Hydrodynamics of a wind-wave-solar hybrid floating platform

The wind, wave and solar power resources are wealth and widely distributed within the deep ocean areas, attracting increasing interest all over the world. The feasibility of combined exploration of these resources is explored in this work by proposing a wind-wave-solar hybrid floating platform. A barge-type floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) foundation is selected for the integrations of solar photovoltaic panels, and four cross-symmetric distributed oscillating water column (OWC) devices are mounted inside the foundation. Hydrodynamics of this hybrid system is investigated using Computational Fluid Dynamics simulations with the software Star-CCM+. The model solves Navier - Stokes equations and utilizes the Volume of Fluid (VOF) technique for capturing free surface motions. Comparisons with experimental measurements collected for a submersible platform integrating FOWT and OWC technologies are carried for validating the numerical model established. It is found that the piston-type resonance inside the four OWC chambers occurs at the same wave frequency, leading to the largest wave energy capturing, and the OWC arranged on the rear side performs the best in shorter waves. Correspondingly, local peaks in platform motions and the mooring tensions are observed at this wave frequency due to large resonant water motion inside the OWC chambers.