical experiments to advance the state-of-the-art in modeling of floating wind turbines located in deep ocean water. The results will help us understand how such platforms behave, thus making it possible to design economical wind turbines. 

The intellectual merit of the proposed activity is to lay the foundation for understanding how floating platforms behave by developing numerical simulations with sufficient accuracy for the early design stages where the overall character of the system are established. In effect we will develop a "numerical" offshore water tank, and then validate the numerical simulations with physical experiments. 

The broader impact of the proposed activity is that it advances the nation's capabilities in a new renewable energy technology by developing multi-scale computational tools and physical experiments to model a complex system subject to extreme environmental loads. The need for multiscale modeling capability is needed in a broad range of applications and the success of the present project will have wide impact for related problems.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

Note:  When clicking on a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) number, you will be taken to an external site maintained by the publisher. Some full text articles may not yet be available without a charge during the embargo (administrative interval). 

Some links on this page may take you to non-federal websites. Their policies may differ from this site. 

Nematbakhsh, A., Olinger, D.J., & Tryggvason, G.. "A nonlinear computational model of floating wind turbines," Journal of Fluids Engineering, v.135, 2013, p. 121103. doi:10.1115/1.4025074 

BOOKS/ONE TIME PROCEEDING

Nematbakhsh, A., Olinger, D.J., and Tryggvason, G.. "A computational simulation of floating wind turbine platforms", 07/01/2010-06/30/ 2011, "Proceedings of the Fluid Structure Interaction VI Conference, Wessex Institute of Technology",  2011, "pp. 181-191".

Nematbakhsh, A., Olinger, D.J., Tryggvason, G.,Hussein, I.. "Computational Modeling of Future Wind Power Installations", 07/01/2010-06/ 30/2011, "Proceedings of the ASME/JSME/KSME Joint Fluids Engineering Conference, AJK2011-FED, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan, July 24-29, 2011",  2011, "Paper AJK2011-1701".

Olinger, D.J., DeStefano, E., Murphy, E., Naqvi, S.K., and Tryggvason, G.. "Scale-model experiments on floating wind turbine platforms", 07/01/2010-06/30/ 2011, "50th AIAA Aerospace Science Meeting, 30th ASME Wind Energy Symposium,Nashville, TN, January 2012.",  2012, ";".

Nematbakhsh, A., Olinger, D.J., Tryggvason, G.. "Development and validation of a computational model for floating wind turbine platforms", 07/01/2010-06/30/ 2011, "50th AIAA Aerospace Science Meeting, 30th ASME Wind Energy Symposium, Nashville, TN, January 2012.",  2012, ";".

Nematbakhsh, A., Olinger, D.J., Tryggvason, G.,Hussein, I.. "Computational Modeling of Future Wind Power Installations", 07/01/2011-06/ 30/2012, "Proceedings of the ASME/JSME/KSME Joint Fluids Engineering Conference, AJK2011-FED, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan, July 24-29, 2011",  2011, "Paper AJK2011-1701".

Olinger, D.J., DeStefano, E., Murphy, E., Naqvi, S.K., and Tryggvason, G.. "Scale-model experiments on floating wind turbine platforms", 07/01/2011-06/30/ 2012, "AIAA Paper 2012-375-237, 50th AIAA Aerospace Science Meeting, 30th ASME Wind Energy Symposium,Nashville, TN, January 2012.",  2012, ";".

Nematbakhsh, A., Olinger, D.J., Tryggvason, G.. "Development and validation of a computational model for floating wind turbine platforms", 07/01/2011-06/30/ 2012, "AIAA Paper 2012-373-797, 50th AIAA Aerospace Science Meeting, 30th ASME Wind Energy Symposium, Nashville, TN, January 2012.",  2012, ";".

Nematbakhsh, A., Olinger, D.J., Tryggvason, G.,. "A nonlinear computational model for floating wind turbines", 07/01/2011-06/30/ 2012, "Proceedings of the ASME Fluids Engineering Summer Meeting,",  2012, "Paper FEDSM2012-72271July 8-12 2012, Puerto Rico, USA.".

