A 3D BEM Model for the Hydrodynamic Analysis and Design of Heaving WEC Arrays Attached to a Breakwater

Alexandros Magkouris, Markos Bonovas, Theodoros Gerostathis and Kostas Belibassakis ()
Additional contact information
Alexandros Magkouris: School of Naval Architecture & Marine Engineering, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), 15780 Athens, Greece
Markos Bonovas: School of Naval Architecture & Marine Engineering, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), 15780 Athens, Greece
Theodoros Gerostathis: Department of Naval Architecture, School of Engineering, University of Western Attica, 12243 Athens, Greece
Kostas Belibassakis: School of Naval Architecture & Marine Engineering, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), 15780 Athens, Greece

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 17, 1-22

Abstract: Assessment of the performance of arrays of wave energy converters (WECs) of the type of simple heaving floaters, operating in nearshore and coastal areas, is essential to estimate their power production capacity. The effective design and layout of such WEC farms can be supported by studying the system’s operational characteristics based on the wave climatology of the deployment region. Installation along the exposed side of harbor breakwaters in sea areas with substantial incoming energy potential is a promising option. In this study, a 3D hydrodynamic model based on the boundary element method (BEM) is presented and discussed, aiming to evaluate the performance of WEC arrays consisting of multiple heaving bodies attached to the exposed side of a harbor breakwater, modelled as a vertical wall, considering its reflective effects, as well as hydrodynamic interactions between the multiple floating devices. Numerical results of the predicted power performance for various configurations, including interactions of multiple WECs with the nearshore topography and the breakwater wall, as well as the effects of power take off (PTO) parameters, are presented and discussed. Finally, a case study is presented for a selected coastal site at the port of Heraklion, located in the north-central part of Crete Island in the South Aegean Sea, characterized by relatively increased wave energy potential, using long-term climatological data, illustrating the method and its applicability as a supporting tool for optimal design of WEC arrangements.

Keywords: wave energy; WEC arrangements; breakwater installation; 3D BEM; hydrodynamic analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/17/12777/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/17/12777/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:17:p:12777-:d:1223582

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().