Cooperation between CAS and Local Authorities

20 kW Wave Power Platform Put into Operation

A floating prototype for power supply to marine instruments operating in the sea, which is jointly developed by the Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, CAS and 712th Research Institute, China Shipbuilding Industrial Corporation (CSIC), supervised by the State Ocenaic Administration, passed check and acceptance on March 25, 2014. The project started from August 2010, and through years of efforts, the researchers developed the 20 kW prototype, which consists mainly the fusiform buoy, the underwater damping plate, the central pipe and the linear generator. A new type of linear generator is employed for the point absorber, which is a wave energy converter with the least convertion parts, but adaptable to changes of tide and wave direction. The submersible wave avoiding technique is adopted for the converter, which increased the survivability during Typhoon seasons. The prototype weights 42 tons, stroke 4.8 meters, captured width 4.8 meters, height 19.5 meters. The power is supplied to the ocean observation instruments such as the anemometer used the rectifier -battery- inverter topology with 220 V power output. The prototype was operated on ocean trial in the Dawanshan, Guangdong Province in 2013, the maximum power record was 11.5 kW when the stroke is about 1.5 meters in the ocean trial. The rising of the prototype under the surface of the sea was realized when the air in the prototype was charged. The total operation time accounted to be 2052 hours. The 100 kW level linear converter supplying to islands is being planned.