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Award Abstract #1437296 
 Altitude Control for Optimal Performance of Tethered Wind Energy Systems

NSF Org:	CMMI Div Of Civil, Mechanical, & Manufact Inn
Initial Amendment Date:	July 17, 2014
Latest Amendment Date:	April 11, 2016
Award Number:	1437296
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Jordan Berg CMMI Div Of Civil, Mechanical, & Manufact Inn ENG Directorate For Engineering
Start Date:	September 1, 2014
End Date:	August 31, 2017 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$291,819.00
Investigator(s):	Christopher Vermillion cvermill@uncc.edu (Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	University of North Carolina at Charlotte 9201 University City Boulevard CHARLOTTE, NC 28223-0001 (704)687-1888
NSF Program(s):	Dynamics, Control and System D
Program Reference Code(s):	030E, 031E, 034E, 116E, 9178, 9231, 9251, 032E, 8024
Program Element Code(s):	7569

ABSTRACT

Tethered wind energy systems replace conventional rigid towers with flexible cables, and can harness strong high-altitude winds using as little as 10 percent of the material required by traditional turbines. Levelized costs for tethered systems are estimated to be from $0.05 to $0.25 per kW-h, providing a cost-competitive energy solution for remote off-grid communities, military bases, and deep-water offshore locations. Tethered systems can easily change altitude, allowing them to achieve optimal performance by finding the best available wind velocity. Preliminary research suggests that exploiting this additional operational freedom can increase energy production by as much as 50 percent over fixed-altitude tethered turbines. This award will develop control laws that vary tether length to measure the change in wind speed with altitude, and use that information to increase energy production. University students working on this project will gain real-life practical experience through collaboration with Altaeros Energies, a tethered wind energy startup based in Boston, Massachusetts. Outreach activities with high school students in North Carolina will introduce the role of STEM disciplines in developing new renewable energy resources, and broaden participation by non-traditional and underrepresented groups.

The ability to optimize the altitude of a tethered wind energy system depends both on knowledge of the wind shear profile and robust optimization strategies that maximize net energy generation. The research will attack this dual problem of wind shear profile mapping and altitude optimization through the fusion of information maximization and extremum seeking control techniques. While both tools are powerful in their own right, neither provides an ideal stand-alone framework for the simultaneous characterization of wind shear profile and optimization of altitude. Two mechanisms for fusing the mapping and optimization objectives will be pursued in this research: one is an implicit mechanism, using stochastic receding horizon control, and the other is an explicit method that estimates the map's entropy to morph the perturbation signal for the extremum seeking algorithm. These methods will be validated using historical wind profiles from NOAA and NASA and will be flight tested on the Altaeros Energies Buoyant Airborne Turbine (BAT). The tools arising from this research will not only benefit tethered wind energy organizations but will also improve fundamental understanding of performance optimization in poorly modeled and time-varying environments.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

Note:  When clicking on a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) number, you will be taken to an external site maintained by the publisher. Some full text articles may not yet be available without a charge during the embargo (administrative interval). 

Some links on this page may take you to non-federal websites. Their policies may differ from this site. 

Alireza Bafandeh and Chris Vermillion. "Real-Time Altitude Optimization of Airborne Wind Energy Systems Using Lyapunov-Based Switched Extremum Seeking Control," American Control Conference, 2016.

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Award Abstract #9411761 
 Demonstration of Quasi-Continuous Vertical Profiling of Ozone Throughout the Troposphere Using High-technology Kites

NSF Org:	AGS Div Atmospheric & Geospace Sciences
Initial Amendment Date:	April 25, 1994
Latest Amendment Date:	April 25, 1994
Award Number:	9411761
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Anne-Marie Schmoltner AGS Div Atmospheric & Geospace Sciences GEO Directorate For Geosciences
Start Date:	May 1, 1994
End Date:	October 31, 1995 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$45,513.00
Investigator(s):	Ben Balsley balsley@cires.colorado.edu (Principal Investigator) John Birks (Co-Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	University of Colorado at Boulder 3100 Marine Street, Room 481 Boulder, CO 80303-1058 (303)492-6221
NSF Program(s):	ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY
Program Reference Code(s):	1309, 9237, GLCH
Program Element Code(s):	1524

ABSTRACT

9411761 Balsley In this project the researchers plan to extend the capabilities of state-of-the-art kite technology for atmospheric sampling and related research. The workplan will accomplish this feasibility experiment by (1) increasing the current maximum attainable height from around 3 km to over 13-14 km, and by (2) using the tethered kite as a "sky hook" to enable a small device (a "WindTRAM") to travel up and down the kite tether to obtain high- resolution profiles of ozone, temperature, pressure, and humidity. If successful, the project results will be a unique and inexpensive technique to study vertical profiles of critical atmospheric species throughout the entire troposphere and possibly the lower stratosphere.

