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Wake measurements are critical for quantifying the hydrodynamic effects of tidal energy extraction and for designing arrays of tidal turbines. In this investigation field measurements from the wake of PLAT-I, a commercial-scale floating array of four tidal turbines, are presented. Instrumented surface-following drifters are used to measure velocity and turbulence in the wake of PLAT-I while deployed in Grand Passage, an energetic tidal channel in the Bay of Fundy, NS, Canada. Field measurements were obtained when the turbines where fully operational under optimal conditions during spring tides. The collected data are used to construct tridimensional maps of acoustic backscatter, mean velocity, vertical velocity variance and turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate downstream of the platform at different stages of the tide. The operational turbine array wake was captured for ebb and flood tides. For both ebb and flood, reduced velocities are observed in the upper water column at the depths spanned by the turbine rotors. Vertical profiles of velocity mix quickly during flood tide but velocities remain slower than the undisturbed flow outside of the wake up to 20 effective diameters downstream of the platform. In contrast, during ebb, the velocity deficit persists farther downstream, and the reduced velocity increases slightly. Elevated turbulence levels peak at 2 effective diameters downstream of the turbines and recover to undisturbed flow levels at approximately 10 effective diameters downstream of the platform for both ebb and flood tides. Total energy dissipated through turbulence within the wake is estimated to be less than 10% of the energy extracted for electricity production. • Field measurements of the wake from an operational commercial scale floating tidal turbine array. • The wake is confined to the upper water column during both ebb and flood tides. • Wake velocity deficit recovers faster during flood tide than during ebb tide • Wake recovery occurs beyond 20 effective diameters downstream of the turbines. • Wake elevated turbulence intensities recover quickly for both ebb and flood tides [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this investigation, instrumented mobile platforms are used to spatially map the turbulent flows in Grand Passage, one of the Bay of Fundy's more energetic tidal channels in Nova Scotia, Canada. The aim is to characterize the flow around the PLAT-I floating tidal energy platform developed by Sustainable Marine Energy Canada (SMEC). GPS-tracked surface drifters equipped with fast-sampling acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs) provide turbulence-resolving vertical profiles of velocity and turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate along drifter trajectories, while vessel-mounted ADCP transects complement the mean flow velocity measurements. These data are used to construct tridimensional quasi-synoptic maps of mean velocities and turbulence parameters for several stages of the tide around PLAT-I's location including peak ebb and flood currents. The data set includes measurements under natural flow conditions, and while the turbines installed on PLAT-I were both not operational and operational. The measurement techniques and resulting maps successfully capture the spatial and temporal structure of the flow for unsteady conditions for various tidal conditions. The combined wake of the four 6.3 m operational PLAT-I turbines was measured for a single tidal stage. Closer to the turbines, the vertical extent of the wake is about 6 m (approximately one turbine diameter), increasing with distance downstream, while the maximum observed velocity deficit is 26% relative to not operating conditions, decreasing with distance downstream. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]