scholarly journals Characterizing Ireland's wave energy resource

2011 ◽  
pp. 21-25
Author(s):  
Brendan Cahill
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
Economic Performance ◽  
West Coast ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
Ocean Waves ◽  
The West ◽  
New Methods ◽  
Wave Energy Converters ◽  
Optimal Power ◽  
Power Capture

In theory, the energy that could be extracted from the oceans is well in excess of any current, or future, human requirements. While wave energy currently lags behind conventional, carbon based sources of power and other renewable sources of energy such as wind and solar, advances continue to be made. The developers of Wave Energy Converters (WECs), the devices that are designed to harness the power of ocean waves, require methods to compare and evaluate the wave energy resource at different locations in order to allow them to select the most suitable sites to achieve optimal power capture and economic performance from their installations. The focus of my Ph.D. research is towards developing new methods for characterizing the wave energy resource off the west coast of Ireland with reference to the potential power available and the performance of typical devices, and also to allow for the comparison of possible sites ...

scholarly journals Wave energy resource variation off the west coast of Ireland and its impact on realistic wave energy converters’ power absorption

2018 ◽  
Vol 224 ◽  
pp. 205-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Markel Penalba ◽  
Alain Ulazia ◽  
Gabriel Ibarra-Berastegui ◽  
John Ringwood ◽  
Jon Sáenz
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
West Coast ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
The West ◽  
Power Absorption ◽  
Wave Energy Converters ◽  
Energy Converters ◽  
Resource Variation

Characterizing the near shore wave energy resource on the west coast of Vancouver Island, Canada

2014 ◽  
Vol 71 ◽  
pp. 665-678 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bryson R.D. Robertson ◽  
Clayton E. Hiles ◽  
Bradley J. Buckham
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
West Coast ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
Vancouver Island ◽  
The West ◽  
Near Shore

scholarly journals Historical Evolution of the Wave Resource and Energy Production off the Chilean Coast over the 20th Century

Energies ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 2289 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alain Ulazia ◽  
Markel Penalba ◽  
Arkaitz Rabanal ◽  
Gabriel Ibarra-Berastegi ◽  
John Ringwood ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Wave Energy ◽  
West Coast ◽  
Energy Production ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
The West ◽  
Chilean Coast ◽  
Resource Variability ◽  
The Impact

The wave energy resource in the Chilean coast shows particularly profitable characteristics for wave energy production, with relatively high mean wave power and low inter-annual resource variability. This combination is as interesting as unusual, since high energetic locations are usually also highly variable, such as the west coast of Ireland. Long-term wave resource variations are also an important aspect when designing wave energy converters (WECs), which are often neglected in resource assessment. The present paper studies the long-term resource variability of the Chilean coast, dividing the 20th century into five do-decades and analysing the variations between the different do-decades. To that end, the ERA20C reanalysis of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts is calibrated versus the ERA-Interim reanalysis and validated against buoy measurements collected in different points of the Chilean coast. Historical resource variations off the Chilean coast are compared to resource variations off the west coast in Ireland, showing a significantly more consistent wave resource. In addition, the impact of historical wave resource variations on a realistic WEC, similar to the Corpower device, is studied, comparing the results to those obtained off the west coast of Ireland. The annual power production off the Chilean coast is demonstrated to be remarkably more regular over the 20th century, with variations of just 1% between the different do-decades.

scholarly journals HF Radars for Wave Energy Resource Assessment Offshore NW Spain

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 2070
Author(s):  
Ana Basañez ◽  
Vicente Pérez-Muñuzuri
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
Numerical Models ◽  
Wave Spectrum ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
Electrical Energy ◽  
Resource Assessment ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Statistical Validation ◽  
Wave Energy Converters ◽  
Energy Converters

Wave energy resource assessment is crucial for the development of the marine renewable industry. High-frequency radars (HF radars) have been demonstrated to be a useful wave measuring tool. Therefore, in this work, we evaluated the accuracy of two CODAR Seasonde HF radars for describing the wave energy resource of two offshore areas in the west Galician coast, Spain (Vilán and Silleiro capes). The resulting wave characterization was used to estimate the electricity production of two wave energy converters. Results were validated against wave data from two buoys and two numerical models (SIMAR, (Marine Simulation) and WaveWatch III). The statistical validation revealed that the radar of Silleiro cape significantly overestimates the wave power, mainly due to a large overestimation of the wave energy period. The effect of the radars’ data loss during low wave energy periods on the mean wave energy is partially compensated with the overestimation of wave height and energy period. The theoretical electrical energy production of the wave energy converters was also affected by these differences. Energy period estimation was found to be highly conditioned to the unimodal interpretation of the wave spectrum, and it is expected that new releases of the radar software will be able to characterize different sea states independently.

