Research of Power Take-off System for “Sharp Eagle Ⅱ” Wave Energy Converter

The "Sharp Eagle" device is a wave energy converter of a hinged double floating body. The wave-absorbing floating body hinges on the semi-submerged floating body structure. Under the action of wave, the wave-absorbing floating body rotates around the hinge point, and the wave energy can be converted into kinetic energy. In this paper, the power take-off system of "Sharp Eagle II" wave energy converter(the second generation of "Sharp Eagle") was studied, which adopts the hydraulic type power take-off system. The 0-1 power generation mode was applied in this system to make the "Sharp Eagle II" operate under various wave conditions. The principle of power generation was introduced in detail, and the power take-off system was simulated. Three groups of different movement period inputs were used to simulate three kinds of wave conditions, and the simulation results were obtained under three different working conditions. In addition, the prototype of "Sharp Eagle II" wave energy converter was tested on land and in real sea conditions. The experimental data have been collected, and the experimental data and simulation results were compared and validated. This work has laid a foundation for the design and application of the following "Sharp Eagle" series of devices.     

集成波能转换功能的方箱—挡浪板式浮式防波堤水动力特性研究

浮式防波堤与振荡浮子式波浪能转换装置集成是一种较为合理的波浪能开发利用方式,基于方箱式浮式防波堤—波浪能转换集成系统和幕帘式防波堤的研究成果,提出了一种新型方箱—垂直挡浪板式浮式防波堤—波浪能转换集成系统,建立数学模型对该集成系统的水动力特性和能量输出特性进行研究。模型基于N-S方程,采用紧致插值曲线(CIP)方法结合浸没边界法(IBM)求解。运用数值模型探究在一定波浪条件下,动力输出系统(PTO)阻尼力的大小以及挡浪板对集成系统的水动力特性和能量转换特性的影响,得到如下结论:集成系统的俘获宽度比随PTO阻尼力的增大呈现先增大后减小的趋势,在阻尼力F_(PTO)=150 N时达到最大;相对于方箱型集成系统,增设0.1 m挡浪板后可使其最大俘获宽度比η_e提高33%左右;此外,集成系统的俘获宽度比随挡浪板长度增加而增大,增长趋势逐渐变缓,在挡浪板长度S_p=0.5 m时达到最大,此时俘获宽度比η_e=0.563 1。     

多点液压式波浪能海水淡化系统建模与仿真

为缓解淡水资源短缺及化石能源过度使用问题,提出多点液压式波浪能海水淡化系统,该系统主要由采能装置、液压传递系统与反渗透膜海水淡化设备组成。系统的采能装置采用振荡浮子式,可将波浪能转换为浮子振荡从而被液压系统吸收达到采集波浪能的目的。为了提高液压式波浪能海水淡化系统的采能效率及淡水率,利用AMEsim软件对液压传递系统进行建模与仿真,分析了蓄能器、浮子个数及波高对液压传递系统输出响应的影响。结果表明:蓄能器能够使液压马达的输出响应更加稳定;当浮子的数量增加时,液压系统达到稳定的运行状态所需的时间更短,从而有利于提高系统的效率;波高在2 m左右时,本系统的产水量达到最大。     

Analysis of dynamic effects relevant for the wear damage in hydraulic machines for wave energy conversion

The present paper deals with a mathematical model of a heaving-buoy Wave Energy Converter (WEC) equipped with high-pressure hydraulic power take-off machinery for energy conversion. This model is based on linear hydrodynamic theory, and a hybrid frequency-time domain model is used to study the dynamics of the heaving-body exposed to an irregular incident wave. For the power take-off system, end-stop devices are provided to protect the hydraulic machinery when the buoy is exposed to severe sea states. The model also takes into account the lubricated friction force and pressure drops of orifice flow through the valves in the hydraulic system. All the forces mentioned in the hydraulic power take-off machinery have non-linear features. A complete non-linear state space model for the WEC system is presented in this study.The WEC system was numerically simulated for different cylinder lengths under a fixed volume. The effect of fluid compressibility in the cylinder has been investigated in the mathematical model. High frequency oscillations (HFOs) caused by the compressibility of the fluid are displayed in the time series and in corresponding power spectra, and variation is shown for different cylinder sizes. Piston ring and cylinder bore wear damage is estimated by using Archard’s equation on the basis of the simulation results. A comparison of these results with a performance of an identical WEC system which neglects fluid compressibility has been done in this work. It shows that although the spectral power is small, HFO can make a large contribution to both the ring and cylinder bore wear. For the purpose of wear prediction, oscillations at or below the wave frequency and HFO may be equally important.     

