Recent Progress on Wave Energy Marine Buoys

Optimizing wave energy converter benchmarking with a fuzzy-based decision-making approach

The quest for sustainable energy solutions has intensified interest in marine renewables, particularly wave energy. This study addresses the crucial need for an objective assessment of Wave Energy Converter (WEC) technologies, which are instrumental in harnessing ocean waves for electricity generation. To benchmark WEC technologies, we employed an integrated approach combining the MEthod based on the Removal Effects of Criteria (MEREC) and the Spherical Fuzzy Combine Compromise Solution (SF-CoCoSo). MEREC provided a systematic way to determine the importance of various benchmarking criteria, while SF-CoCoSo facilitated the synthesis of complex decision-making data into a coherent evaluation score for each technology. The results of the study offer a definitive ranking of WEC technologies, with findings emphasizing the importance of grid connectivity and adaptability to various wave conditions as pivotal to the technologies' success. While the study makes significant strides in the evaluation of WECs, it also recognizes limitations, including the potential for evolving market dynamics to influence criteria weightings and the assumption that the MCDM methods capture all decision-making complexities. Future work should expand the evaluative criteria and explore additional MCDM methods to validate and refine the benchmarking process further.

Maximum Power Control Algorithm for Power Take-Off System Based on Hydraulic System for Floating Wave Energy Converters

In this study, a hydraulic system generator power converter was modeled to verify the performance of a hydraulic-based power take-off (PTO) system. Moreover, the characteristics and output performance of the PTO system were analyzed with various load control algorithms applied for maximum power control. The simulation performance was verified through a comparison with actual sea test results. Unlike previous studies on hydraulic-based PTO system control for input power performance, the performance of a hydraulic-based PTO system was analyzed through electrical load control in this study. The electrical load control was analyzed by applying a speed control algorithm based on the perturb and observe algorithm and an optimal torque control algorithm. A load control algorithm suitable for maximum power control of the PTO system was proposed by analyzing the characteristics and power generation performance of the system according to the control variables of each algorithm. The proposed optimal torque control algorithm proved to be suitable for maximum power control of the considered PTO system.