Abstract
The search for an economic means to harness energy from ocean waves continues. This paper aims to summarise the findings from our recent studies of novel wave energy devices in which flexible, deformable structures are used in place of conventional rigid structures. The devices utilise a flexible air-filled bag to capture energy from the waves and three different configurations are compared. In each of the three device configurations, expansion and contraction of the bag in waves create a reciprocating airflow via a turbine between the bag and another volume. The bags are all in the form of a fabric encased within an array of longitudinal tendons. In the first configuration, the bag is floating and ballasted such that it pierces the free surface. In the second configuration, the bag is completely submerged and connected at its top to a rigid float and at its bottom to a weight. In the third configuration, the bag is fixed at its bottom and free at the top. A series of tests at approximately 1:20 scale in the laboratory was conducted to investigate the static behaviour of the bags in still water and their dynamic response in waves. Numerical models are developed for each configuration and the predictions agree closely with measurements. Both reveal some interesting properties that are distinct from one device configuration to another.
| Original language | English |
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| Title of host publication | International Conference on Offshore Renewable Energy |
| Place of Publication | United Kingdom |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Publication status | Published - 2016 |
| Externally published | Yes |
| Event | International Conference on Offshore Renewable Energy - Glasgow City Hotel, Glasgow, United Kingdom Duration: 12 Sept 2016 → 14 Sept 2016 https://www.asranet.co.uk/Conferences/OffshoreRenewableEnergy |
Conference
| Conference | International Conference on Offshore Renewable Energy |
|---|---|
| Abbreviated title | CORE 2016 |
| Country/Territory | United Kingdom |
| City | Glasgow |
| Period | 12/09/16 → 14/09/16 |
| Other | This conference will offer delegates an unparalleled opportunity to network with researchers, technology developers, industrial players, and supply chain partners. It will address the latest developments and strategies in offshore renewable energy, potential investors from public funds and government support funding, wave and tidal energyresources. 2014’s Offshore Renewable Energy Conference saw a great level of high standard papers submitted with 15 papers invited to be published in the Journal of Marine Science and Engineering (http://www.mdpi.com/journal/jmse). There will be a similar opportunity for selected papers from 2016’s proceedings to be published in this journal once again. One of the aims of this conference is to create a framework for knowledge sharing and to develop a roadmap for research activities in the context of offshore renewable energy that are a relatively new and challenging field of interest. In particular, the conference will enable research activities leading towards innovative, cost efficient and environmentally benign offshore renewable energy conversion platforms for wind and wave energy resources. This conference will deal with all these issues and see how these developments are applied to various types of offshore renewable energy projects. |
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