Connection Technology of HPTO Type WECs and DC Nano Grid in Island

Wave energy fluctuating a great deal endangers the security of power grid especially micro grid in island. A DC nano grid supported by batteries is proposed to smooth the output power of wave energy converters (WECs). Thus, renewable energy converters connected to DC grid is a new subject. The characteristics of WECs are very important to the connection technology of HPTO type WECs and DC nano grid. Hydraulic power take-off system (HPTO) is the core unit of the largest category of WECs, with the functions of supplying suitable damping for a WEC to absorb wave energy, and converting captured wave energy to electricity. The HPTO is divided into a hydraulic energy storage system (HESS) and a hydraulic power generation system (HPGS). A primary numerical model for the HPGS is established in this paper. Three important basic characteristics of the HPGS are deduced, which reveal how the generator load determines the HPGS rotation rate. Therefore, the connector of HPTO type WEC and DC nano grid would be an uncontrollable rectifier with high reliability, also would be a controllable power converter with high efficiency, such as interleaved boost converter-IBC. The research shows that it is very flexible to connect to DC nano grid for WECs, but bypass resistance loads are indispensable for the security of WECs..     

Design of a hydraulic power take-off system for the wave energy device with an inverse pendulum

This paper describes a dual-stroke acting hydraulic power take-off （PTO） system employed in the wave energy converter （WEC） with an inverse pendulum. The hydraulic PTO converts slow irregular reciprocating wave motions to relatively smooth, fast rotation of an electrical generator. The design of the hydraulic PTO system and its control are critical to maximize the generated power. A time domain simulation study and the laboratory experiment of the full-scale beach test are presented. The results of the simulation and laboratory experiments including their comparison at full-scale are also presented, which have validated the rationality of the design and the reliability of some key components of the prototype of the WEC with an inverse pendulum with the dual-stroke acting hydraulic PTO system.     

Performance investigation of a two-raft-type wave energy converter with hydraulic power take-off unit

Raft-type wave energy converter (WEC) is a multi-mode wave energy conversion device, using the relative pitch motion to drive its hydraulic power take-off (PTO) units for capturing energy from the ocean waves. The hydraulic PTO unit as its energy conversion module plays a significant role in storing large qualities of energy and making the output power smooth. However, most of the previous investigations on the raft-type WECs treat the hydraulic PTO unit as a linear PTO unit and do not consider the dynamics of the hydraulic circuit and components in their investigations. This paper is related to a two-raft-type WEC consisting of two hinged rafts and a hydraulic PTO unit. The aim of this paper is to make an understanding of the dynamics of the hydraulic PTO unit and how these affect the performance of the two-raft-type WEC. Therefore, a combined hydrodynamic and hydraulic PTO unit model is proposed to investigate and optimize the performance of the two-raft-type WEC; and based on the simulation of the combined model, the relationships between the optimal power capture ability, the optimal magnitude of the hydraulic PTO force and the wave states are numerically revealed. Results show that an approximately square wave type hydraulic PTO force is produced by the hydraulic PTO unit, which causes the performance of the two-raft-type WEC not to be sinusoidal and the energy capturing manner different from that of the device using a linear PTO unit; moreover, there is an optimal magnitude of the hydraulic PTO force for obtaining an optimal power capture ability, which can be achieved by adjusting the parameters of the hydraulic PTO unit; in regular waves, the optimal power capture ability as well as the optimal magnitude of the hydraulic PTO force normalized by the wave height presents little relationship with the wave height, mainly depends on the wave period; in irregular waves, the trends of the optimal power capture ability and the normalized optimal magnitude of the hydraulic PTO force against the peak wave periods at different significant wave heights are generally identical and show a good correlation. All means that the hydraulic PTO unit of the two-raft-type WEC can be tuned to the wave states, and these would provide a valuable guidance for the optimal design of its hydraulic PTO unit.     

