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Sea State Efficiency Comparison of Ocean Wave Energy Conversion Technologies
The purpose of these pages is to describe (in a relative manner) the effectiveness of various ocean wave energy conversion technologies in the real world realm of constantly changing sea states. The scope is confined to wave/swell characteristics in the open ocean and how efficiently various machine designs utilize them. The analysis will not include stated power outputs or other metrics for any physical or theoretical implementations since these data are generally derived from/for optimal sea conditions. Sea states are constantly in flux, and any set of supposedly optimal conditions are neither frequent nor lasting. The analysis will consider how the effectiveness of various technologies fall short when considering the three main wave characteristics - wave height (a measure of the distance between the level of a wave/swell crest and the level of the trough following it), wave period/frequency (a measure of the time required for two successive wave crests to pass a fixed point), and wave length (a measure of the distance between two successive wave crests) - and tides where appropriate. |