Performance and hull pressure analysis of scaled physical testing of a wave energy converter
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Date
2022-06
Authors
Bevin, Anne
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University College Cork
Published Version
Abstract
Wave energy conversion is an emerging field with the potential to capture a
significant amount of a globally abundant energy resource to lower reliance on
fossil fuels. At present, many designs for wave energy converters are being
developed which show great promise for efficiently capturing wave energy.
One of the most common barriers to the commercial development and
deployment of these devices, however, is the high cost of manufacturing and
design validation. The ocean is a harsh environment in which to place
infrastructure, and there is a high risk of a wave energy converter being
critically damaged at sea after going through a long and costly development
process. For this reason, small-scale tank tests and computer modelling of
concepts are vital to develop wave energy converter technologies to the highest
possible degree before being put into an open-water operational environment.
This study describes a physical tank testing campaign of one such model, the
Ocean Energy (OE) Buoy, a floating oscillating water column wave energy
converter. The walls of the OE Buoy are open to allow water to freely flow
through it, and this study seeks to determine whether this might allow for the
device to be made with a thinner hull than “closed-container” marine devices.
If the water pressure that the hull walls will experience during operation is
overestimated in the OE Buoy’s current design, this could have the potential to
significantly lower costs of materials and production. This testing was
conducted at University College Cork’s Lir NOTF tank facility in November and
December of 2021, and the OE Buoy model used is designed at 1:15 scale.
Description
Keywords
OWC , Wave energy conversion , Hull pressure , Tank testing
Citation
Bevin, A. 2022. Performance and hull pressure analysis of scaled physical testing of a wave energy converter. MRes Thesis, University College Cork.