Numerical Modeling to Aid in the Structural Health Monitoring of Wave Energy Converters

2013 ◽  
Vol 569-570 ◽  
pp. 595-602 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Finnegan ◽  
Jamie Goggins
Keyword(s):  
Structural Health Monitoring ◽  
Health Monitoring ◽  
Wave Energy ◽  
Numerical Models ◽  
Wave Structure ◽  
Ocean Waves ◽  
Test Site ◽  
Structural Health ◽  
Wave Energy Converters ◽  
Energy Converters

A vital aspect of ensuring the cost effectiveness of wave energy converters (WECs) is being able to monitor their performance remotely through structural health monitoring, as these devices are deployed in very harsh environments in terms of both accessibility and potential damage to the devices. The WECs are monitored through the use of measuring equipment, which is strategically placed on the device. This measured data is then compared to the output from a numerical model of the WEC under the same ocean wave conditions. Any deviations would suggest that there are problems or issues with the WEC. The development of accurate and effective numerical models is necessary to minimise the number of times the visual, or physical, inspection of a deployed WEC is required. In this paper, a numerical wave tank model is, first, validated by comparing the waves generated to those generated experimentally using the wave flume located at the National University of Ireland, Galway. This model is then extended so it is suitable for generating real ocean waves. A wave record observed at the Atlantic marine energy test site has been replicated in the model to a high level of accuracy. A rectangular floating prism is then introduced into the model in order to explore wave-structure interaction. The dynamic response of the structure is compared to a simple analytical solution and found to be in good agreement.

Wave and tidal power

2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dean L. Millar
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
Tidal Current ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
Energy Difference ◽  
Tidal Range ◽  
Tidal Power ◽  
Floating Structures ◽  
Wave Energy Converters ◽  
High Tidal Range

This chapter reviews how electricity can be generated from waves and tides. The UK is an excellent example, as the British Isles have rich wave and tidal resources. The technologies for converting wave power into electricity are easily categorized by location type. 1. Shoreline schemes. Shoreline Wave Energy Converters (WECs) are installed permanently on shorelines, from where the electricity is easily transmitted and may even meet local demands. They operate most continuously in locations with a low tidal range. A disadvantage is that less power is available compared to nearshore resources because energy is lost as waves reach the shore. 2. Nearshore schemes. Nearshore WECs are normally floating structures needing seafloor anchoring or inertial reaction points. The advantages over shoreline WECs are that the energy resource is much larger because nearshore WECs can access long-wavelength waves with greater swell, and the tidal range can be much larger. However, the electricity must be transmitted to the shore, thus raising costs. 3. Offshore schemes. Offshore WECs are typically floating structures that usually rely on inertial reaction points. Tidal range effects are insignificant and there is full access to the incident wave energy resource. However, electricity transmission is even more costly. Tidal power technologies fall into two fundamental categories:1. Barrage schemes. In locations with high tidal range a dam is constructed that creates a basin to impound large volumes of water. Water flows in and out of the basin on flood and ebb tides respectively, passing though high efficiency turbines or sluices or both. The power derives from the potential energy difference in water levels either side of the dam. 2. Tidal current turbines. Tidal current turbines (also known as free flow turbines) harness the kinetic energy of water flowing in rivers, estuaries, and oceans. The physical principles are analogous to wind turbines, allowing for the very different density, viscosity, compressibility, and chemistry of water compared to air. Waves are caused by winds, which in the open ocean are often of gale force (speed >14 m/s).

