OSCILLATING SURGE WAVE ENERGY CONVERTER GEOMETRY OPTIMIZATION FOR DIRECT SEAWATER DESALINATION

Abstract

Having a reliable supply of fresh water is a problem that affects nations around the world. Saltwater desalination is one of the best methods for fulfilling this need, but it is an energy-intensive process that is expensive to maintain. Wave energy can be utilized to increase the efficiency of seawater desalination using a wave energy converter (WEC) to lower the external energy requirement. This thesis presents an analysis of scaled down flap-type oscillating surge wave energy converter (OSWEC) geometries and their effects on the power output. The performance of the OSWEC was tested using different flap shapes in addition to different configurations of thickness, density, and center of mass. The tested wave conditions were based on scaled down wave conditions at Jennette's Pier in Nag's Head, North Carolina, and used a significant wave height of 0.117m and a natural period of 1.68s. The system's power take-off (PTO) was also manipulated using different damping and stiffness coefficients to maximize the power generated from the OSWEC. The results of the wave simulations showed that the thinnest configuration of the variable thickness cylindrical flap shape, with the highest tested density and center of mass, produced the most power using the given wave conditions with an average power output of 30.11W.