• Energy Research

The development of new wave energy converters has shed light on a number of unanswered questions in fluid mechanics, but has also identified a number of new issues of importance for their future deployment. The main concerns relevant to the practical use of wave energy converters are sustainability, survivability, and maintainability. Of course, it is also necessary to maximize the capture per unit area of the structure as well as to minimize the cost. In this review, we consider some of the questions related to the topics of sustainability, survivability, and maintenance access, with respect to sea conditions, for generic wave energy converters with an emphasis on the oscillating wave surge converter. New analytical models that have been developed are a topic of particular discussion. It is also shown how existing numerical models have been pushed to their limits to provide answers to open questions relating to the operation and characteristics of wave energy converters.

Abstract In Part I, viscous effects on bottom hinged Oscillating Wave Surge Converters (OWSCs) were investigated numerically. In the present paper (Part II), the slamming on an OWSC is studied both experimentally and numerically. Numerical simulations are performed with the Volume of Fluid (VOF) approach for capturing the interface between air and water and the dynamic mesh method for modelling the motion of the oscillating flap. Comparisons between experiments and simulations validate the numerical model. Sequences of frames from a high speed camera and from numerical results are investigated to understand the physics of the slamming process. The spatial and temporal distribution of the slam pressure on the flap is presented. The free oscillating flap and the wavemaker with prescribed motion create a multiple reflection system. The re-reflection effects on the wave field, the flap dynamics and the slamming event are discussed by comparing a series of cases from experiments and simulations.