EAGER: Integrating efficient and dependable wave power generation into ocean sensing buoys: at-sea pilot tests.

小型海洋浮标能够对与地球气候和其他自然现象密切相关的海洋特性进行一系列长期的现场测量。目前，这种浮标依靠太阳能电池板、风力涡轮机和电池提供仪器运行所需的能量。这些研究人员计划进行试点测试，以可靠地评估一项新技术，该技术可以利用周围的海浪来提供比现有来源大得多的功率。海洋科学和工程界应该感兴趣的是，可靠地获得更大的功率，以便长时间运行大功率仪器。此外，该项目的方法和数据预计也将转移到为自动驾驶车辆在大洋中充电而设计的小型平台。这项研究计划测试一种控制波能转换过程的新技术，以便在变化的、不规则的波浪条件下能够转换最大的实际功率。该小组通过详细的水动力模拟和波浪水槽测试了解到，在现实的海况下，力和运动约束阻抗匹配控制可以使小型海洋浮标可能转换的时间平均功率增加4-5倍。通过适度增加硬件，这一改进可以允许标准海洋浮标使用波能作为动力来源。然而，拟议的控制需要实时的上波表面高程测量，以便在未来20-30秒内进行确定性的波谱预测，以及能够提供大作用力的双向动力输出。为此，试点研究将使用一种全仪器的、目前正在运行的、带有双向电液动力输出的波能转换器浮标，以量化通过对浮标振荡进行有约束的最优逐浪实时控制可能带来的性能改进(超过基线电阻控制)。该团队将在该设备上使用高分辨率、短程雷达来推断(上行波)入射波场，以便在该设备上进行确定性的波谱预测。结果将能够评估波能相对于其他可用于海洋传感浮标的电源，如太阳能、风能、燃料电池、电池和柴油发电机的直接价值。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Small oceanographic buoys enable a range of long-term in-situ measurements of ocean properties that are closely related to the earth's climate-related and other natural phenomena. Currently, such buoys rely on solar panels, wind turbines, and batteries for the energy they need for instrument operation. These researchers plan to conduct pilot tests to evaluate a new technique dependably to utilize ambient ocean waves to provide dramatically greater power amounts than existing sources. Dependable availability of larger power amounts to operate high-power instruments for long periods should be of interest the Ocean Science and Engineering communities. Additionally, the methods and data from this project are also expected to be transferable to small platforms designed for mid-ocean recharging of autonomous vehicles. This research plans to test a new technique to control the wave energy conversion process such that the maximum practical power amounts can be converted in changing, irregular wave conditions. The team has learned through detailed hydrodynamic simulations and wave-tank testing that force and motion-constrained impedance matching control in realistic sea states can enable a 4-5 fold increase in the time-averaged power amounts that small oceanographic buoys might otherwise convert. With modest hardware additions, this improvement could allow standard oceanographic buoys to use wave energy as a power source. However, the proposed control requires real-time up-wave surface elevation measurements for deterministic wave-profile prediction 20-30 seconds into the future, and a bi-directional power take-off capable of providing large forces. To that end, the pilot study will use a fully-instrumented, currently operational wave-energy converter buoy with a bi-directional electro-hydraulic power take-off, to quantify the performance improvements possible (over baseline resistive control) with constrained optimal acausal real-time wave-by-wave control of the buoy oscillations. The team will use a high-resolution, short-range radar on-board the device to infer (up-wave) incoming wave fields for deterministic wave-profile prediction at the device. Results will enable an evaluation of the immediate merit of wave energy relative to other power sources available for ocean sensing buoys, such as solar, wind, fuel cells, batteries, and diesel generators.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.