Integration of Wave Power Farms into Power Systems of the Adriatic Islands: Technical Possibilities and Cross-Cutting Aspects

Wave energy is of interest for regions with high wave power potential, as well as for regions with modest wave power potential such as the Adriatic/Mediterranean coastlines and islands. In the present paper, the possibility of integrating a wave power farm with the power system of an island in the Adriatic Sea, combining the wave power with a battery energy storage system (BESS) and solar photovoltaics (PVs) is explored and its impact on the local weak low voltage grid is investigated. The load profile is typical of the demand (consumption) of an Adriatic island, in which the demand substantially increases during summer (the tourist season). The wave power technology is a point-absorbing wave energy converter (WEC) with a direct drive linear permanent-magnet synchronous generator power take-off device. Wave power farms (WPFs) consist of two to ten WECs. In this study, we show that the integration of a WPF consisting of two WECs into the grid is optimal and helps to reach zero grid exchange, and a BESS reduces the intermittency of the power flow into the grid. Since a potential wave power farm is to be installed in a populated recreational area, the technical study is complemented by discussion on cross-cutting aspects such as its environmental and social impact.

Estimation of wave power in shallow water using deep water wind and wave statistics

The article addresses how the wave power in shallow water can be estimated based on available wind and wave statistics for a deep water ocean area. The average statistical properties of the wave power in shallow water expressed in terms of the mean value and the standard deviation are presented. Results are exemplified by using long-term wind and wave statistics from the same ocean area in the Northern North Sea. Overall, it appears that there is agreement between the results based on these inputs from wind and wave statistics. The presented analytical method should be useful for making preliminary estimates of the wave power potential in shallow water using either available deep water wind statistics or deep water wave statistics, which enhances the possibilities for assessing further the wave power potential in, for example, near-coastal zones.

Impacts of Global Climate Change on the Future Ocean Wave Power Potential: A Case Study from the Indian Ocean

This study investigates the impacts of global climate change on the future wave power potential, taking Sri Lanka as a case study from the northern Indian Ocean. The geographical location of Sri Lanka, which receives long-distance swell waves generated in the Southern Indian Ocean, favors wave energy-harvesting. Waves projected by a numerical wave model developed using Simulating Waves Nearshore Waves (SWAN) wave model, which is forced by atmospheric forcings generated by an Atmospheric Global Climate Model (AGCM) within two time slices that represent “present” and “future” (end of century) wave climates, are used to evaluate and compare present and future wave power potential around Sri Lanka. The results reveal that there will be a 12–20% reduction in average available wave power along the south-west and south-east coasts of Sri Lanka in future. This reduction is due mainly to changes to the tropical south-west monsoon system because of global climate change. The available wave power resource attributed to swell wave component remains largely unchanged. Although a detailed analysis of monthly and annual average wave power under both “present” and “future” climates reveals a strong seasonal and some degree of inter-annual variability of wave power, a notable decadal-scale trend of variability is not visible during the simulated 25-year periods. Finally, the results reveal that the wave power attributed to swell waves are very stable over the long term.

Integration of Marine Wave Energy Converters into Seaports: A Case Study in the Port of Valencia

A feasibility study for the installation of Wave Energy Converters (WEC) in a Spanish Mediterranean port is evaluated in this paper. The final aim is to evaluate the possibility of building a new infrastructure which combines a breakwater and a WEC able to provide energy to the commercial port of Valencia. An estimation of the wave power potential is made according to existing databases from different sources. A review of the existing WEC types is carried out in order to choose the most suitable technology for its installation in a port environment. The authors discuss the main advantages and issues of the integration of WEC in port breakwaters. A prospective study for the Port of Valencia is made, considering the port energy demand evolution, historical data on wave energy potential and the port expansion plans. We conclude that Overtopping Devices (OTDs) are the most suitable ones to allow the good integration with the new breakwater needed for the expansion of the Port of Valencia and we give an estimation on the power available from the resource in our case study.