Manchester leads European consortium to innovate cable technology for a greener power grid
Researchers at 糖心Vlog官方 will lead a European consortium to design crucial cable technology that will help achieve the ambition of transferring approximately 17% of total electricity from offshore wind by 2050.
The 拢5.5 million project, funded by Horizon Europe and the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI), will involve a four-year collaboration between Manchester and academic and industry experts from ETH Zurich, the University of Vienna, Universitat Polit猫cnica de Catalunya, NKT Cable Group, Shell Research Ltd, S&B Insurance Advisors, and Arttic Innovation. This initiative aims to develop the enabling technology that supports a sustainable European electricity grid.
Named DCDYNAMIC (Accelerating DC Dynamic Export Cable Technology for a Sustainable European Electricity Grid), the project will consist of three distinct parts. Firstly, understanding how electrical, mechanical, and thermal stresses impact these cables; secondly how to create real-world conditions for reliable testing; and thirdly, construction of a 320 kV high-voltage DC cable prototype, tested at scale using the simulated conditions created through the project.
DCDYNAMIC will be led by , Reader in High Voltage Engineering in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, which houses the UK鈥檚 largest academic electrical test and research facility, the . He will be joined by , Professor of Materials Science and Chief Scientist at the , the UK鈥檚 national institute for material innovation; and , Reader in Nanomaterials based at the
DCDYNAMIC is one of the earliest Horizon Europe projects since the UK re-joined, with a UK university serving as the lead coordinator.
Project lead, Dr Tony Chen, said: 鈥淏eing granted European Commission funding as the project coordinator on this scale demonstrates the competitiveness of UK institutions.鈥�
鈥淭he knowledge gained from this project could revolutionise the design and use of HVDC cables, and set a new standard for this critical technology. By 2050, it could play a key role in ensuring that 17% of Europe鈥檚 electricity comes from offshore wind, building towards a safer, more sustainable, and more affordable energy network.鈥�
Home to over 2000 wind farms, and with the largest offshore wind capacity in the world, wind power already plays a leading part in the UK鈥檚 energy landscape. This offshore resource provides a range of advantages over its onshore equivalent; farms can be built at a greater scale (the UK currently has the biggest offshore wind farm in the world, Hornsea 1 near the Yorkshire coast), winds are higher and more consistent, and any visual impact concerns are significantly reduced.