Performance enhancement of oscillating wave surge converters by optimizing edge profiles

There is a growing interest in improving the performance of wave energy converters. This paper presents a numerical study on the effects of additional edge profiles on the performance of oscillating wave surge converters (OWSCs). The study examined eight different configurations in addition to a simple flap. The goal of incorporating edge profiles is to enhance wave interaction with the flap by trapping water near the edges. These configurations prevent the incident wave from easily passing around the flap edges and generates a rotational flow at the junction of the flap and the edge profiles, leading to a higher driving force and consequently increasing the device's power capture. A numerical model was employed to quantify the increase in power captured by various edge profiles under different hydrodynamic conditions. The forcing hydrodynamic conditions included monochromatic waves with heights ranging from 0.4 to 2.4 m and periods from 7 to 15 s. The findings suggest that edge profiles can significantly influence the power capture potential of OWSCs.