• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.280-294
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• 2022

This study reviews the recent development and research results of a fixed oscillating water column (OWC) wave energy converter (WEC). The OWC WEC can be divided into fixed and floating types based on the installation location and movement of the structure. In this article, the study on a stationary OWC WEC, which is close to commercialization through the accumulation of long-term research achievements, is divided into five research categories with a focus on primary energy conversion research. These research categories include potential-flow-based numerical analysis, wave tank experiments, computational fluid dynamics analyses toward investigation of fluid viscous effects, U-shaped OWC studies that can amplify water surface displacement in the OWC chamber, and studies on OWC prototypes that have been installed and operated in real sea environments. This review will provide an overview of recent research on the stationary OWC WEC and basic information for further detailed studies on the OWC.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.216-228
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• 2021

In the present study, the performance of a floating oscillating water column (OWC) device has been studied in regular waves. The OWC model has the shape of a hollow cylinder. The linear potential theory is assumed, and a matched eigenfunction expansion method(MEEM) is applied for solving the diffraction and radiation problems. The radiation problem involves the radiation of waves by the heaving motion of a floating OWC device and the oscillating pressure in the air chamber. The characteristics of the exciting forces, hydrodynamic forces, flow rate, air pressure in the chamber, and heave motion response are investigated with various system parameters, such as the inner radius, draft of an OWC, and turbine constant. The efficiency of a floating OWC device is estimated in connection with the extracted wave power and capture width. Specifically, the piston-mode resonance in an internal fluid region plays an important role in the performance of a floating OWC device, along with the heave motion resonance. The developed prediction tool will help determine the various design parameters affecting the performance of a floating OWC device in waves.

• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
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• v.36 no.9
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• pp.729-735
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• 2012

The primary wave energy conversion by a three-dimensional bottom-mounted oscillating water column (OWC) wave power device in regular waves has been studied. The linear potential boundary value problem has been solved following the boundary matching method. The optimum shape parameters such as the chamber length and the depth of the front skirt of the OWC chamber obtained through two-dimensional numerical tests in the frequency domain have been applied in the design of the present OWC chamber. Time-mean wave power converted by the OWC device and the time-mean second-order wave forces on the OWC chamber structure have been presented for different wave incidence angles in the frequency-domain. It has been shown that the peak period of $P_m$ for the optimum damping parameter coincides with the peak period of the time.mean wave drift force when ${\gamma}=0$.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.22-29
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• 2008

A numerical investigation is made on the effects of the location and shape of the front wall of an OWC(Oscillating Water Column) chamber on the hydroelastic response of a VLFS. Most of the studies on the effects of an OWC chamber on the response of a VLFS have assumed the location of the OWC chamber to be at the front of the VLFS. In the present study, an OWC-chamber is introduced at an arbitrary position in relation to a VLFS to determine the influence of the location and shape of the OWC chamber on the hydroelastic response of the VLFS. A finite element method is adopted as a numerical scheme for the fluid domain. or the finite element method, combined with a mode superposition method, is applied in order to consider the change of mass and stiffness The OWC chamber in a piecewise constant manner. or the facilitated anefficient analysis of The hydroelastic response of the VLFS, as well as the easy modeling of different shape and material properties for the structure. Reduction of hydroelastic response of the VLFS is investigated for various locations and front wall shapes of the owe chamber.

• Ocean Systems Engineering
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• v.3 no.4
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• pp.327-348
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• 2013

An Oscillating Water Column (OWC) is a relatively practical and convenient device that converts wave energy to a usable form, which is electricity. The OWC is kept inside a fixed truncated vertical cylinder, which is a hollow structure with one open end submerged in the water and with an air turbine at the top. This research adopts potential theory and Galerkin methods to solve the fluid motion inside the OWC. Using an air-water interaction model, OWC design for energy extraction from regular wave is also explored. The hydrodynamic coefficients of the scattering and radiation potentials are solved for using the Galerkin approximation. The numerical results for the free surface elevation have been verified by a series of experiments conducted in the University of New Orleans towing tank. The effect of varying geometric parameters on the response amplitude operator (RAO) of the OWC is studied and modification of the equation for evaluating the natural frequency of the OWC is made. Using the model of air-water interaction under certain wave parameters and OWC geometric parameters, a computer program is developed to calculate the energy output from the system.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.47-52
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• 2010

