Why didn’t we think 
of this? Hopefully it will be downsized and implemented on smaller boats soon. Megayacht company Paracas Yachts has patented a hydro-electric regeneration technology that uses the sails of a large boat to actively generate huge quantities of electrical power. As the megayacht is moving at full speed via its sails, the captain can press a switch and harness the momentum in two specially-designed hydro-electric turbines in the boat’s hulls, minimizing drag and regenerating up to 360kw an hour.
While luxury yachts and eco-friendly design haven’t typically gone hand in hand, Paracas Yachts’ hired Andre Aisner, an experienced architect and sailor who designed the yacht from top to bottom paying close attention to detail, and William Ray, an electrical engineer and former NASA contractor to design this “green” system. Much like the electrical cars that are now being available to the public, the yachts use a battery bank instead of a fuel tank. The latest technology in lithium-ion battery design allow for the large electrical current outputs and inputs that are necessary for the Paracas Yachts system.
For the complete story, go to www.yachting-intelligence.com.
360 kw? Whoaaaa, that’s a bunch. Since it is unlikely that they can store much of that it means that they are consuming 360 kw. If they are consuming that much, then they must be burning a bunch of fuel when there is not enough wind to generate the power. Doesn’t seem very green to me. Of course, maybe they have a mega-battery bank to go along with the mega-yacht.
I also wonder how much speed this costs them. Extracting power this way must reduce the speed of the boat unless they are already limited by hull speed.
This is another example of an article with too little information and not enough insight by the author to delve into the real issues.
Hardly new technology. In 1987 I fitted a modified car alternator to the propshaft of my 32 foot yacht and generated power from it while under sail. At 5.5 knots I could get enough power to meet the entire boat’s electricity needs, but I lost over half a knot of speed.
At hull speed I got a lot more power and hardly slowed the boat at all.
A properly designed “turbine” would have a lot less drag relative to its power generating capacity than a propellor “running backwards”.
Commercial units like mine were advertised for sale a few years later, and I helped a friend fit one, with similar results.
Even for a luxury Megayacht, 360kW (NOT kW per hour, please!!) seems a huge amount. It would take a diesel engine of over 550 horsepower to drive a generator to produce 360kW.
Imagine that 550 hp diesel connected to a propellor powering astern while the boat was sailing forward.. do you think the boat would slow down a bit?????
I do!
I encourage you to visit http://www.paracasyachts.com for more information ! and yes, we do have a large battery bank !