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- Potapenko, Tatiana
(författare)
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Wave energy converter: hydrodynamics and control
- 2021
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Waves, just like wind and solar radiation, is a widely available renewable energy source. Waves are created when winds move across the sea surface. The estimated potential of wave energy is abundant, but the commercial harvesting technologies are still in their infancy. There are different wave energy converter designs, one of which is developed at Uppsala University and is based on a permanent magnet linear generator. A semi-submerged buoy on the water surface absorbs the energy of the wave and converts the mechanical energy into electricity with a direct drive linear generator.One of the main goals in wave energy research is to enhance the absorbed power for a single device and multiple devices in wave energy parks. The energy harvest can be increased in different ways: by optimizing the buoy, the generator, and/or by implementing control strategies. To assess the best optimization strategies numerical modeling is an inexpensive tool, aimed to predict the complex behavior of the system. This licentiate thesis focuses on the study of wave energy converters in irregular waves for testing sites, such as in Lysekil (Sweden) and Wave Hub (UK). The numerical model is used to analyze the wave energy conversion power performance. The hydrodynamic model involves radiation force approximation for a state-space model. It has been shown that a higher order of approximation can be achieved by vector fitting than by the transfer function fitting in the frequency domain, especially for the interaction of several bodies with the incident wave. Wave energy converter concepts are evaluated in terms of absorbed power for the resistive load connection, representing the passive control of the currents in the generator windings. Additionally, RC-load intends to model a grid-connected generator with active rectification, such that phase angle is compensated. Finally, a power-hardware-in-the-loop study of a grid-connected wave energy converter is presented. The current and voltage profiles of a grid-connected wave energy converter are shown with a suggestion on the implementation of RLC filter for power smoothing.
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| 2. |
- Gravråkmo, Halvar, 1979-
(författare)
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Buoy Geometry, Size and Hydrodynamics for Power Take Off Device for Point Absorber Linear Wave Energy Converter
- 2014
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Wave energy converters of point absorber type have been developed and constructed. Full scale experiments have been carried out at sea and electricity has been successfully delivered. Linear permanent magnet generators together with a subsea substation and buoys of various geometric shapes have been investigated theoretically and experimentally. The design has in large extent an electronic approach, keeping the mechanical part of it as simple as possible, due to the long life span and reliability of electric components.Because of the nature of a linear generator, the internal translator with permanent magnets has a limited stroke length which will be reached when the buoy is exposed to large wave heights. Internal springs at the top and bottom of the generator prevent the translator from hitting the generator hull. Inertial forces due to the mass and velocity of the translator and the buoy and its heave added mass compresses the spring. The added mass is a rather large part of the total moving mass. Simulations of a converter with a vertical cylindrical buoy and with a toroidal buoy were conducted, as well as real sea experiments with converters with cylindrical buoys of two different sizes and a toroidal buoy. The overloads are likely to affect the design and service life of the generator, the buoy and the wire which interconnects them.Buoy shapes with as much excitation force as possible and as little heave added mass as possible were sought. A toroidal buoy caused less overloads on the generator at sea states with short wave periods and relatively large wave height, but for sea states with very long wave periods or extremely high waves, the magnitude of the overloads was mainly determined by the maximum displacement of the buoy.Snap loads on the interconnecting wire, as the slack wire tensed up after a very deep wave trough, were found to be greater but of the same order of magnitude as forces during the rest of the wave cycle.During a 4 day period at various wave conditions, two converters with cylindrical buoys proved efficiency between 11.1 % and 24.4 %. The larger buoy had 78 % larger water plane area than the other buoy which resulted in 11 % more power production. Short wave period was beneficial for the power production.Infinite frequency heave added mass was measured for a cylindrical buoy at real sea and found to be greater than the linearly calculated theoretical added mass.
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