The type of wave energy that our technology converts into electricity is a combination of the kinetic and potential energy of water particles.  Waves cause the water particles to oscillate in elliptical paths, with the maximum kinetic energy happening as the height of the wave passes through the mean sea level.  You can feel the constantly varying effect when floating in the surf zone, as it pulls you back and forward, and up and down.

 

Due to the earth’s rotation it means it is heated unevenly, which in turn causes winds to blow as they try to re-establish temperature equilibrium.  As wind blows across the ocean, it imparts energy into the water, resulting in the ocean waves we see breaking onto the shore.  As waves move towards the coast, they are referred to as "swell".  When they get close enough to shore to be affected by the bottom of the sea, they rear up into "breakers", which is what surfers utilise.  It is the ocean swell waves that are the best form of wave for Aquanet technology.

 

Wave energy is not to be mistaken for tidal energy.  Tides are caused by the gravitational pull of the moon and sun, and have a period of around 12 hours, whereas ocean waves have a period of around 10 seconds.  Due to these vast differences the technology required to extract this energy is extremely different.

 

Advantages of Wave Energy

• Wave energy can be predicted several days in advance, meaning it can be used for base-load power when utilised in an appropriate mix of energy generation sources.

• Supply of wave energy and demand for power are well matched, with most of the world’s population living near to the coast.

• There are wave energy converters on the market that have no negative impact on its environment and in fact can be beneficial to its environment by acting as artificial reefs and encouraging growth.

 

Comparison to other resources

• Wave energy is a denser energy medium with higher predictability than wind and solar energy.

• There are a wide-ranging number of potential sites to utilise wave energy with other resources limited when it comes to large scale energy production

• Wave energy converters have less visual impact on its environment during energy production or recovery in comparison to wind and fossil fuels

 

Our nearshore shallow water device, the aquaWAVE™ device, will be cost competitive with onshore wind and fossil fuels in the next 3-5 years.

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