Advancing Wave Energy Technologies through Open Water Testing at PacWave (DOE)

2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (17) ◽  
pp. 3-3
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Water Testing ◽  
Energy Technologies

scholarly journals Site selection for scaled open water testing of a wave energy converter

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 101-110
Author(s):  
Niall D. McLean ◽  
Matthew A. Holland ◽  
Ruairi D. Maciver ◽  
Elva B. Bannon
Keyword(s):  
Power Systems ◽  
Wave Energy ◽  
Technology Development ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Wave Energy Converter ◽  
Energy Converter ◽  
Water Testing ◽  
Site Characteristics ◽  
Systems Identification ◽  
A Site

Many wave energy converter developers opt to carry out scaled prototype open water testing of their device as part of their technology development. Developers who have done this recently include Sea Power (1/5 scale, Galway Bay, 2017), CorPower (1/4 scale, EMEC, 2018) and Marine Power Systems (1/4 scale, FaBTest, ongoing). Scaled open water testing offers several benefits, including more representative realisations of sub-systems, identification and resolution of technological issues associated with scaling-up, and de-risking the manufacturing and marine operational procedures ahead of commercial-scale testing. In preparation for testing in Stage 3 of the Novel Wave Energy Converter programme, Wave Energy Scotland has considered requirements of a suitable scaled open water site and the methods for selection. In common with commercial site identification, this must consider operational infrastructure, time and funding constraints, and the appropriateness of site characteristics. This appropriateness is further complicated by the need to find a site of comparable scaled water depth and where the sea-states of interest (when scaled to full-scale) are likely to occur with sufficient frequency over the duration of the intended testing campaign. This paper presents an approach, and its associated assumptions, to identify locations which have the potential to satisfy the scaled open water site considerations, before discussing the challenges to satisfy the critical testing outcomes, and the pragmatism required to meet all requirements.

STANDARDIZING BOOM TEST PROCEDURES1

1985 ◽  
Vol 1985 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-45
Author(s):  
M. Borst ◽  
H. W. Lichte
Keyword(s):  
Standardized Test ◽  
Extended Period ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Fold Increase ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Technical Committee ◽  
Design Parameters ◽  
Sea State ◽  
Water Testing ◽  
Wide Range

ABSTRACT The Interagency Technical Committee (OITC) of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Oil and Hazardous Materials Simulated Environmental Test Tank (OHMSETT) facility sponsored a combined series of in-tank and open-water tests on five booms. The booms selected cover the wide range of sizes and design parameters often considered appropriate for spill control. The tests were conducted at the OHMSETT facility and in nearby Sandy Hook Bay between November 1983 and May 1984. The in-tank tests measured the oil-holding performance of the boom; the open-water tests demonstrated wave conformance and survivability. The objective was to correlate the two sets of data. The five in-tank tests for each boom used a standardized test matrix for oil-holding ability. Wave conformance and endurance were observed under controlled conditions. The results of this testing compared favorably with historical tests performed in the test task. The five booms were deployed in the bay over an extended period. The length of deployment varied from 14 to 27 days depending on the local weather conditions. The booms were observed and videotaped to document approximate sea-state limits of the booms. The booms deployed in the bay were approximately 500 ft long. The tank tests used 100 ft lengths. Wave conformance in the two tests was similar. The five-fold increase in boom length made any lack of conformance more obvious, however. The data derived from the open-water testing were based primarily on visual observations and sea-state estimates. The in-tank endurance tests did not correlate as well as expected with the open-water testing. Determining the deterioration of a boom during long-term deployment by in-tank testing was discounted by this program. This paper documents the results of the initial in-tank and open-water tests, emphasizing the techniques of testing, and outlines plans for the future tests.

Available Ocean Wave Power and Prediction of Power Extracted by a Contouring Raft Conversion System

1983 ◽  
Vol 105 (4) ◽  
pp. 492-498 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. L. Burdette ◽  
C. K. Gordon
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
Pacific Coast ◽  
Mechanical Energy ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Ocean Wave ◽  
Northwest Pacific ◽  
Ocean Wave Energy ◽  
Wave Energy Flux ◽  
Made In

Techniques are described which have been employed to develop detailed, quantitive estimates of the available ocean wave energy flux. A summary of results for a region of particular interest to potential U.S. developers of wave energy systems — the U.S. Northwest Pacific Coast — is also presented. Comparisons with results of other studies are made. In addition, a method for predicting the amount of mechanical energy captured by a conversion device, based on a frequency domain technique, is presented. Results are predicted for an articulated, contour following raft deployed in deep, open water west of the mouth of the Columbia River.

scholarly journals Umbilical Fatigue Analysis for a Wave Energy Converter

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Billy Ballard ◽  
Yi-Hsiang Yu ◽  
Jennifer Van Rij ◽  
Frederick Driscoll
Keyword(s):  
Fatigue Life ◽  
Fatigue Damage ◽  
Wave Energy ◽  
Degrees Of Freedom ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Time History ◽  
Fatigue Analysis ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Wave Energy Converters ◽  
Energy Technologies

