Installation Depth and Incident Wave Height Effect on Hydrodynamic Performance of a Flap Type Wave Energy Converter: Experimental Analysis

The effect of installation depth and height of the incident wave on the hydrodynamic and economic performance of an oscillating wave surge converter (OWSC) wave energy converter is crucial. In this study, an OWSC by considering 1:8 scale has been studied under Caspian Sea wave conditions for 8 water depths from the semi-submerged to fully submerged. The study has been conducted to achieve the best draft ratio and evaluate the systems performance imposed to Caspian waves condition by experimantal method.The results are presented in three parts. The first part studied the converter's flow, power, and sensitivity to the installation depth on a laboratory scale. In the second part, the system results were converted to the main scale 1:8 by using Froude scaling method, and finally, the performance from an economic view evaluated. Results showed that the draft depth has a non-linear effect on the power. System’s power in the dimensionless draft depth of 0.59 is better, and can produce 61 kW. Also, it can pump up to 50 l/s of water. Likewise, suppose the system is used for electricity generation, In that case, it sells $22500 of electricity to the grid annually, and if it is used as a pump, it can supply water to 4710 households on average.