Numerical analysis of the performance of two onshore oscillating water column wave energy converters at different chamber wall slopes

Abstract

In this study, a numerical analysis of the performance of two Oscillating Water Column (OWC) wave energy converters, at different front and back wall slopes, was carried out. The first device had vertical front and back walls and the second one had its wall slopes of 40° in relation to the horizontal plane. The FLUENT® numerical model, which is based on the Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations, was used. The Volume of Fluid (VoF) method was employed to take into account free surface flows. The case study comprised a 10 m deep flume with an onshore OWC at its end, equipped with a Wells turbine. A 2D hydrodynamic mathematical model was employed and a 3D air pressure effect inside the OWC air-chamber was considered. Analyses of the hydrodynamics behavior, fluid-structure interaction outside (run-up/down, reflected waves) and inside the chamber (free surface elevation, sloshing) and energy distribution (pneumatic extracted energy, reflected wave energy and energy losses) were conducted. Results showed that the device with inclined walls had the best efficiency in comparison with the other one. However, the latter showed lower variation in efficiency in the wave period range than the former.