Buoy power

Project Description

The Oscillating Water Column (OWC) principal is commonly exploited in offshore renewable energy devices to capture energy from waves by means of one or more air turbines placed in a tube above the free water surface. The classic "Wells" type turbine has been used for many years but owing to inherent shortcoming, several alternative designs are now being considered. The aim of this project is to develop a robust and reliable power supply package that addresses key limitations of currently available power supply arrangements for smart buoys and navigation marks where autonomy is the critical factor. Despite the reductions on the demand side brought by use of LED technology and ultra-efficient electronic hardware/software, instrument payloads and in particular those with high-demand active sampling and data transmission/backhaul options will continue to be restricted by inadequacy of source power reliant on solar/wind generators. A tailored power package based on wave power has the capacity to unlock the full potential of multipurpose smart buoy deployments. The Buoy Power project proposed to examine the potential for exploiting the OWC principal using the standard MOBILIS DB8000 and a small oscillating water column wave energy converter, by modelling the installation of an impulse turbine with an electrical generator and associated control systems inside a virtual bell enclosure and tailpipe to act as the main power supply to the buoy.