Abstract Unique umbilical designs for wave energy converters (WECs), including the ability to handle significantly larger motions and loads over long deployments, are often required when conventional marine umbilical designs for offshore oil and gas and offshore wind may not meet the design and cost needs of wave energy technologies. This study details a fatigue analysis of a dynamic power umbilical attached to a two-body floating point absorber WEC system, using the sea states provided for the PacWave testing facilities. The 6 degrees of freedom motion time history for the WEC was simulated, and the motions of the attachment point for the umbilical on the WEC and respective sea states were used to analyze the dynamic motions and fatigue of the connected power umbilical to predict the fatigue life. The results show that the fatigue damage observed is more significant in shallow water, and extensive fatigue damage may occur because of the larger curvature response of the umbilical. The umbilical configurations departing at 90 deg off incoming waves were found to have the highest fatigue life attributed to less extension or compression of the umbilical. However, additional bend stiffener/limiter features may need to be incorporated into the buoyancy section and touchdown regions to minimize curvature-induced fatigue.

scholarly journals The Wave Energy Converter Design Process: Methods Applied in Industry and Shortcomings of Current Practices

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
pp. 932
Author(s):  
Ali Trueworthy ◽  
Bryony DuPont
Keyword(s):  
Design Process ◽  
Wave Energy ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Optimization Methods ◽  
Wave Energy Converter ◽  
Design Parameters ◽  
Energy Converter ◽  
Design Decisions ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Converter Design

Wave energy is among the many renewable energy technologies being researched and developed to address the increasing demand for low-emissions energy. The unique design challenges for wave energy converter design—integrating complex and uncertain technological, economic, and ecological systems, overcoming the structural challenges of ocean deployment, and dealing with complex system dynamics—have lead to a disjointed progression of research and development. There is no common design practice across the wave energy industry and there is no published synthesis of the practices that are used by developers. In this paper, we summarize the methods being employed in WEC design as well as promising methods that have yet to be applied. We contextualize these methods within an overarching design process. We present results from a survey of WEC developers to identify methods that are common in industry. From the review and survey results, we conclude that the most common methods of WEC design are iterative methods in which design parameters are defined, evaluated, and then changed based on evaluation results. This leaves a significant space for improvement of methods that help designers make better-informed decisions prior to sophisticated evaluation, and methods of using the evaluation results to make better design decisions during iteration. Despite the popularity of optimization methods in academic research, they are less common in industry development. We end this paper with a summary of the areas of WEC design in which the testing and development of new methods is necessary, and where more research is required to fully understand the influence of design decisions on WEC performance.

scholarly journals Review of Systems Engineering (SE) Methods and Their Application to Wave Energy Technology Development

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (10) ◽  
pp. 823
Author(s):  
Pablo Ruiz-Minguela ◽  
Vincenzo Nava ◽  
Jonathan Hodges ◽  
Jesús M. Blanco
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Systems Engineering ◽  
Wave Energy ◽  
Technology Development ◽  
Energy Technology ◽  
Technical Parameters ◽  
Energy Devices ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
The Many ◽  
Suitable Framework

The design of effective and economically viable wave energy devices involves complex decision-making about the product based on conceptual design information, including stakeholder requirements, functions, components and technical parameters. The great diversity of concepts makes it extremely difficult to create fair comparisons of the relative merits of the many different designs. Conventional design approaches have proved insufficient to guarantee wave energy technologies meet their technical and economic goals. Systems engineering can provide a suitable framework to overcome the obstacles towards a successful wave energy technology. The main objective of this work is to review the well-established systems engineering approaches that have been successfully implemented in complex engineering problems and to what extent they have been applied to wave energy technology development. The paper first reviews how system information can be organised in different design domains to guide the synthesis and analysis activities and the definition of requirements and metrics, as well as the search for solutions and decision-making. Then, an exhaustive literature review on the application of systems engineering approaches to wave energy development is presented per design domain. Finally, a set of conclusions is drawn, along with some suggestions for improving the effectiveness of wave energy technology development.

POSSIBILITIES OF IMPLEMENTATION IN THE SPANISH COAST, OF COMMERCIAL AND PRE-COMMERCIAL WAVE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blanco Pablo Torres ◽  
Blanco Pablo Torres ◽  
Carrasco Pedro Fernández ◽  
Carrasco Pedro Fernández
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Complete Information ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Wave Power ◽  
Initial Analysis ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Spanish Coast ◽  
Regulatory Aspect ◽  
The Ideal

This paper presents an initial analysis of the technical viability, of the application for the commercial and pre-commercial wave energy technologies, to the Spanish coasts. This analysis provides an optimal framework for future research, choosing one technology and considering a concrete point of the Spanish coast, with their respective constraints such as, the regulatory aspect of the fees to be applied to such technology, and the restrictions related to the protection of the ecosystems, and other local activities not compatible with the technology.This work is continuing the initiative started by the Project Enola. Enola is a software that provides comprehensive and complete information, about the potential electric production, based on wave energy of the Spanish coast. After evaluating all the wave energy technologies available at this point, those more mature and viable have been selected; the parameters under which they are productive have been analysed; and the ideal areas for implementation on the Spanish coast have been determined, according to the potentials provided by Enola and the technical limitations of the technologies themselves. The results is a summary document where one can easily identify the best locations for the deployment of wave power plants (optimum output).

A Review of The Combined Wind and Wave Energy Technologies

2019 ◽  
Vol 67 (5) ◽  
pp. 131-136
Author(s):  
Dr.Kesari J.P ◽  
Ashi Gupta ◽  
Kartik Shukla ◽  
Prachi Garg
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
Energy Technologies
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document