Optimization in heave buoy energy convertors using SOM clustering and simulation with an auxiliary mass

Abstract

The design of wave energy converter (WEC) is crucial in order to generate the optimum power required to safely and reliably benefit from the available wave energy resource to produce electricity. The effects of the added mass on the idealized power take-off wave energy absorber in irregular waves are examined using a linear frequency domain method. Two strategies in this study are to maximize the converter power based on measuring the incident wave using the SOM clustering, and adding the auxiliary mass to the system. The objective of this study is to investigate the response of the added mass on heave buoy to optimize the annual power output without over the limit of the devices. The result shows that the heave buoy with added mass improves its ability to work in realistic wave conditions. The results also suggested the importance of tuning the system with wave data probabilistic to avoid the potential failures and to capture the maximum wave energy on the specific site.