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Kite systems and National Science Foundation (NSF)

============================== ==========

This topic thread aims to study the kite content in NSF doings and awards. 

NOTE: The NSF will not cover all SBIR contracts; the SBIR will have awards beyond NSF.   Hopefully the SBIR space will have its own dedicated topic thread. 

This topic thread may have some SBIR matters because of some overlap concerns acceptable to the NSF, but the topic is about the NSF space. 

============================== ==========================

Start:

• What proposals were entered and not awarded?
  
• What proposals were awarded? What were the reported results?
  
• What keywords might reveal items within the NSF database?
  
• Why this topic?
  
• What proposals are being prepared currently? 
• What might be proposed to professors for their proposing to the NSF?
• How might productive fulfilled contracts may help to open further energy-kite opportunities within the NSF programs?

Other questions will probably come to the table as the topic matures.

Keywords so far searched within NSF: kite, "airborne wind energy", 

============================== ======================

General info: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ National_Science_Foundation

Front page of contemporary NSF:  https://www.nsf.gov/

CBET ?   https://www.nsf.gov/div/inde x.jsp?div=CBET

CMMI ? https://www.nsf.gov/div/inde x.jsp?div=CMMI

============================== ======================

Starting: 

CAREER: Efficient Experimental Optimization for High-Performance Airborne Wind Energy Systems

Award Number:1453912; Principal Investigator: Christopher Vermillion; Co-Principal Investigator:; Organization:University of North Carolina at Charlotte; NSF Organization: CMMI Start Date:02/01/2015; Award Amount:$500,000.00;

 =

Award Abstract #1248528 
 SBIR Phase I: Low-cost, High Performance Fabrics for Inflatable Sructures

NSF Org:	IIP Div Of Industrial Innovation & Partnersh
Initial Amendment Date:	November 13, 2012
Latest Amendment Date:	April 9, 2013
Award Number:	1248528
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Ben Schrag IIP Div Of Industrial Innovation & Partnersh ENG Directorate For Engineering
Start Date:	January 1, 2013
End Date:	September 30, 2013 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$155,000.00
Investigator(s):	Ben Glass ben.glass@altaerosenergies.com (Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	Altaeros Energies, Inc. 28 Dane St. Somerville, MA 02143-0000 (857)244-1560
NSF Program(s):	SMALL BUSINESS PHASE I
Program Reference Code(s):	123E, 5371
Program Element Code(s):	5371

ABSTRACT

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will develop a novel low-cost, high-performance fabric suitable for long service life helium inflatable structures, including aerostats and airships. Traditional fabrics for lighter-than-air (LTA) applications utilize woven polyester or vectran basecloths laminated with various materials that improve gas retention, environmental resistance and allow the material to be thermally bonded. This combination has excellent performance, providing a useful service life in excess of seven years, but comes at a high cost, which limits the commercial application of helium inflatable structures. The proposed low-cost, high performance fabric replaces the woven basecloth with a scrim of high-strength synthetic fibers, similar to those in high-end sailcloth. This type of material has not seen wide use in helium inflatable structures where seams are subject to long-term loading from internal pressure. The impact of scrim pattern and yarn alignment on seam stiffness and long-term holding strength is considered. This Phase I research will investigate the behavior of these materials, as well as one or more alternative woven fabrics, under long-term loading, UV exposure, and mechanical wear and tear, in order to evaluate their suitability for helium inflatables.

The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will be a step toward the widespread commercialization of LTA inflatable structures in traditional and new application areas. Helium inflatable structures are traditionally used for transporting or elevating high value payloads, such as military surveillance equipment or advertising, where the relatively high cost of the fabric envelope is not a barrier to commercial feasibility. The advent of a low-cost, high performance helium inflatable fabric will make LTA structures economically viable for a number of industries that are cost-sensitive, including remote and emergency wireless communication; low-cost freight transport; and airborne wind energy production. The research will also enhance the understanding of the behavior of scrim-based fabrics under loading conditions, which may benefit a wide range of industries that could use these fabrics, including sailing, architectural fabrics and air inflatable structures.