Design pressure distributions on the hull of the FLOW wave energy converter

This paper presents a procedure to calculate the design pressure distributions on the hull of a wave energy converter (WEC). Design pressures are the maximum pressure values that the device is expected to experience during its operational life time. The procedure is applied to the prototype under development by Martifer Energy (FLOW—Future Life in Ocean Waves).A boundary integral method is used to solve the hydrodynamic problem. The hydrodynamic pressures are combined with the hydrostatic ones and the internal pressures of the large ballast tanks. The first step consists of validating the numerical results of motions by comparison with measured experimental data obtained with a scaled model of the WEC. The numerical model is tuned by adjusting the damping of the device rotational motions and the equivalent damping and stiffness of the power take-off system. The pressure distributions are calculated for all irregular sea states representative of the Portuguese Pilot Zone where the prototype will be installed and a long term distribution method is used to calculate the expected maximum pressures on the hull corresponding to the 100-year return period.     

Dynamic analysis of wave energy converter by incorporating the effect of hydraulic transmission lines

A heaving-buoy wave energy converter equipped with hydraulic power take-off is studied in this paper. This wave energy converter system is divided into five subsystems: a heaving buoy, hydraulic pump, pipelines, non-return check valves and a hydraulic motor combined with an electric generator. A dynamic model was developed by considering the interactions between the subsystems in a state space form. The transient pressures caused by starting/stopping the buoy or closing/opening the check valves were predicted numerically using the established model. The simulation results show that transmission line dynamics play a dominant role in the studied wave energy converter system. The length of the pipeline will not only affect the amplitude of the transient pressures but also affect the converted power. The variation of the time-averaged converted electric power with the pipeline length is estimated using the simulation method for the buoy exposed to one irregular sea state. Finally, it is suggested how reduced power efficiency due to the pipelines may be ameliorated.     

双体波浪能装置运动及系泊系统特性研究

波浪能是一种清洁、可再生的新型能源,波浪能发电装置在海上作业时会受到变化的风、浪、流载荷作用,需要系泊系统保证其稳性和安全性。以适用于中国南海500 m水深的振荡双浮体式波浪能发电装置为研究对象,运用频域计算与时域计算结合的方法对双浮体及其系泊系统的运动响应和动力载荷进行计算,获取极端海况与工作海况下浮体运动和系泊缆索张力的时历数据。参照BV船级社NR-493规定的海上浮式结构物系泊安全系数规范,对3种系泊方案进行安全校核和对比分析。选定其中一种系泊方案,通过改变系泊系统以及能量转换器（PTO）的参数,探究参数变化对双体波浪能装置运动响应以及系泊系统特性的影响,为类似应用于深水的双体波浪能装置系泊系统的设计提供参考。     

Phase control through load control of oscillating-body wave energy converters with hydraulic PTO system

Oscillating bodies constitute an important class of wave energy converters, especially for offshore deployment. Phase control by latching has been proposed in the 1970s to enhance the wave energy absorption by oscillating bodies (especially the so-called point absorbers). Although this has been shown to be potentially capable of substantially increasing the amount of absorbed energy, the practical implementation in real irregular waves of optimum phase control has met with theoretical and practical difficulties that have not been satisfactorily overcome. The present paper addresses the case of oscillating-body converters equipped with a high-pressure hydraulic power take-off mechanism (PTO) that provides a natural way of achieving latching: the body remains stationary for as long as the hydrodynamic forces on its wetted surface are unable to overcome the resisting force (gas pressure difference times cross-sectional area of the ram) introduced by the hydraulic PTO system. A method of achieving sub-optimal phase-control is developed, based on the theoretical time-domain modelling of a single-degree of freedom oscillating body in regular and irregular waves, by adequately delaying the release of the body in order to approximately bring into phase the body velocity and the diffraction (or excitation) force on the body, and in this way get closer to the well-known optimal condition derived from frequency-domain analysis for an oscillating body in regular waves.     

