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Although the performance and reliability of pneumatic cylinders depend to a great extent on the friction generated at the seals, the friction characteristics have not been widely studied. Both the literature and manufacturers' catalogues rarely discuss the friction characteristics of pneumatic cylinders, and the lack of friction models limits the design, optimisation, and analysis of pneumatic cylinder systems. In seeking to improve the characteristics of pneumatic cylinders and to clarify the friction phenomenon, this paper describes friction force measurement tests carried out in pneumatic cylinders of six different diameters, from 32 to 100 mm. An experimental apparatus was designed to assess the effect of a broad range of operating conditions, where the velocity and pressure of the cylinder chambers are controlled independently. Measurements of friction force are shown for velocities of up to 0.5 m/s and pressures of up to 0.8 MPa. The data obtained will be useful for developing a suitable friction model, and the experimental apparatus will allow study of the effects on the friction force of different types of seal, lubricant, and cylinder barrel.

Although it is widely accepted that accurate modeling of wave energy converters is essential for effective and reliable design, it is often challenging to define an accurate model which is also fast enough to investigate the design space or to perform extensive sensitivity analysis. In fact, the required accuracy is usually brought by the inclusion of nonlinearities, which are often time-consuming to compute. This paper provides a computationally efficient meshless nonlinear Froude–Krylov model, including nonlinear kinematics and an integral formulation of drag forces in six degrees of freedom, which computes almost in real-time. Moreover, a mooring system model with three lines is included, with each line comprising of an anchor, a jumper, and a clump weight. The mathematical model is used to investigate the highly-nonlinear phenomenon of parametric resonance, which has particularly detrimental effects on the energy conversion performance of the spar-buoy oscillating water column (OWC) device. Furthermore, the sensitivity on changes to jumper and clump-weight masses are discussed. It is found that mean drift and peak loads increase with decreasing line pre-tension, eventually leading to a reduction of the operational region. On the other hand, the line pre-tension does not affect power production efficiency, nor is it able to avoid or significantly limit the severity of parametric instability.

Floating offshore wind represents a new frontier of renewable energies. The absence of a fixed structure allows exploiting wind potential in deep seas, like the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea, characterized by high availability and wind potential. However, a floating offshore wind system, which includes an offshore turbine, floating platform, moorings, anchors, and electrical system, requires very high capital investments: one of the most relevant cost items is the floating substructure. This work focuses on the choice of a floating platform that minimizes the global weight, in order to reduce the material cost, but ensuring buoyancy and static stability. Subsequently, the optimized platform is used to define a wind farm located near the island of Pantelleria, Italy in order to meet the island’s electricity needs. A sensitivity analysis to estimate the Levelized Cost Of Energy is presented, analyzing the parameters that influence it most, like Capacity Factor, Weighted Average Capital Cost (WACC) and number of wind turbines.

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