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Award Abstract #1622031 
 SBIR Phase I: AirLoom Investigation -- Modular, Scalable Wind Turbine at 23x Mass Savings

NSF Org:	IIP Div Of Industrial Innovation & Partnersh
Initial Amendment Date:	June 21, 2016
Latest Amendment Date:	June 21, 2016
Award Number:	1622031
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Rajesh Mehta IIP Div Of Industrial Innovation & Partnersh ENG Directorate For Engineering
Start Date:	July 1, 2016
End Date:	June 30, 2017 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$225,000.00
Investigator(s):	Robert Lumley robert.lumley@kitefarms.com (Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	KiteFarms LLC 1938 Harney Street Laramie, WY 82072-3037 (307)343-3993
NSF Program(s):	SMALL BUSINESS PHASE I
Program Reference Code(s):	5371, 8029, 9150
Program Element Code(s):	5371

ABSTRACT

This SBIR Phase I project seeks to reduce the capital cost of wind turbines by an astounding 15x. Its patented, remarkably simple design also reduces transportation, maintenance, and land costs, and provides greater location and altitude flexibility. It uses the same aerodynamics as today's dominant wind technology, the horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT), but with innovations based on recent research into airborne wind energy generation. Multiple, 6-meter airfoils (they look like model airplanes) behave exactly like the outer tips of a conventional wind turbine blade, which is where most of the power is generated in a HAWT. The airfoils run along a rail- as if you captured kites and put them on short leashes - and a linear generator makes the power. The proposed research is based on a proof-of-concept demonstrating that these principles are scientifically sound. If successful, the project would drastically reduce the cost of wind-generated electricity, making it competitive with fossil fuels. It would thus be a completely self-sustaining commercially viable entity, creating jobs and generating tax revenues. By out-competing fossil fuels, it would use market forces to encourage renewable energy development, thus reducing energy-related emissions and improving national health, prosperity, and welfare. The project's light weight, low profile, and easy, flexible set-up may also have military applications that would help secure the national defense.

The proposed technology captures energy through translational rather than rotational motion in the tips of the airfoils as they run along a rail tethered by bridles. Its major innovation is a patented bridling system that handles downwind forces (aerodynamic tip-over forces), which are the primary cause of the HAWT's mass and cost. Another major innovation is to run airfoils in an oval rather than a circle. This alters the math behind swept area, the key input for generation capacity. Because the oval's swept area is a function of length and height, rather than radius squared, this project can add capacity in many different ways, escaping the tyranny of building ever-bigger and -taller circles. The first objective is to design, test, build, measure, and refine a 100 kilowatt (kW) alpha device. A meaningful-scale alpha device will demonstrate the project's ability to meet performance, weight, and cost targets, while facilitating decisions about how to build far larger devices, and modeling their costs. The methods and approaches will conquer challenges in five subsystems: structures, aerodynamics, power generation, control, and grid integration. The team, which includes leading experts in both academia and industry, will design subsystem options. It will convene to find the best system-wide design and construct the device, with many refinements along the way.

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Award Abstract #1336130 
 Hydrokinetic Energy Harvesting Using Tethered Undersea Kites

NSF Org:	CBET Div Of Chem, Bioeng, Env, & Transp Sys
Initial Amendment Date:	July 8, 2013
Latest Amendment Date:	July 8, 2013
Award Number:	1336130
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Carole Read CBET Div Of Chem, Bioeng, Env, & Transp Sys ENG Directorate For Engineering
Start Date:	January 1, 2014
End Date:	December 31, 2017 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$303,201.00
Investigator(s):	David Olinger olinger@wpi.edu (Principal Investigator) Gretar Tryggvason (Co-Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	Worcester Polytechnic Institute 100 INSTITUTE RD WORCESTER, MA 01609-2247 (508)831-5000
NSF Program(s):	ENERGY FOR SUSTAINABILITY
Program Reference Code(s):	147E
Program Element Code(s):	7644

ABSTRACT

PI: Olinger, David

Proposal Number: 1336130

Institution: Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Title: Hydrokinetic Energy Harvesting Using Tethered Undersea Kites

