The present paper deals with the influence of wave climate on the design specifications of the power take-off equipment and annual production of electricity by OWC wave power plants. A wave-to-wire model of the Pico plant developed in previous studies was used. In addition to the Pico, six other wave climates characteristic of areas in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean were used, with annual wave power levels ranging from about 14 kW/m to 54 kW/m. Apart from Pico, the remaining sites were selected in pairs with similar wave power levels but different variability, thus enabling the influence of these two wave climate parameters to be assessed separately. An analysis of the influence of the detail of wave height and period statistics on the annual production of electricity is also presented.

Issue Section:
Technical Papers
Keywords:
ocean thermal energy conversion, wave power plants, climatology, economics, design engineering, energy resources
Topics:
Climate, Design, Turbines, Wave energy, Waves, Significant wave heights
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