某岛筏式液压波浪发电装置系留系统动力学分析

为研究某波浪发电装置系留设备的系泊性能,参考某岛筏式液压波浪发电项目规划和该系留系统的布局设计,利用OrcaFlex建立了系留系统简化模型。通过调节不同海况下的浪流参数,实现了对该系留系统的动力学分析,对比了不同工况下锚泊系统有效张力的变化,结合改变辅缆上端链与浮筏主体的连接位置,给出了该系留系统的优化设计方案。结果表明,不同系泊缆索上的系泊张力分布情况及风载荷对系留系统的影响很微弱。     

Declutching control of a wave energy converter

When hydraulic power take off (PTO) is used to convert the mechanical energy of a wave energy converter (WEC) into a more useful form of energy, the PTO force needs to be controlled. Continuous controlled variation of the PTO force can be approximated by a set of discrete values. This can be implemented using either variable displacement pumps or several hydraulic cylinders or several high pressure accumulators with different pressure levels. This pseudo-continuous control could lead to a complex PTO with a lot of components. A simpler way for controlling this hydraulic PTO is declutching control, which consists in switching on and off alternatively the wave energy converter's PTO. This can be achieved practically using a simple by-pass valve. In this paper, the control law of the valve is determined by using the optimal command theory. It is shown that, theoretically when considering a wave activated body type of WEC, declutching control can lead to energy absorption performance at least equivalent to that of pseudo-continuous control. The method is then applied to the case of the SEAREV wave energy converter, and it is shown than declutching control can even lead to a higher energy absorption, both in regular and irregular waves.     

一种波浪能实验装置水动力学分析与优化设计

将造波水槽内二维浮体牵引弹簧回复液压缸的受力系统简化为弹簧—质量—阻尼器系统,建立数学模型,并根据牛顿第二定律得到运动方程式。采用基于简单格林函数的边界元方法对所研究浮体的水动力学系数和波浪力进行计算,对于施加给液压系统的不同外部阻尼值,由运动方程可得到相应的浮体垂荡运动位移。为求浮体对液压系统做功的最大值,在给定条件下着重对外部阻尼系数进行了优化。     

基于双缸耦合原理的阀控式能量回收系统原理设计与仿真分析

针对小规模海水淡化需要解决能量回收装置的能回效率与空间问题,将能量回收装置与压力提升泵进行集成一体化设计,研究了一种双缸耦合阀控式能量回收系统。系统两液压缸内活塞各由一个电动推杆推动,叠加高压浓海水压力实现压力交换,同时进行活塞推力的耦合控制,避免了压力交换过程中活塞的压力脉冲波动,保障了反渗透膜工作压力稳定;基于小型海水淡化装置,根据压力能流反渗透工艺节点压力流进行了计算分析,得出电动推杆推力压力0.5 MPa左右的补偿压力曲线。通过AMESim进行液压仿真分析,结果表明在系统回收率为30%,高压浓海水进口压力为4.8 MPa,增压海水压力4.6 MPa的情况下,通过压力补充增压海水压力可增压到5.0 MPa,反渗透膜压力与流量波动较小,满足反渗透海水淡化的压力需求。     

Wave energy conversion under constrained wave-by-wave impedance matching with amplitude and phase-match limits