This project will study tethered, undersea kite (TUSK) systems; a new hydrokinetic energy technology. In a TUSK system, a tethered, rigid-winged hydro-kite is submerged in an ocean or tidal current and controlled to move in high-speed cross-current motions. A turbine is mounted on the hydro-kite in one TUSK concept, or the flexible unwinding tether transmits generated hydrodynamic forces to a power generation system in another concept. TUSK systems have potential advantages over conventional marine turbines, mainly that TUSK systems will be able to generate cost-effective energy with; 1) smaller, less costly systems, and 2) at more locations within ocean currents and tidal flows where current speeds are too low to make marine turbines feasible. The main benefits are: 1) the hydro-kite can move in high-speed cross-current motions (much like a kite in air) over large swept areas to greatly increase power output,

2) TUSK systems eliminate the need for large diameter turbines and costly support structures, 3) TUSK systems are easier to maintain, and 4) TUSK systems are scalable.

The main goal of the proposed work is to identify and select an optimum TUSK concept and then demonstrate feasibility through modeling, numerical simulation and sub-scale experimental work. A fundamental knowledge base for design of stable, scalable, durable, and cost-efficient tethered undersea kites will be obtained. This knowledge will serve as the basis for further scaling and development of the technology to full-scale systems.

This project will lay the foundation for understanding how such systems behave by integrating analytical models and robust control solutions, numerical simulations with sufficient accuracy suitable for system design, and physical experiments on TUSK system components where we partner with a local hydrodynamics research lab. The proposed work will advance knowledge in hydrodynamics of underwater vehicles, novel control system applications, and numerical simulation of complex systems. The project will examine tracking controllers to yield optimal periodic trajectories in the presence of modeling errors and disturbances. The proposed numerical simulations will constitute the first CFD work on tethered undersea kite systems, fully accounting for hydrodynamic forces, support platform motions, and the flexibility and influence of the tethers. The integrated work will allow the PIs to examine the behavior and robustness of the system under different conditions and control solutions to improve the design of TUSK systems.

This research project will set the stage for the further study and eventual full-scale deployment of this new energy conversion technology by the systems and control, CFD, and hydrokinetic energy communities as well as commercial enterprises, through dissemination of the results at conferences and in archival journals. The research will be strongly integrated with undergraduate and K12 education through undergraduate.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

Note:  When clicking on a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) number, you will be taken to an external site maintained by the publisher. Some full text articles may not yet be available without a charge during the embargo (administrative interval). 

Some links on this page may take you to non-federal websites. Their policies may differ from this site. 

Olinger, D.J., and Wang, Y.,. "Hydrokinetic energy harvesting using tethered undersea kites," Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy, v.Vol. 7, 2015, p. 043114-1.

Wang, Y., and D. J. Olinger, D.J.,. "Modeling and simulation of tethered underwater kites," Paper PowerEnergy2016-59123 , ASME 10th International Conference on Energy Sustainability, Charlotte, NC., 2015.

Li, H., Olinger, D.J., and Demetriou, M.A.. "Control of a Tethered Undersea Kite Energy System using a Six Degree of Freedom Model," Proceedings of the 2016 IEEE Conference on Dynamics and Controls, Japan., 2015.

Ghasemi, A., Olinger, D.J. and Tryggvason, G.,. "Computational simulation of tethered undersea kites for power generation," Proceedings of the ASME 2015 International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition, Paper IMECE2015-50809,, 2015.

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Award Abstract #1430989 
 SBIR Phase II: Ultra-light,modular wind turbine

NSF Org:	IIP Div Of Industrial Innovation & Partnersh
Initial Amendment Date:	September 4, 2014
Latest Amendment Date:	January 31, 2017
Award Number:	1430989
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Ben Schrag IIP Div Of Industrial Innovation & Partnersh ENG Directorate For Engineering
Start Date:	October 1, 2014
End Date:	February 28, 2018 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$1,240,679.00
Investigator(s):	Ben Glass ben.glass@altaerosenergies.com (Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	Altaeros Energies, Inc. 28 Dane St. Somerville, MA 02143-0000 (857)244-1560
NSF Program(s):	SMALL BUSINESS PHASE II
Program Reference Code(s):	123E, 5373, 165E
Program Element Code(s):	5373

