Marine Energy Research Australia (MERA) has taken the lead in a groundbreaking project focused on wave energy hydrodynamics, aiming to revolutionize performance, cost reduction, and the commercialization of wave energy technology. Partnering with Swedish wave energy developer CorPower Ocean and industry partner Australia Ocean Energy Group (AOEG), the University of Western Australia research center will conduct an extensive study funded by the Australian Research Council's Linkage Project scheme, which recently granted over $40 million to 81 collaborative research projects across various fields.
The project will bring together experts from academia and industry to harness a unique combination of numerical, laboratory, and field data. Notably, operational data from CorPower Ocean's first full-scale wave energy deployment in northern Portugal, as part of the HiWave-5 Project, will contribute to the study.
Hugh Wolgamot, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Western Australia, emphasized that the research aims to address a crucial challenge in wave energy: understanding the interaction between high-performance wave energy converters (WECs) and the ocean. “Scientifically, the guiding principles of wave energy have been clear for some time, with resonance between the waves and the WEC motion enabling maximum power absorption,” he said. “In this project we are partnering with CorPower Ocean, a leading WEC developer, whose ingenious negative spring mechanism represents perhaps the purest realisation of these principles. Our ultimate goal is to maximise the amount of energy captured and converted by these WECs from the ocean environment. To achieve this, we will combine world-class hydrodynamics expertise with detailed insight from full-scale operations, to develop novel numerical models which accurately represent wave forces exerted on the WECs. By focusing efforts on performance in moderate seas, which occur most frequently, we will identify ways to boost hydrodynamic performance, increasing overall efficiency and driving down cost – which is paramount to enabling large-scale utilisation.”
The project will be carried out in three phases. The initial phase will involve lab experiments using high-precision model-scale wave flume experiments to isolate nonlinear dynamic features and analyze the data. The second phase will focus on the development of numerical models informed by the laboratory measurements. In the final phase, new hydrodynamic models will be carefully validated against full-scale field measurements, comparing WEC simulations with CorPower Ocean's fully instrumented ocean deployment.
Jørgen Hals Todalshaug, CorPower Ocean's Lead Scientist, highlighted the significance of numerical modeling in wave energy engineering and the potential for cost reduction through technological advancements. “This project will deliver new numerical models specifically concerning critical nonlinearities from large amplitude WEC motions,” he said. “While there has been progress in this area, the different nonlinear effects and their treatment have not been systematically investigated and fully validated. As there is no standard method to account for these force components in an accurate way, the outcomes of this Linkage Project will be of profound interest to our industry.
“The vast majority of numerical model advancement is undertaken by the academia field alone. However, the collaborative nature of this research project drawing in industry, combined with the ability to test alongside a full-scale WEC deployment, enables us to operate at the sharp edge of innovation.”
CorPower Ocean's HiWave-5 project, the culmination of decades of research on wave hydrodynamics and structured product development, represents a major push toward commercialization. The project aims to make wave energy competitive with wind and solar power by 2030.
Stephanie Thornton, General Manager of Australia Ocean Energy Group, emphasized the Linkage Project's alignment with their strategic efforts to shift the industry paradigm from technology push to market pull. “AOEG, was established in 2018 to accelerate the nation’s response to climate change,” she said. “Our work focuses on decarbonising Australia’s Blue Economy by building demand, where none previously existed, for rapidly emerging ocean energy technology. As such, we recognise the huge importance of research efforts like this latest Linkage Project, specifically addressing areas such as WEC efficiency and cost. This sort of work is crucial if we are to bridge the gap between technology development and end-users and attract the necessary investment and interest. We look forward to communicating the findings of this innovative project to our extensive international network propelling ocean energy across the Australia Pacific region.”
