Scaled development of a novel Wave Energy Converter through wave tank to utility-scale laboratory testing

This paper presents the scaled development of a novel point absorber Wave Energy Converter (WEC) developed by Columbia Power Technologies, Inc. (CPwr), including scaled wave tank testing to utility-scale laboratory testing. The scaled development and testing of 1:33, 1:15 and 1:7 scale physical models are discussed. The physical tests of the 1:33 and 1:15 scale WECs were conducted in the wave basins of Oregon State University´s O.H. Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory, in conjunction with the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center (NNMREC). The 1:7 scale WEC was field tested for 13 months in Puget Sound, WA. This paper concludes with the development of the utility-scale WEC and the associated laboratory testing on the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Wind Technology Center dynamometer test bed.