You can view or specify the properties of the hydrokinetic components in the Hydrokinteic Library under the Components Library. You can create a new hydrokinetic component from scratch or by copying an existing one. After copying the component, change the properties as required and give the new hydrokinetic component a unique name to distinguish it from the others. HOMER adds the new hydrokinetic component to your component library when you click OK. The new hydrokinetic component is then included in the list of available hydrokinetic component types on the Hydrokinetic component page.
Variable |
Description |
Name |
A unique name used to identify this type of hydrokinetic component. |
Abbreviation |
A short, distinctive name to identify this hydrokinetic component on the schematic and in the results. There is no specific limit on the abbreviation length, but long abbreviated names do not fit well on the schematic or results. |
Manufacturer |
An optional field used to specify the manufacturer of the hydrokinetic component. |
Website |
An optional field to hold the website of the manufacturer. |
Url |
The actual web address of the link defined in the "Website" input. |
Weight |
Used if "Weight minimization" mode is selected. |
Footprint |
An optional field for reference. |
Notes |
An optional field used to specify manufacturer contact information, prices, or anything noteworthy. |
Electrical Bus |
The type of electricity produced by the hydrokinetic component, either direct current (DC) or alternating current (AC). |
Rated power |
The nominal power output (nameplate capacity) of the turbine. For reference only. |
The power curve is the most important property of the hydrokinetic component. It describes the amount of power the turbine produces for varying water speeds.
Enter as many points on the power curve as you have available. HOMER uses linear interpolation to calculate the output of the hydrokinetic component at intervening points. At water speeds outside the range defined in the power curve, the turbine output is zero. HOMER assumes that the turbine shuts down for water speeds slower than the minimum or faster than the maximum.
You can set the default component lifetime, in years, in the Defaults tab. Once the hydrokinetic component is added to a model, the lifetime can be modified to reflect the actual installation.