ABSTRACT

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will develop an ultra-light, modular wind turbine for use in buoyant airborne wind energy systems. Reduced turbine weight has a cascading effect on total airborne system mass, allowing a significantly smaller, lower cost buoyant structure to be used to access high altitude winds. At heights up to 2,000 feet winds are strong and consistent, allowing for the production of low-cost, reliable power at a broad array of sites. High altitude winds have over five times the energy potential of ground winds accessed by tower-mounted turbines, opening the potential for a major new renewable energy resource to be harnessed. In addition, the containerized deployment of airborne wind turbines has the potential to expand wind development to sites that are not feasible today, including sites that are remote or have weak ground-level winds. Overall, the technology holds the potential to significantly lower energy costs and improve reliability for remote industrial, community, and military customers and represents a major step forward in unlocking the abundant high-altitude wind resource to help in the global pursuit of greater adoption of renewable energy sources.

This SBIR Phase II project will focus on reducing the total weight of the wind turbine system. Turbine weight is one of the most critical cost drivers of buoyant airborne wind energy systems. For each kilogram removed from the turbine, an additional kilogram can be removed from the inflatable shell and tethers, resulting in a significantly smaller and lower cost system. The lightest commercially available small- to medium-sized wind turbine weighs 31.1 kilograms per kilowatt of capacity, which is too heavy for an economically-viable airborne turbine. By incorporating a compact, modular architecture, a lightweight permanent magnet direct-drive (PMDD) generator and high-strength composite materials, the proposed Phase II research effort aims to double the power density of traditional medium size turbines, making the proposed system suitable for use in an airborne application, while maintaining a high level of reliability and cost performance.

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Award Abstract #9017570 
 SGER: Continuous Monitoring of the Global Atmospheric- Electric Circuit

NSF Org:	AGS Div Atmospheric & Geospace Sciences
Initial Amendment Date:	July 16, 1990
Latest Amendment Date:	July 16, 1990
Award Number:	9017570
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Robert W. Taylor AGS Div Atmospheric & Geospace Sciences GEO Directorate For Geosciences
Start Date:	July 1, 1990
End Date:	December 31, 1991 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$49,200.00
Investigator(s):	Ben Balsley balsley@cires.colorado.edu (Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	University of Colorado at Boulder 3100 Marine Street, Room 481 Boulder, CO 80303-1058 (303)492-6221
NSF Program(s):	PHYSICAL METEOROLOGY, SOLAR-TERRESTRIAL
Program Reference Code(s):	9237
Program Element Code(s):	1522, 1523

ABSTRACT

The objective of this research is the demonstration of the practical validity of measuring electric potential in the atmosphere using several kites attached to a common tether. If this technique is successful, a simple and relatively inexpensive method will be available to monitor continuously electric potential and, by inference, that of the earth.ionosphere system. The measurements will be conducted on Christmas Island, Republic of Kiribati.

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Award Abstract #1538300 
 Collaborative Research: Self-Adjusting Periodic Optimal Control with Application to Energy-Harvesting Flight

NSF Org:	CMMI Div Of Civil, Mechanical, & Manufact Inn
Initial Amendment Date:	August 23, 2015
Latest Amendment Date:	August 23, 2015
Award Number:	1538300
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Irina Dolinskaya CMMI Div Of Civil, Mechanical, & Manufact Inn ENG Directorate For Engineering
Start Date:	September 1, 2015
End Date:	August 31, 2018 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$236,000.00
Investigator(s):	Hosam Fathy hkf2@psu.edu (Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	Pennsylvania State Univ University Park 110 Technology Center Building UNIVERSITY PARK, PA 16802-7000 (814)865-1372
NSF Program(s):	Dynamics, Control and System D
Program Reference Code(s):	031E, 033E, 034E, 8024
Program Element Code(s):	7569

ABSTRACT

For many dynamic systems, optimal periodic operation provides superior performance to the best possible constant input. For example, compared to stationary flight, airborne wind energy systems can achieve higher apparent wind speed -- and generate significantly more electricity -- by flying in circular or figure-8 orbits. However these results may be sensitive to uncertainty. For example, the performance of a periodic energy harvesting trajectory designed for a particular flight condition may degrade rapidly when wind speed changes. Thus the overarching goal of this project is to enable dynamic controllers that rapidly adjust their periodic operation, in order to continue to provide near-optimal performance despite changing conditions. The application to airborne wind energy systems, which can access wind streams with reliably high speeds and moderate air density, generate electricity more efficiently and more reliably than stationary systems, thus benefiting society through lower power costs and improved energy security. Moreover, the fundamental tools to be created in this project will be applicable to many other important problems, including recurrent drug-delivery scheduling for chronic disease treatment. 

