Australian-based specialist renewables technology company, Bombora Wave Power (“Bombora”) has launched its patented Wave Energy Converter Device (WECD), designed to harvest wave energy in an eco-friendly way and to produce zero-emission electricity.
The WECD uses a simple, low impact and resilient design that offers inherent survivability from storms as well as resilience to rogue waves whilst encouraging marine ecosystems and has potential shoreline protection and preservation.
Bombora’s WECD technology is a V-shaped geo-polymer concrete device, mounted on the sea bed, close to shore, in water depths of 4-15m. The design and performance of the WECD has recently won an award in the GE Australia & New Zealand Low Carbon Ecomagination Challenge which recognises breakthrough ideas for reducing our carbon footprint using innovative and clean technology.
Bombora’s motivation for its WECD technology is to be cost competitive with onshore wind, currently the cheapest form of renewable electricity. Director of Bombora Wave Power, Glen Ryan , said “There is huge potential for using this technology to reduce carbon emissions around the world. We can foresee significant economic benefits due to its large scale (1.5MW), near shore location, performance and survivability benefits. Each unit could potentially supply up to 500 homes with renewable electricity each year (or the equivalent of taking 825 cars off the road).”
Each arm of the WECD contains a number of cells covered with a flexible membrane, separating the seawater from the air contained within the device and separating each cell from the others. As the waves pass over the device they push down on the membrane and sequentially compress the air within each cell. The air is allowed to flow from a cell through a valve to a central air loop or manifold, which takes the pressurised air from all of the cells to a central apex module. It then flows through an air turbine and so powers an electric generator. The air is then returned back to the cells by another low pressure manifold and valves on each cell.
Wave energy is an ever-present and significant source of renewable energy that has an immense and as yet untapped potential. The highest yielding global wave resources are concentrated on the west facing coasts of most mid latitude countries. The International Energy Agency (IEA – OES-IA) estimates that the equivalent of 10% of the world’s annual energy consumption is potentially available in wave power. Wave energy is predictable in its yield, up to three days in advance, is a persistent resource and will provide diversity of supply to other renewable energy supplies.
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Press release, April 8, 2013; Image: bomborawavepower