1. A New Wave Energy Converter for Marine Data Buoy
- Author
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Hengyu Wang, Weimin Wu, Lin Cui, Yichuan Wu, Lixun Zhu, Eftichis Koutroulis, and Frede Blaabjerg
- Subjects
oscillating-body buoy ,Magnetic lead screw (MLS) ,Control and Systems Engineering ,wave energy conversion (WECs) ,Electrical and Electronic Engineering - Abstract
Providing stable and reliable power supply for offshore equipment with special power requirements, such as marine data platforms and marine buoys far away from the coast is currently topical research issue. At present, most of these devices use photovoltaic power generation or install high-capacity batteries and carry out regular replacement of electricity supply schemes. Due to the high dependence of photovoltaic power generation on solar radiation and the high cost arising from frequent battery replacements, wave energy is considered as a solution. Wave energy converters (WECs) are devices that convert the energy stored in waves into electrical energy, and its main advantage is the sustainable supply of electricity. In this article, a new built-in wave energy converter with high reliability and low maintenance costs is proposed and investigated for marine data buoys. Its core is a direct-drive energy conversion unit based on a magnetic lead screw design. The device can passively follow the pitching state of the buoy under the impact of waves to maximize its power generation. The proposed WEC is introduced and investigated through model analysis and prototype experiments. The experimental results confirm the power generation performance of a 50 kg power generation prototype and show the advantages of the proposed device.
- Published
- 2023
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