Our technology
A revolutionary wave energy technology that works with the forces of the sea.
Multiple energy collectors are coupled on a string with each string corresponding to a wave energy converter. Each energy collector has a sail, which is moved back and forth by the passing waves. This movement drives hydraulic pumps generating pressurised seawater, which is piped to the conversion station (onshore or offshore) where the pressurised seawater is used to generate electricity via a standard hydropower turbine and/or desalinated water through a standard reverse osmosis system.
A wave energy farm will consist of multiple strings all pumping pressurised seawater to the common conversion station, scalable both to wave resources and to energy and/or water demands at the given location.
How it works
Multiple energy collectors are coupled on a string with each string corresponding to a wave energy converter. Each energy collector has a sail, which is moved back and forth by the passing waves. This movement drives hydraulic pumps generating pressurised seawater, which is piped to the conversion station (onshore or offshore) where the pressurised seawater is used to generate electricity via a standard hydropower turbine and/or desalinated water through a standard reverse osmosis system.
A wave energy farm will consist of multiple strings all pumping pressurised seawater to the common conversion station, scalable both to wave resources and to energy and/or water demands at the given location.
System overview
Energy collectors are coupled on a string and are moved back and forth by the rolling waves
Pressurised seawater is piped through the string into a common export pipe
Powering a standard hydropower turbine to produce electricity and/or desalinate seawater via reverse osmosis
Key Benefits
Green Electricity
Wavepiston energy farms replace expensive and polluting fossil fuels with a stable and predictable renewable energy resource.
Economic Growth
Wavepiston energy farms provide new jobs and economic growth in sustainable business for your community.
Desalinated Water
The high-pressure seawater generated through the Wavepiston system is converted into desalinated water through a standard reverse osmosis system.
Impact on Flora and Fauna
Research at test-and-demonstration sites in Europe has shown no negative impact on flora and fauna from wave energy devices. An increase in life is observed on and around the system as the farm provides a safe haven.
View Preservation
The Wavepiston system is fully submerged, except for its marker buoys, making it nearly invisible from the shoreline.
Modular and Scalable Design
The Wavepiston energy farm requires only a minimal offshore and onshore footprint, customised to suit the unique requirements of your community.
Force Cancellation
Achieved by attaching multiple energy collectors to the same structure. The result is a significant decrease in the required mooring loads to less than 1/10 enabling a lightweight and cost-effective structure.
Due to the length of the string and the oscillating nature of waves, energy collectors along the string are subjected to forces in opposing directions, thereby cancelling each other out.
Comparatively, single moored WEC solutions do not benefit from force cancellation, and are thus exposed to stronger cumulative forces leading to less cost- effective mooring solutions.
Smoothing of Oscillations
By attaching many energy collectors to the same structure, the energy collectors discharge water out of phase with each other.
A passing wave will not yield a singly abrupt discharge of energy, but rather a smooth discharge of energy as the wave rolls along the energy collectors of the system. The smooth power delivery allows for a simple, standard power generation system, which increases efficiency and reduces costs further.
Our system consists of a few to several hundreds of strings combined ensuring a smooth flow of pressurised water, greatly simplifying any subsequent conversion.
Benefits of co-location
Wave energy has unique characteristics that makes it a valuable complementary renewable source to wind and solar energy.
Several studies, such as EVOLVE and IET Renewable Power Generation have shown that by adding wave energy to the renewable energy mix, the overall cost of energy can be reduced and higher price can be obtained.
Wavepiston wants to collaborate with new- and existing offshore wind farms to gain the benefits of co-location:
- Increased Energy Production: Utilizing both wind- and wave resources can lead to higher overall energy output from the same marine area.
- Enhanced Grid Stability: The combination of wind- and wave energy can provide a more stable and reliable supply of electricity, reducing intermittency issues.
- Cost Efficiency: Sharing infrastructure such as transmission lines and maintenance vessels can significantly reduce operational costs.
- Environmental Benefits: Co-locating renewable energy technologies can minimize the environmental footprint compared to separate installations.
Key suppliers
