Forty-year investigation of wave power in energetic region of Persian Gulf in Iranian territorial waters by using short-term and new long-term stability assessment parameters

Abstract

The wave power in high potential area of the northern Persian Gulf (near to Iranian coastal areas) is assessed by taking into account the temporal and spatial distributions of wave power for a period of forty years. For this purpose, assimilated wind data of European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting Interim Reanalysis (ERA-Interim), and hydrography data of General Bathymetric Chat of the oceans (GEBCO) are used as SWAN model. Seven locations are investigated in the study area by considering the amount of coefficient of variation, the amount of average annual power, and the short-term and a new long-term (decadal variability index) power stability assessment parameters. The results showed more stability in the eastern parts of the study area and concluded that a narrow line between the point which is in the middle and another point which is in the eastern middle part of the study area may be the best locations for more investigation and the feasibility study for energy converter farms. Also, it is found that the middle part of the study region with about 2.5 kW/m power is the most energetic area. It is concluded that the dominant direction of wave power distribution in all points is the northeast, and this dominant direction has not changed during the forty-year period. It is observed that the mean annual energy increases with a slight slope in the total 40 a, and this increasing trend is more obvious in the fourth decade. Although it is observed that the wave power of the second decade has the most stability and the least variation, the wave power in the fourth decade has the most variation. Moreover, the results showed that the study region’s wave power increase by approximately a mean change rate of 0.027 kW/(m·a); and the maximum change rate of wave power was in the northwest part and the minimum change rate of wave power was in the southeast part which were about 0.036 kW/(m·a) and 0.014 kW/(m·a), respectively.