How can pressure changes affect tidal energy generation?

[Physicsameture]

Hi everyone, its been a while since i posted on here but i thought i could do with all your help once again lol.

Im in my final year of my degree now and half way through my final year project which is basically to analyse a tidal generator patent show the basic principles with a practical model. So far i am going down the conservation of energy road so we know that all the energy going in (in terms of fluid flow) is what must come out. Now what i want to prove is that a change in pressure (ideally and increase) will accelerate the fluid flow. I plan to do this via the venturi experiment. Now the trouble i am having is designing an experiment that can show this based on my model i plan to create.

The model i have designed is very simple basically a shoe box which allows fluid to flow through it. The area of the housing will be smaller than the vessel the water is flowing in (a tide generator). So i know the initial flow rate in the tide generator as this is set. I then plan to take measurements as the water flows through my designed vessel.

My question is, is there any way in which to improve on what i have or any suggestions in any other experiments i could conduct which must include my designed housing.

All help is greatly appreciated, i did not want to put this in the home work section as i don't really consider it home work, i just want your opinions on what else i can do. Thanks.

 

[russ_watters]

Have you talked to your advisor about this? My senior design project had a very structured process. And I remember that despite very ambitious goals, the actual productive output of the project was somewhat disappointing...

Anyway, I'm not sure how a generic experiment about a well-established scientific principle has any bearing on the analysis of a tidal power system. I'd make the experiments specific to the system being analyzied (in other words, build and test a simplified prototype).