This paper investigates an approach to limit the fullness of ‘tuning’ provided by wave-by-wave impedance matching control of wave energy devices in irregular waves. A single analytical formulation based on the Lagrange multiplier approach of Evans [1] is used to limit the velocity amplitude while also limiting the closeness of the phase match between velocity and exciting force. The paper studies the effect of the present technique in concurrently limiting the device velocity and the required control/actuation force. Time domain application requires wave-profile prediction, which here is based on a deterministic propagation model. Also examined in the time domain is the effect of possible violation of the displacement constraint, which for many designs implies impacts at hard stops within the power take-off mechanism. Time domain simulations are carried out for a 2-body axisymmetric converter (with physical end-stops) in sea states reported for a site off the US east coast. It is found that the approach leads to effective power conversion in the less energetic sea states, while as desired, considerable muting of the optimal response is found in the larger sea states. Under the assumptions of this work, the end-stop collisions are found to have a minor effect on the power conversion. The present approach could be used to guide the design of power take-off systems so that their displacement stroke, maximum force, and resistive and reactive power limits are well-matched to the achievable performance of a given controlled primary energy converter.     

On a near-optimal control approach for a wave energy converter in irregular waves

Real-time smooth reactive control and optimal damping of wave energy converters in irregular waves is difficult in part because the radiation impulse response function is real and causal, which constrains the frequency-dependent added mass and radiation damping according to the Kramers–Kronig relations. Optimal control for maximum energy conversion requires independent synthesis of the impulse response functions corresponding to these two quantities. Since both are non-causal (one being odd and other even), full cancellation of reactive forces and matching of radiation damping requires knowledge or estimation of device velocity into the future. To address this difficulty and the non-causality of the exciting force impulse response function, this paper investigates the use of propagating-wave surface elevation up-wave of the device to synthesize the necessary forces. Long-crested waves are assumed, and the approach is based on the formulations of Naito and Nakamura [2] and Falnes [22]. A predominantly heaving submerged device comprised of three vertically stacked discs driving a linear power take-off is studied. The overall formulation leads to smooth control that is near-optimal, given the approximations involved in the time-shifting of the non-causal impulse response functions and the consequent up-wave distances at which wave surface elevation is required. Absorbed power performance with the near-optimal approach is compared with two other cases, (i) when single-frequency tuning is used based on non-real time adjustment of the reactive and resistive loads to maximize conversion at the spectral peak frequency, and (ii) when no control is applied with damping set to a constant value. Simulation results for wave spectra over a range of energy periods and significant wave heights are compared for the three situations studied. While practical implementation presents engineering challenges, in terms of time-averaged absorbed power, unconstrained near-optimal control is found to perform significantly better than single-frequency tuning in the spectra with longer energy periods (>10 s for the present device), and somewhat better in the spectra with shorter energy periods (here ≤10 s).     

Near-optimal control of a wave energy device in irregular waves with deterministic-model driven incident wave prediction

This paper investigates wave-by-wave control of a wave energy converter using incident wave prediction based on up-wave surface elevation measurement. The goal of control is to approach the hydrodynamically optimum velocity leading to optimum power absorption. This work aims to study the gains in energy conversion from a deterministic wave propagation model that accounts for a range of group velocities in deriving the prediction. The up-wave measurement distance is assumed to be small enough to allow a deterministic propagation model, and further, both wave propagation and device response are assumed to be linear. For deep water conditions and long-crested waves, the propagation process is also described using an impulse response function (e.g. [1]). Approximate low and high frequency limits for realistic band-limited spectra are used to compute the corresponding group velocity limits. The prediction time into the future is based on the device impulse response function needed for the evaluation of the control force. The up-wave distance and the duration of measurement are then determined using the group velocity limits above.A 2-body axisymmetric heaving device is considered, for which power capture is through the relative heave oscillation between the two co-axial bodies. The power take-off is assumed to be linear and ideal as well as capable of applying the necessary resistive and reactive load components on the relative heave oscillation. The predicted wave profile is used along with device impulse response functions to compute the actuator force components at each instant. Calculations are carried out in irregular waves generated using a number of uni-modal wave spectra over a range of energy periods and significant wave heights. Results are compared with previous studies based on the use of instantaneous up-wave wave-profile measurements, both without and with oscillation constraints imposed. Considerable improvements in power capture are observed with the present approach over the range of wave conditions studied.