A new wave energy converter using flap-type blade and its power generation test

Wave energy is obvious source for renewable energy harvesting in oceans. A new WEC named wave turbine was proposed. The proposed system consists of a floating body and a submerged body. The floating body is same with that of a conventional buoy, and the submerged body is a power take off similar to a turbine which has flap-type blades in a round-frame rotor. To describe the proposed system, we developed numerical model. The performance of the proposed system was determined by several parameters: wave conditions, floating body geometry, blade shape, rotor hub design, and power storage system including generator and electrical load. Quantitative simulation was conducted to find optimal parameters including design of blade and rotor hub size. In addition, we constructed a prototype to conduct experiments. 4 types of blades were tested in power generation test, and the results was compared.