Advancing Active Control of Wave Energy Converters

目前，对如何实现国家波浪能源机会的描述几乎没有提供任何准确的信息，而且目前对加拿大社区、电力项目开发商和公用事业公司来说，波浪能源的承诺听起来很空洞。在加拿大，关于波能转换器(WEC)技术长期潜力的辩论必须辅之以当地相关的愿景，该愿景在短期和长期之间架起一座桥梁：准确定义具有战略重要性的区域所代表的原始波能资源，部署在该战略区域的WEC的性能，以及详细说明如何开发间歇性波能的详细整合战略。由于目前的技术、社会和经济环境阻碍了加拿大对原型WEC演示的投资，这一愿景必须通过低成本、环境友好和精确的计算机模拟来实现。 在过去五年中，申请者创建了一个全国独一无二的现场测量和计算机建模工具组合，可用于完成温哥华岛西海岸基于模拟的WEC研究。这一集体研究机构被称为西海岸浪潮倡议。然而，为了准确定义WEC技术对加拿大的未来价值，目前处于商业开发地平线上的先进WEC控制策略必须在WCWI的WEC技术模拟中考虑。在拟议的发现资助研究计划中，申请者寻求为特定类别的WEC无反作用力的两体点吸振器创建先进的时域控制策略。控制开发将通过数学建模、计算机模拟和物理比例模型测试相结合的方式实现。通过将先进控制的性能优势纳入对一类前景看好的WEC技术的评估中，拟议的Discovery Grant研究计划将确保WCWI确定当前WEC投资的谨慎水平，并激励必要的行动，以促进加拿大WEC产业的形成。

Little to no precision is currently provided in the description of how the national wave energy opportunity can be realized, and the promise of wave energy currently rings hollow with Canadian communities, power project developers, and utilities. In Canada, debate on the long term potential of wave energy converter (WEC) technology has to be complemented with a locally relevant vision that bridges the short and long term and is built on: a precise definition of the raw wave energy resource as represented by a region of strategic importance, the performance of WECs deployed in that strategic region, and detailed integration strategies that detail how intermittent wave power can be exploited. Since present day technical, social and economic circumstances dissuade Canadian investment in prototype WEC demonstrations, this vision must be generated through low cost, environmentally benign and precise computer simulations. Over the past five years, the applicant has created a nationally unique portfolio of field measurement and computer modelling tools that can be used to complete such simulation based WEC research for the West Coast of Vancouver Island. The collective body of research is referred to as the West Coast Wave Initiative. However, towards an accurate definition of the future value of WEC technology to Canada, advanced WEC control strategies, currently on the horizon of commercial development, have to be considered in the WCWI's WEC technology simulations. In the proposed Discovery Grant research program, the applicant seeks to create advanced time domain control strategies for a particular class of WEC - reactionless two-body point absorbers. The control development will be achieved through a combination of mathematical modelling, computer simulation and physical scale model testing. By including the performance benefits of advanced control in the evaluation of a promising class of WEC technology, the proposed Discovery Grant research program will ensure that the WCWI identifies a prudent level of present day WEC investment and motivates the actions necessary to catalyze the formation of a productive Canadian WEC industry.