An experimental study on the hydrodynamic performance of a backward bent duct buoy (BBDB) was performed in a 2D wave tank. The BBDB is one of the promising oscillating water column (OWC) types of floating wave energy converters. Two different corner-shaped BBDBs (sharp-corner and round-corner) were used to measure the maximum chamber surface elevations and body motions for various incident wave conditions, and their hydrodynamic characteristics were compared. In order to investigate the effect of the pneumatic pressure inside the chamber, the heave and pitch angle interacted with elevations were compared for both open chamber and partially open chamber BBDBs. From the comparison study, the deviation in the chamber surface elevations between the two shapes of BBDBs was found to be significant near the resonance period, which may be explained by viscous energy loss. It was also found that the pneumatic pressure noticeably affected the chamber surface elevation and body motions.

Experimental Study of Hydrodynamic Performance of Backward Bent Duct Buoy (BBDB) Floating Wave Energy Converter

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Numerical Analysis of Wave Energy Extraction Performance According to the Body Shape and Scale of the Breakwater-integrated Sloped OWC

In this paper, a wave-induced swirl water chamber (SWC) for breakwater and wave power generation is introduced and its applicability to wave power generation in the coastal waters of Korea is investigated. The SWC type of wave power generation is a way to drive a turbine using the unidirectional swirl flow that is induced in the back of a curtain wall of a breakwater due to incident waves. The typical wave characteristics are obtained by analyzing the annual statistical wave data from KHOA (Korea Hydrographic and Oceanographic Administration). A numerical analysis is carried out on the variations in the SWC entrance height, wave height, and different installation conditions. For the numerical analysis, a commercial code, Fluent based on FVM, is used. As the entrance height decreases, the mass flow rate through the entrance is rarely changed, whereas the magnitude of the flow velocity of the smaller entrance height is greater than the other ones, which is better for the formation of an SWC swirl flow inside and the flow kinetic energy at the entrance. In cases of installation conditions where a wall is place behind and under SWC, it has been shown that the mass flow rate through the entrance is greater than that in the open condition, and sufficient flow kinetic energy is generated in the entrance for wave power generation. However, the swirl flow kinetic energy is relatively small. Thus, in the future, it is necessary to study the swirl flow generation, which is affected by the SWC shape.

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Numerical Investigation on the Applicability of Wave-Induced Swirl Water Chamber for Wave Power Generation in Coastal Water of Korea

In order to evaluate the performance of the floating wave power, which is an axisymmetric oscillating water column type, linearized free surface boundary condition considering the influence of PTO (power takeoff) was derived and a finite element numerical model was established. Numerical experiments were carried out by varying cylinder length, skirt length, and depth of water, which are design parameters that can change the resonance of water column in cylinder and heave resonance of the float, which is considered to affect the power generation efficiency. Finally, the basic data necessary for the optimum design of the power generation system were obtained. As a result, the efficiency of the power generation system is dominated by the heave motion resonance of the float rather than the water column resonance in the cylinder, and the resonance condition for the heave motion can be changed efficiently by attaching the skirt to the outside of the buoy.

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Performance Evaluation of an Axisymmetric Floating Wave Power Device with an Oscillating Water Column in the Vertical Cylinder

This study reviews the recent development and research results of a fixed oscillating water column (OWC) wave energy converter (WEC). The OWC WEC can be divided into fixed and floating types based on the installation location and movement of the structure. In this article, the study on a stationary OWC WEC, which is close to commercialization through the accumulation of long-term research achievements, is divided into five research categories with a focus on primary energy conversion research. These research categories include potential-flow-based numerical analysis, wave tank experiments, computational fluid dynamics analyses toward investigation of fluid viscous effects, U-shaped OWC studies that can amplify water surface displacement in the OWC chamber, and studies on OWC prototypes that have been installed and operated in real sea environments. This review will provide an overview of recent research on the stationary OWC WEC and basic information for further detailed studies on the OWC.

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Oscillating Water Column (OWC) Wave Energy Converter Part 1: Fixed OWC

The aim of this experimental study was to analyze the effect of the shape parameters and chamber pressure of a land-based oscillating water column (OWC) in regular incident waves. The magnitude of the free surface elevations inside the chamber was measured in a two-dimensional wave tank for various chamber skirt drafts and bottom slope angles. The surface elevations were also measured under both open chamber and partially open chamber conditions. From these measurements, the optimum shape of the OWC device could be predicted for the maximum wave energy conversion efficiency. It was found that the resonance frequency of the OWC system associated with incident waves moved toward the long wave region with increments of the draft of the chamber skirt and bottom slope. The behavior of the free surface elevation inside the chamber was also found to be dependent on the chamber pressure.

Jin-Sung Kwon

Papers

Experimental Study of Shape Parameter of Land-based OWC Wave Energy Converter