Wave energy is produced when electricity generators are placed on the surface of the ocean. The energy provided is most often used in desalination plants, power plants and water pumps. Energy output is determined by wave height, wave speed, wavelength, and water density.
The wave energy device by Ocean Energy Ltd, funded by the Government of Ireland through the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), has reached a major milestone as it embarks on a one-year testing cycle in Hawaii.
The Cork-based company will be testing its 500kW wave energy converter at the U.S. Navy Wave Energy Test Site in the Hawaiian Island of Oahu. The project involves a significant collaboration between SEAI and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office (DOE) who have co-funded the $12 million project with Ocean Energy Ltd.
Daniel Simmons, Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy remarked:
“The year-long test represents a fantastic opportunity to continue to demonstrate and validate new innovations that will dramatically lower costs for wave energy systems.”
Success in Hawaii will allow Ocean Energy Ltd to be the first Irish company to develop commercial devices which can power homes, communities and businesses. Wave energy devices also have the benefit in that they can power more remote energy users such as offshore island communities or offshore fish-farms.
The Wave Water Works team is presenting the Oscillo Drive, a Mechanical Gear Box that does not operate using springs or levers and is not inhibited by the laws of gravity. The Oscillo Drive will take any oscillating motion and convert it into a single direction motion. The Oscillo Drive can be scaled into a single unit that fits in the palm of the hand, or built as larger full-scale units, that can be deployed in arrays.
Interested in implementing wave power?
Download: Wave Power Product Kit
For more details on the work that SEAI does visit www.seai.ie
For more information on the project, visit www.oceanenergy.ie.
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