Latching control of a point-absorber wave energy converter with a hydraulic power take-off system: A calabrian case study
Wave energy converters represent a promising renewable energy technology; however, they are still widely untapped worldwide, especially in Italy. In this study, the application of a possible latching control for a point-absorber WEC coupled with a hydraulic power take-off system at the Cetraro site...
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| Published in: | Ocean engineering Vol. 310; p. 118775 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier Ltd
15-10-2024
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Get full text |
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| Summary: | Wave energy converters represent a promising renewable energy technology; however, they are still widely untapped worldwide, especially in Italy. In this study, the application of a possible latching control for a point-absorber WEC coupled with a hydraulic power take-off system at the Cetraro site (Calabria, Southern Italy) is proposed. A numerical model was developed in order to determine the most suitable values for sizing the system. In particular, different parameters, such as piston dimensions, buoy mass and diameter were selected to obtain the maximum power captured by the device both in regular and irregular waves. For the developed system, a parametric latching control was proposed to enhance the capture width ratio of the WEC. It was demonstrated that by adopting this control method, efficiency improvements of up to 23% have been achieved with a buoy having a diameter of approximately 2.5 m and wave power density of approximately 4.2 kW/m, for regular waves. The same approach was demonstrated to be valid also for irregular waves, for which by properly selecting the control parameters, improvements in captured power can be achieved.
•A numerical model of a wave energy converter with a hydraulic power take-off was developed.•The system was properly sized and a latching control was designed in order to maximize the extracted power.•The adoption of the proposed control method improves system efficiency up to 23% in spite of an efficiency of about 15% when control is not activated.•When latching control is active, pressure peaks in the circuit are reduced by properly setting the control parameters. |
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| ISSN: | 0029-8018 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.oceaneng.2024.118775 |