Ocean energy, also known as marine energy, encompasses engineering technologies, such as tidal and wave devices, that harness the movements of the ocean to create electricity and/or potable water. The cost of producing electricity by wave technologies, otherwise referred to as ‘wave energy converters’ (WEC’s), is influenced by how efficiently an individual device operates. The goal is to maximise the amount of energy captured and converted from the ocean environment.
In a dedicated research project, a team from the University of Western Australia (UWA) and CorPower Ocean (CPO) is tackling WEC performance improvements through development of novel efficient numerical models to more accurately represent the forces that waves exert on WECs. Combining hydrodynamic research expertise and detailed insight into full-scale WEC operational principles, the project looks to drive down the cost of wave energy facilitating growth and utilisation of WEC technologies.