Abstract
This paper presents two wave energy concepts for small-scale electricity generation. In the presented case, these concepts are installed on the buoy of a heaving, point-absorbing wave energy converter (WEC) for large scale electricity production. In the studied WEC, developed by Uppsala University, small-scale electricity generation in the buoy is needed to power a tidal compensating system designed to increase the performance of the WEC in areas with high tides. The two considered and modeled concepts are an oscillating water column (OWC) and a heaving point absorber. The results indicate that the OWC is too small for the task and does not produce enough energy. On the other hand, the results show that a hybrid system composed of a small heaving point absorber combined with a solar energy system would be able to provide a requested minimum power of around 37.7 W on average year around. The WEC and solar panel complement each other, as the WEC produces enough energy by itself during wintertime (but not in the summer), while the solar panel produces enough energy in the summer (but not in the winter).
Highlights
The working principle of the wave energy converter (WEC) from Uppsala University is a heaving point absorber [1,2,3]
A number of renewable energy converters (RECs) have been considered, and these converters need to fulfill a number of criteria: The energy converters must be small enough to be attached to the main buoy of the WEC while the buoy’s operation is undisturbed
Based on Equation (4), the power output from the oscillating water column (OWC) is significantly influenced by the chamber diameter and the outlet diameter
Summary
The working principle of the wave energy converter (WEC) from Uppsala University is a heaving point absorber [1,2,3]. From the experiences gained with the previous tidal compensator, the system needs a reliable power source to charge the batteries [14] To meet this challenge, a number of renewable energy converters (RECs) have been considered, and these converters need to fulfill a number of criteria: The energy converters must be small enough to be attached to the main buoy of the WEC while the buoy’s operation is undisturbed. Utilizing the same method of wave energy conversion, Henriques et al [16] optimized an oscillating water column (OWC)-type WEC for self-powered sensor buoys. Another example is given in [17], where a dielectric elastomer is used to harness wave energy from a wide range of wave frequencies
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