Design and Potential Application of Small Scale Wave Energy Converter

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tunde O. Aderinto ◽  
Francisco Haces-Fernandez ◽  
Hua Li
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
Energy Production ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
Appropriate Technology ◽  
Wave Energy Converter ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Ocean Energy ◽  
Energy Converter ◽  
Wave Energy Converters ◽  
Wave Properties

Although theoretical available wave energy is higher than most of ocean energy sources, the commercial utilization of wave energy is much slower than other ocean energy sources. The difficulty of integration with the electrical grid system and the challenges of the installation, operation and maintenance of large energy generation and transmission systems are the major reasons. Even though there are successfully tested models of wave energy converters, the fact that wave energy is directly affected by wave height and wave period makes the actual wave energy output with high variation and difficult to be predicted. And most of the previous studies on wave energy and its utilization have focused on the large scale energy production that can be integrated into a power grid system. In this paper, the authors identify and discuss stand-alone wave energy converter systems and facilities that are not connected to the electricity grid with focus on small scale wave energy systems as potential source of energy. For the proper identification, qualification and quantification of wave energy resource potential, wave properties such as wave height and period need to be characterized. This is used to properly determine and predict the probability of the occurrence of these wave properties at particular locations, which enables the choice of product design, installation, operation and maintenance to effectively capture wave energy. Meanwhile, the present technologies available for wave energy converters can be limited by location (offshore, nearshore or shoreline). Therefore, the potential applications of small scale stand-alone wave energy converter are influenced by the demand, location of the need and the appropriate technology to meet the identified needs. The paper discusses the identification of wave energy resource potentials, the location and appropriate technology suitable for small scale wave energy converter. Two simplified wave energy converter designs are created and simulated under real wave condition in order to estimate the energy production of each design.

3D SPH Simulation of Wave Interaction Between Wave Energy Converters: Towards Optimum Wave Power Absorption in Wave Farms

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Sasikala ◽  
S. A. Sannasiraj ◽  
Richard Manasseh
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
Oscillation Amplitude ◽  
Excitation Frequency ◽  
Ocean Waves ◽  
Dynamic Responses ◽  
Q Factor ◽  
Floating Bodies ◽  
Sustainable Resources ◽  
Wave Energy Converters ◽  
Energy Converters

Abstract Ocean waves are one of the sustainable resources of renewable energy for carbon-free electricity. For cost-effective commercial-scale projects, Wave Energy Converters (WECs) are deployed in arrays with optimum spacing as an alternative for a large (oscillatory) device in isolation. It has been found that when the wave excitation frequency is close to the resonant frequency of the WEC, the efficiency factor of energy farms, called q-factor, increases with the oscillation amplitude of the device. It has been found that the maximum absorbed energy of WECs depends directly on array configuration as that the radiated and incident wave fields interfere to direct the energy flux in the ocean towards the floating bodies. In this paper, the fully nonlinear interaction between two 3D floating bodies in close proximity and excited near its’ resonance is studied using Weakly Compressible Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (WCSPH). Apart from the calculations of q factor, hydrodynamic forces acting on the floating bodies and their dynamic responses are also calculated. An optimum array of WECs is proposed.

A Detailed Investigation of the Nearshore Wave Climate and the Nearshore Wave Energy Resource on the West Coast of Ireland

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Gallagher ◽  
Roxana Tiron ◽  
Frederic Dias
Keyword(s):  
Wave Energy ◽  
West Coast ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
Wave Model ◽  
Wave Climate ◽  
Western Coast ◽  
Climate Data ◽  
Offshore Area ◽  
Medium Range Weather Forecast ◽  
Maintenance Activities

The western coast of Ireland possesses one of the highest wave energy resources in the world and consequently is a promising location for the future deployment of Wave Energy Converters (WECs). Most wave climate studies for this region have focused primarily on the offshore area since it enjoys higher energy densities. However, recent studies have shown that nearshore locations offer a similar potential for the exploitation of wave energy as offshore sites [13]. Furthermore, the proximity of WEC devices to the shore will likely reduce losses in power transport, and facilitate access for maintenance activities. In this context, we analyse the wave climate over a ten year period for several nearshore sites off the Irish West Coast. The wave climate is estimated using a spectral wave model, WaveWatch III, forced with wind and spectral wave data from the ECMWF (European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecast) operational archive. The wave model is validated with wave buoy data from intermediate to shallow depths (< 60 m). Our focus is on two aspects of the wave climate resource assessment. Firstly, we characterise the directionality of the wave energy resource (mean direction, directional spread) which affects the site selection, design and performance of nearshore WECs. Secondly, we discuss the climate data from the perspective of accessibility for maintenance. When selecting sites for the deployment of WECs, a balance needs to be found between two opposing criteria: the existence of sufficiently long, continuous time intervals of calm sea states (weather windows) which are necessary for maintenance activities to take place, and a high, consistent level of wave energy density, essential for economically viable wave energy extraction.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document