The wave energy absorption efficiency and the first-order and the time-mean second-order wave loads of a three-dimensional bottom-mounted oscillating water column (OWC) chamber structure are studied. The potential problem is solved by making use of a hybrid Green integral equation associated with the finite-waterdepth free-surface Green function outside a twin chamber and the Rankine Green function inside taking account of the fluctuating air pressure inside the chamber. Numerical results of the primary wave energy converting efficiency and the oscillating and steady wave loads of a three-dimensional bottom-mounted OWC pilot plant have been presented.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.43-51
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• 1992

The hydrodynamic performance of a floating-type OWC (Oscillating Water Column) chamber is studied numerically and experimentally in this study. The numerical approach based on two-dimensional linear theory of floating wave absorber was attempted to design an efficient wave energy absorber, while model test was performed in a wave basin to test a performance of designed model and validate the reliability of developed numerical code. The focus of study is placed mainly on the experimental study to evaluate the principal characteristics of the designed OWC chamber in regular waves. The effects of the variation of wave height on OWC device and of air pressure inside chamber are also presented. Finally, the measured results were compared with computed ones, and it was shown that the designed chamber works with high efficiency $(\eta_H>1$ over most of wave lengths covered by present study. It is therefore concluded that the developed code is capable of being successfully employed to design OWC chambers at various ocean environments, even though there exist some minor discrepancies between measured and computed results.

• Proceedings of the Korea Committee for Ocean Resources and Engineering Conference
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• 2006.11a
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• pp.465-468
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• 2006

The wave power absorbing performance of a bottom-mounted oscillating water column (OWC) chamber structure is studied. The potential problem inside the chamber is solved by making use of the Green integral equation associated with the Rankine Green function while the outer problem with the Kelvin Green function taking account of fluctuating air pressure in the air chamber. The absorbed wave power, wave elevation inside the chamber, reflection coefficient and wave loads are calculated for various values of a parameter related to the fluctuating air pressure. The present methods can also be used for the design of a OWC breakwater which can absorb and reflect the incoming wave energy at the same time.

• Journal of the Society of Naval Architects of Korea
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.318-328
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• 1991

The present paper describes the experimental study on the fixed-type wave-energy conversion system, consisting of the OWC-type wave-energy absorbing chamber and the duct for the air turbine. For simplicity, a screen of wire mesh was employed in place of an air turbine in order to simulate its effects on OWC chamber. Experiments were performed at the towing tank in regular waves with the frequency range of 0.22-0.75Hz. Comparison wish the numerical prediction using a potential flow-based method [4] was made to validate the capability of numerical code. It was shown that the agreements between measured and calculated results are quite good, giving a confidence in prediction method. Simulation of air turbine using a wire-mesh screen was successful, at least in a qualitative sense, to investigate the inter action between the OWC chamber and an air turbine. Results also showed that the effects of a wire-mesh screen on chamber efficiency are negligible, and the present model can be effectively utilized for the practical use in ocean waves with the frequency range under 0.3Hz.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.182-188
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• 2014

In an oscillating water column (OWC)-type wave energy conversion system, the performance of the OWC chamber depends on the chamber shape, as well as the incident wave direction and pressure drop produced by the turbine. Although the previous studies on OWC chambers have focused on wave absorbing performance in ideal operating conditions, incident waves do not always arrive normally to the OWC chamber in real sea conditions, especially in fixed devices. The present study deals with experiments and numerical calculations to investigate the effects of wave direction on the performance of the OWC chamber. The experiments were carried out in a three-dimensional wave basin for five different wave directions, including the effect of turbine using the corresponding orifice. The wave elevation inside the chamber was measured at the center point under various incident wave conditions. The numerical study was conducted by using a numerical wave tank-based volume-of-fluid model to compare the results with experimental data and to reveal the detailed flows around the chamber.