Measurements for proof of concept validation of a twin unidirectional turbine wave energy plant

It is difficult to make scaled down models that can produce electric power from waves based on the oscillating water column (OWC) principle in standard laboratory flumes. In this work, we show that precision measurements can be used to capture power signals from such a scaled down plant in a 600 mm wave flume. The measurement is difficult because the no load losses of the turbine motor exceed that generated from waves in a proposed twin unidirectional turbine topology. Twin 100 mm turbine models driven by brushless DC motors serve as the power module. Signals captured with 16-bit resolution are used to demonstrate the twin turbine concept.