WavePiston

Last updated

WavePiston A/S
IndustryWave Energy
Founded2014;10 years ago (2014)
Headquarters
Helsingør
,
Denmark
Key people
Michael Henriksen (CEO)
Products Wave energy converters
Website wavepiston.dk

WavePiston is a concept to harness wave power using a long string with collector plates that move with the waves. Hydraulic pumps between the plates pump water onshore, where it can either drive a turbine to create electricity or be used in desalination.

Contents

The concept has been developed since 2009, with WavePiston A/S incorporated in 2014, based in Helsingør, Denmark. [1]

The first full-scale device was installed off the coast of Gran Canaria in early 2024.

Device concept

The device is a floating string with a series of plates, or energy collectors, spaced along it. These move back and forward with the passing waves and the relative motion is used to drive hydraulic pumps that suck in and pressurise seawater. This pressurised water is then sent onshore where it can drive a turbine to create electricity and/or be used in a reverse osmosis desalination plant. [2]

By incorporating multiple collectors on a single string, the wave forces on each collector help to "cancel out" the forces transmitted to the moorings. This means the device only needs two small moorings. [2] The string is formed from a steel wire rope, and has a slack mooring at each end. [3]

As the device sites just below the sea surface, it has a low visual profile, and thus could be a good fit for tourist destinations. [4]

WavePiston claim that as their device uses lightweight modular components, the costs are significantly reduced. [4]

History

The concept has been developed since 2009, when the first patent was awarded. [5] Since then it has been tested at increasing scales. In 2010, tank testing was performed at 1:30 scale in the wave basin at Aalborg University. This was followed by sea trials in Nissum Bredning at 1:9 scale and at Hanstholm at 1:2 scale. [2] There were also plans to test a device at Isola Piana, on the south-west coast of Sardinia as part of the Wave to Energy and Water (W2EW) project. [6]

Half-scale tests at Hastholm

Between 2015 and 2019, WavePiston tested a half-scale device at the DanWEC site outside Hanstholm Harbour. [3] In 2019, WavePiston concluded two years of sea testing of a 120 m long string with four energy collector plates on it. [7] Four variants of the energy collector plates were tested, each with an increasing area, from 4 m2 to 8.5 m2. These tests had a few incidents. In September 2015, a trawler deviated into the navigational restriction and collided with the device, severely damaging it. In May 2018, the wire rope broke due to fatigue, so it was then redesigned. [8]

Full-scale test at PLOCAN, Grand Canaria

In 2024, WavePiston is testing their first full-scale device, at the Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands (Plataforma Oceánica de Canarias, PLOCAN). This device is 200 metres (660 ft) long, fitted with 24 energy collectors each 8 metres (26 ft) wide. [4] This has a power of around 200 kW, enough to supply either electricity for around 140 households or to supply desalinated water for around 900 households (150,000 m3 per year). [2]

The first energy collector was installed on 8 February, [9] and the full system was installed by June. [10] The energy collectors were manufactured by Thune Eureka in Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain. [11]

Future plans

In 2024, WavePiston started collaborating with Danish offshore wind developer Ørsted to investigate the potential for co-location of wave energy within offshore wind farms in Denmark. The aim is to make better utilisation of the sea space devoted to offshore energy. It is expected that co-locating the wind and wave energy with shared infrastructure will reduce both costs and intermittency of the electricity generated. [5]

In March 2024, WavePiston also announced they were working with the government in Barbados to conduct a pre-feasibility study into constructing wave farms in Barbados. [12]

It is expected that a scaled-up future commercial system with 70 strings, each with 32 collectors, would have a rated power of 15 MW. In 2021, WavePiston had hoped to be selling these by 2023. [2] However, by 2023 they expected to launch utility-scale projects by 2032. [4]

Related Research Articles

Ørsted A/S is a Danish multinational energy company. Headquartered in Fredericia, Denmark, Ørsted is the largest energy company in Denmark. The company adopted its current name on 6 November 2017. It was previously known as DONG.

Wave Dragon is a concept wave energy converter of the overtopping type, developed by the Danish company Wave Dragon Aps. Incoming waves flow up a ramp into a reservoir, the water the drains back to sea level though a hydro-electric turbine, generating electricity. "Reflector arms" are used to focus incoming waves, to channel the waves towards the ramp, increasing the energy captured.

An OE Buoy or Ocean Energy Buoy is a floating wave power device that uses an Oscillating Water Column design. It is being developed by Irish company Ocean Energy Ltd., based in Cork, in collaboration with the Hydraulics and Maritime Research Centre at University College Cork, Queen's University Belfast, and Marine Institute Ireland.

The Wave Hub is an offshore renewable energy research project, originally developed for wave power, but following limited interest is being developed for floating offshore wind. The project is developed approximately 10 miles (16 km) off Hayle, on the north coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CETO</span> Submerged wave power technology

CETO is a wave-energy technology that converts kinetic energy from ocean swell into electrical power and directly desalinates freshwater through reverse osmosis. The technology was developed and tested onshore and offshore in Fremantle, Western Australia. In early 2015 a CETO 5 production installation was commissioned and connected to the grid. As of January 2016 all the electricity generated is being purchased to contribute towards the power requirements of HMAS Stirling naval base at Garden Island, Western Australia. Some of the energy will also be used directly to desalinate water.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European Marine Energy Centre</span>

The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) Ltd. is a UKAS accredited test and research centre focused on wave and tidal power development, based in the Orkney Islands, UK. The centre provides developers with the opportunity to test full-scale grid-connected prototype devices in wave and tidal conditions.

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References

  1. ↑ "About – Wavepiston" . Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Magnusson, Johan (13 January 2021). "Wavepiston uses patented concept to harvest the energy in waves". Scandinavian MIND. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  3. 1 2 Ocean Energy Systems (15 May 2018). Annual Report – An overview of activities in 2017 (Report). p. 64.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Casey, Tina (6 November 2023). "The Weird, Wild World Of Wave Energy Just Got Weirder". CleanTechnica. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  5. 1 2 "Ørsted to Explore Integrating Wave Energy into Offshore Wind Farms". The Maritime Executive. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  6. ↑ Henriksen, Michael; Piccioni, Simon Davide Luigi; Lai, Massimo (23 July 2019). New Combined Solution to Harness Wave Energy—Full Renewable Potential for Sustainable Electricity and Fresh Water Production. Sustainable Places 2019. Proceedings. Vol. 20, no. 1. MDPI. p. 10. doi: 10.3390/proceedings2019020010 .
  7. ↑ Ocean Energy Systems (12 March 2020). Annual Report — An overview of ocean energy activities in 2019 (Report). pp. 65–68.
  8. ↑ WavePiston (2019). WavePiston-Next Generation Wave Power Final Report. tethys-engineering.pnnl.gov (Report). Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  9. ↑ Skopljak, Nadja (14 February 2024). "Wavepiston installs first energy collector on its wave energy system off Canary Islands". Offshore Energy. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  10. ↑ Maksumic, Zerina (12 June 2024). "Wavepiston completes full-scale energy collector installation off Gran Canaria coast". Offshore Energy. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  11. ↑ Garanovic, Amir (2 May 2023). "Wavepiston starts final factory acceptance tests and assembly of wave energy collectors". Offshore Energy. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  12. ↑ Skopljak, Nadja (6 March 2024). "Danish firm to explore wave energy deployment offshore Barbados". Offshore Energy. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
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