Existing results on periodic optimal control focus on offline optimization. Very little is known about the following fundamental challenges: (i) adaptation to unknown plant dynamics, (ii) achievement of periodic optimality in a robust and stable manner, and (iii) simultaneous optimization of both the time period and shape of the periodic trajectory. This project addresses these challenges, thereby furnishing a novel framework for robust online periodic control. Two distinct approaches will be pursued for online optimization of periodic control trajectories in the presence of parametric uncertainties, namely a novel implementation of extremum-seeking methods, and an indirect adaptive control algorithm. The closed-loop system stability will be analyzed using Floquet theory. Performance will be evaluated in simulations of a benchmark drug delivery problem and an energy-harvesting flight problem. Finally, effectiveness for control of energy harvesting flight will be validated experimentally.

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Award Abstract #1453912 
 CAREER: Efficient Experimental Optimization for High-Performance Airborne Wind Energy Systems

NSF Org:	CMMI Div Of Civil, Mechanical, & Manufact Inn
Initial Amendment Date:	January 7, 2015
Latest Amendment Date:	January 7, 2015
Award Number:	1453912
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Jordan Berg CMMI Div Of Civil, Mechanical, & Manufact Inn ENG Directorate For Engineering
Start Date:	February 1, 2015
End Date:	January 31, 2020 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$500,000.00
Investigator(s):	Christopher Vermillion cvermill@uncc.edu (Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	University of North Carolina at Charlotte 9201 University City Boulevard CHARLOTTE, NC 28223-0001 (704)687-1888
NSF Program(s):	Dynamics, Control and System D
Program Reference Code(s):	030E, 034E, 1045
Program Element Code(s):	7569

ABSTRACT

This Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) grant will pioneer a first-in-world rapid prototyping system for experimentally optimizing the flight dynamics and control of airborne wind energy systems. Airborne wind energy systems replace towers with tethers and a lifting body, reducing deployment time and fixed infrastructure costs, and enabling turbines to take advantage of strong, high-altitude winds. Successful realization of these systems is projected to yield levelized costs of electricity below $0.25 per kW-h, providing cost-competitive energy solutions to remote communities, islands, military bases, and deep-water offshore locations. The synthesis of control systems to stabilize airborne wind energy systems in harsh atmospheric conditions remains a bottleneck for their widespread acceptance, further exacerbated by high prototype development costs. This research will reduce control system prototyping costs by multiple orders of magnitude, using 1/100-scale models that are 3D printed, tethered, and "flown" in a water channel laboratory test facility. The water channel provides an ideal mechanism for optimizing the control system design while replicating key dynamic properties of the full-scale system. Throughout the project, students will develop an industrial and small-business perspective through interactions with a leading early-stage airborne wind energy company. Outreach activities include the development of kite design modules for a high school engineering summer camp and co-design of an energy-rich science curriculum for an early college high school for economically disadvantaged students.

Optimization of airborne wind energy flight performance represents a coupled plant and controller optimization problem, where experiments are indispensable but expensive at full-scale. This research addresses the plant/controller coupling and the necessity of experiments through the a unique framework that combines numerical optimization with lab-scale experiments on 3D printed models that are tethered and "flown" in a water channel. This water channel platform, which will be instrumented for closed-loop control of tethered systems, has been shown to yield provably similar dynamic performance to full-scale systems. In the proposed plant and controller optimization process, experimental data will be used to perform parameter identification and generate corrections to subsequent numerical optimization iterations. At the completion of each numerical optimization iteration, optimal design of experiments techniques will be used to determine a set of configurations to be tested, taking into account the cost of each reconfiguration. The research will focus on the derivation of convergence and efficiency results for the proposed algorithms, leveraging tools from system identification and optimal design of experiments. Furthermore, the optimization methods originating from this research will be validated on both a stationary and crosswind airborne wind energy system.