• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.36 no.4
• /
• pp.280-294
• /
• 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
• /
• v.11 no.2
• /
• pp.77-90
• /
• 1997

Wave deformation due to Oscillating water column (OWC) plant was studied. To solve this problem, three dimensional numerical method based on Improved Green integral equation was applied. Method condition was considered as well as fixed condition and freely floating condition. From the calculation results, main characteriatic of wave deformation due to OWC plant were discussed. Also, some calculations for the floating barge were performed to confirm the validity of numerical solution of the method.

• Ocean Systems Engineering
• /
• v.3 no.4
• /
• pp.327-348
• /
• 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 Ocean Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.216-228
• /
• 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.

• Ocean Systems Engineering
• /
• v.2 no.2
• /
• pp.147-158
• /
• 2012

A time-domain simulation of a land-based Oscillating Water Column (OWC) with various irregular waves as a form of PM spectrum is performed by using a two-dimensional fully nonlinear numerical wave tank (NWT) based on the potential theory, mixed Eulerian-Lagrangian (MEL) approach, and boundary element method. The nonlinear free-surface condition inside the OWC chamber was specially devised to describe both the pneumatic effect of the time-varying pressure and the viscous energy loss due to water column motions. The quadratic models for pneumatic pressure and viscous loss are applied to the air and free surface inside the chamber, and their numerical results are compared with those with equivalent linear ones. Various wave spectra are applied to the OWC system to predict the efficiency of wave-energy take-off for various wave conditions. The cases of regular and irregular waves are also compared.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.22 no.2
• /
• pp.1-6
• /
• 2008

Recently Oscillating Water Column (OWC) plants have been widely employed in wave energy conversion applications. It is necessary to investigate the chamber and optimize its shape parameters for maximizing air flow and energy conversion due to wave conditions. A 2D numerical wave tank based on a Fluent and VOF model is developed to generate the incident waves and is validated by theoretical solutions. The oscillating water column motion in the chamber predicted by the numerical method is compared with the available experimental data. Several geometric scales of the chamber are calculated to investigate the effect of the shape parameters on the oscillating water column motion and wave energy conversion.

• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
• /
• v.36 no.9
• /
• pp.729-735
• /
• 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 the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
• /
• v.13 no.1
• /
• pp.47-52
• /
• 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 Advanced Research in Ocean Engineering
• /
• v.4 no.2
• /
• pp.66-77
• /
• 2018

This paper presents a parametric study on an oscillating water column (OWC) wave energy converter (WEC). This OWC has been planned for installation in the breakwaters on isolated islands located away from the mainland. Both a numerical analysis and a model experiment are utilized for determining a proper conceptual design for this purpose. Various design parameters, including the configurations and dimensions, are evaluated through the numerical analysis, which is based on a potential flow theory, and several design concepts are then selected as candidates. The model experiment using a 2D wave flume is conducted to evaluate the effects of the design parameters and compare the performances of the candidates. Based on the overall results of the numerical analysis and model experiment, a conceptual design of the OWC WEC applicable to a breakwater is selected.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.36 no.1
• /
• pp.21-31
• /
• 2022

In recent years, various studies have been conducted on oscillating-water-column-type wave energy converters (OWC-WECs) with multiple chambers with the objective of efficiently utilizing the limited space of offshore/onshore structures. In this study, a numerical investigation based on a numerical wave tank was conducted on single, dual, and triple OWC chambers to examine the hydrodynamic performances and the energy conversion characteristics of the multiple water columns. The boundary value problem with the Laplace equation was solved by using a numerical wave tank based on a finite element method. The validity of the current numerical method was confirmed by comparing it with the measured data in the previous experimental research. We undertook a series of numerical simulations and observed that the water column motion of sloshing mode in a single chamber can be changed into the piston motion of different phases in multiple OWC chambers. Therefore, the piston motion in the multiple chambers can generate considerable airflow at a specific resonant frequency. In addition, the division of the OWC chamber results in a reduction of the time-dependent variability of the final output power from the device. As a result, the application of the multiple chambers leads to an increase of the energy conversion performance as well as a decrease of the variability of the wave energy converter.