Seminar: Experimental Findings of Fixed Oscillating Water Column Wave Energy Converter System through the Testing Expertise and Access for Marine Energy Research Program

Nicholas Ulm PhD Student Department of Ocean and Resources Engineering University of Hawai’i at Mānoa Zoom Meeting Link: Meeting ID: 935 9608 7383 Passcode: OREseminar https://hawaii.zoom.us/j/93596087383 With a rising interest in blue economy applications of wave energy, a shift in the design process for wave energy converters needs to be considered for each alternate application. Autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) docking powered by a wave energy converter (WEC) has been investigated over the past decade, but as separate technologies. Recent developments in the blue economy have brought the two technologies together in a proposed design of an underwater docking system for

MS Plan A Defense: A fatigue analysis of the No-WEC mooring system at the U.S. Navy Wave Energy Test Site off Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi

Cameron Morrow Graduate Student Department of Ocean and Resources Engineering University of Hawai’i In order to reduce carbon emissions, there is a pressing need to look for alternative fuel sources. Energy created by renewable sources is the way of the future. One of the emerging renewable energy technologies is wave energy. The theoretical gross power generated from waves is 3.7 TW, but the estimated total net power is 3 TW. The Wave Energy Test Site (WETS), off the coast of Marine Corps Base Hawaiʻi, provides a unique location for the full-scale validation of Wave Energy Conversion (WEC) devices in the

Seminar: Recent Operations, Findings, and Plans at the Wave Energy Test Site (WETS)

Patrick Cross, PhD Senior Project Specialist Hawai’i Natural Energy Institute The U.S. Navy’s Wave Energy Test Site (WETS) has been operational in its final configuration since June 2015. The site has now hosted four separate wave energy converter (WEC) deployments – two each of two different WECs. Several other commercial WEC deployments are planned over the next few years. HNEI provides research and logistics support to WETS, including independent device performance monitoring, environmental measurements, site infrastructure inspection and maintenance, outfitting of a site-dedicated vessel, liaison with companies planning tests, and other support as needed by the Navy sponsor. In this

Seminar: Investigating Helmholtz Mode for Marine Hydro-Kinetic Energy

Reza Ghorbani, PhD Associate Professor Department of Mechanical Engineering University of Hawai’i, Mānoa Short relatively deep tidal basins, which are connected to the open sea by a narrow strait, may exhibit either an amplified (resonant), or damped (choked) response to the tide at the entrance. The sole mode added to this system when the basin communicates with a tidal sea through a narrow strait is the pumping or Helmholtz mode, characterized by a periodic mass exchange through the narrows and associated spatially uniform elevation change within the basin. This is generally also the most energetic mode of such a basin.

Seminar: The Fascinating Problem of Harnessing Energy from Ocean Waves

Dr. Adi Kurniawan Assistant Professor Department of Civil Engineering, Aalborg University, Denmark Harnessing energy from ocean waves in a cost-effective manner remains one great unsolved problem of our time. While great strides toward solving this problem were made in the 1970s to early 1980s, since then progress has been slow. What have we gained from many years of research into this fascinating subject, and how can we move forward? This talk will give an overview of the history and theory behind ocean wave energy conversion, as well as outline some research directions toward identifying cost-effective solutions to harness wave energy

ORE Capstone on Wave Energy Conversion

Bradley Beeksma Sitthichat Sukphol Kei Manabe Nicholas Ulm The potential of a small-scale wave energy test site at the Kilo Nalu nearshore reef observatory is analyzed. Climate change concerns and Hawaii’s mandate for 100% renewable energy dependence by 2045 has led to a push for increased development of wave energy conversion (WEC) technology. Prototype testing is a crucial step in the development process to validate and evaluate designs of wave energy convertors. As testing full-scale devices in field conditions requires large capital investment due to manufacturing and deployment costs, preliminary testing is usually performed with scaled-down prototypes in a wave

PhD Defense: Study of wave interaction with vertical piles integrated with oscillating water columns

Conghao Xu Ocean wave energy is one form of abundant ocean renewable and clean energy sources. However, a host of challenges including construction and maintenance costs and structural reliability have prevented the large-scale commercial application of ocean wave energy converters (WECs). Integrating of WECs with shore-protection structures may significantly reduce the costs associated with wave energy utilization. One such integration is vertical piles integrated with oscillating water columns (OWCs), which can help achieve costs sharing and overcome the cost hurdles facing the wave energy industry. This study presents a study investigating the performance of an integration of circular piles with

Prof. Huang awarded NSF grant to improve sustainable coastal management

Image of waves on beach

Rising sea level puts beaches and coastal infrastructure at risk. Ocean and coastal engineers traditionally protect coastlines and harbors by building breakwaters that redirect and/or dissipate wave energy. However, this represents a significant loss of energy – energy that might be put to other use! In fact, wave energy conversion (WEC) devices are specifically designed to harness wave energy. Is it possible to design a WEC that is also a breakwater? Can we harness wave energy while protecting our coasts/harbors at the same time? This is the aim of a new project funded by the National Research Foundation: Controlling Cross-shore