We've covered several wave-powered electricity-producing technologies here, including the Aquabuoy and the Pelamis. Here's another that caught our attention simply due to its immense size!
Like the Aquabuoy, the Wavebob uses a self-reacting point absorber -- basically that means two floating bodies (the buoy and a submerged weight mass) which are connected by shafts, heave at different rates, and their pushing and pulling motions create electricity. The Wavebob also includes some integrated systems that allow it to adjust itself based on the size of the waves, allowing it to harness energy from waves as large as 15m high in regular service.
The system, which is a massive 20m in diameter, has been designed to withstand "100-year" waves, the type that occur only in rare storm systems, with small displacements, making it very seaworthy. The end result with this badbuoy is that the unit, which is in the latter stages of testing, will produce over 500KW per unit, with some units producing 1MW each in the North Atlantic.
Via Physorg
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OCT 17