The Anonymous Widower

Could Rolls-Royce SMRs Be The Solution To Europe’s Gas Shortage?

Of all the offshore wind farms, that I’ve looked at recently, I find Magnora’s ScotWind N3 wind farm the most interesting.

I wrote about it in ScotWind N3 Offshore Wind Farm.

I said this.

In any design competition, there is usually at least one design, that is not look like any of the others.

In the successful bids for the ScotWind leases, the bid from Magnora ASA stands out.

• The company has an unusual home page on its offshore wind web site.
• This page on their web site outlines their project.
• It will be technology agnostic, with 15MW turbines and a total capacity of 500MW
• It will use floating offshore wind with a concrete floater
• It is estimated, that it will have a capacity factor of 56 %.
• The water depth will be an astonishing 106-125m
• The construction and operation will use local facilities at Stornoway and Kishorn Ports.
• The floater will have local and Scottish content.
• The project will use UK operated vessels​.
• Hydrogen is mentioned.
• Consent is planned for 2026, with construction starting in 2028 and completion in 2030.

This project could serve as a model for wind farms all round the world with a 500 MW power station, hydrogen production and local involvement and construction.

I very much like the idea of a concrete floater, which contains a huge electrolyser and gas storage, that is surrounded by an armada of giant floating wind turbines.

These are my thoughts.

Floating Concrete Structures

To many, they may have appear to have all the buoyancy of a lead balloon, but semi-submersible platforms made from concrete have been used in the oil and gas industry for several decades.

Kishorn Yard in Scotland was used to build the 600,000-tonne concrete Ninian Central Platform,in 1978. The Ninian Central Platform still holds the record as the largest movable object ever created by man.

The Ninian Central Platform sits on the sea floor, but there is no reason why a semi-submersible structure can’t be used.

Electrolysers

There is no reason, why a large electrolyser, such as those made by Cummins, ITM Power or others can’t be used, but others are on the way.

• Bloom Energy are working on high temperature electrolysis, which promises to be more efficient.
• Torvex Energy are developing electrolysis technology that used sea water, rather than more expensive purified water.

High Temperature Electrolysis

High temperature electrolysis needs a heat source to work efficiently and in Westinghouse And Bloom Energy To Team Up For Pink Hydrogen, I described how Bloom  Energy propose to use steam from a large nuclear power station.

Offshore Nuclear Power

I’ve never heard of offshore nuclear power, but it is not a new idea.

In 1970, a company called Offshore Power Systems was created and it is introduced in its Wikipedia entry like this.

Offshore Power Systems (OPS) was a 1970 joint venture between Westinghouse Electric Company, which constructed nuclear generating plants, and Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock, which had recently merged with Tenneco, to create floating nuclear power plants at Jacksonville, Florida.

Westinghouse’s reactor was a 1.150 MW unit, which was typical of the time, and is very similar in size to Sizewell B.

The project was cancelled before the reactors were towed into position.

Nuclear Knowledge Has Improved

Consider.

• In the fifty years since Offshore Power Systems dabbed their toes in the water of offshore nuclear power, our knowledge of nuclear systems and engineering has improved greatly.
• The offshore oil and gas industry has also shown what works impeccably.
• The floating offshore wind industry looks like it might push the envelop further.
• There has been only one nuclear accident at Fukushima, where the sea was part of the problem and that disaster taught us a lot.
• There have been a large number of nuclear submarines built and most reached the planned end of their lives.
• Would a small modular nuclear reactor, be safer than a large nuclear power plant of several GW?

I would suggest we now have the knowledge to safely build and operate a nuclear reactor on a proven semi-submersible platform, built from non-rusting concrete.

An Offshore Wind Farm/Small Modular Reactor Combination Producing Hydrogen

Consider.

• A typical floating offshore wind farm is between one and two gigawatts.
• A Rolls-Royce small modular reactor is sized to produce nearly 0.5 GW.
• The high temperature electrolyser will need some heat to achieve an optimum working temperature.
• Spare electricity can be used to produce hydrogen.
• Hydrogen can be stored platform.
• Hydrogen can be sent ashore using existing gas pipes.
• Hydrogen could even be blended with natural gas produced offshore to create a lower-carbon fuel.
• It would also be possible to decarbonise nearby offshore infrastructure.

A balance between wind and nuclear power can be obtained, which would provide a steady output of energy.

Conclusion

There are a large numbers of possibilities, to locate a Rolls-Royce small modular reactor close to a wind farm to use high temperature electrolysis to create green hydrogen, which can be used in the UK or exported through the gas network.

June 23, 2022 - Posted by AnonW | Energy, Hydrogen | Bloom Energy, Electrolysis, Floating Wind Power, High-Temperature Electrolysis, Magnora ASA, Natural Gas, Nuclear Power, Offshore Wind Power, Rolls-Royce, Rolls-Royce SMR, Salt Water Electrolysis, ScotWind N3 Wind Farm, Small Modular Nuclear Reactor, Torvex Energy, Westinghouse Electric, Wind Power