The development of new wave energy converters has shed light on a number of unanswered questions in fluid mechanics, but has also identified a number of new issues of importance for their future deployment. The main concerns relevant to the practical use of wave energy converters are sustainability, survivability, and maintainability. Of course, it is also necessary to maximize the capture per unit area of the structure as well as to minimize the cost. In this review, we consider some of the questions related to the topics of sustainability, survivability, and maintenance access, with respect to sea conditions, for generic wave energy converters with an emphasis on the oscillating wave surge converter. New analytical models that have been developed are a topic of particular discussion. It is also shown how existing numerical models have been pushed to their limits to provide answers to open questions relating to the operation and characteristics of wave energy converters.
This study aims to quantify the potential impact of global climate change on Ireland's marine resource, which is of significant economic and social importance. Global climate models predict warming of the Earth's atmosphere and oceans, which will consequently affect mean sea levels, the frequency and severity of extreme weather events, winds and ocean waves. Such changes need to be carefully assessed for long-term marine and coastal planning. We derived future wave climate projections for Ireland using the EC-Earth global climate model and the WAVEWATCH III wave model, by comparing the future 30-year period 2070-2099 to 1980-2009 for the RCP4.5 and the RCP8.5 forcing scenarios. This data set is currently the highest resolution wave projection data set available for Ireland. EC-Earth predicts decreases in means (up to 3%) and extremes (up to 14% for the 95th percentile) of 10 m wind speeds over the North Atlantic Ocean (5-75 ∘ N, 0-80 ∘ W) by the end of the century. Similarly, the model projections show decreases in the frequency and intensity of wind storms crossing Ireland but these changes are not statistically significant. The WAVEWATCH III model predicts an overall decrease in mean (up to 15%) and extreme (up to 15% for the 95th percentile) annual, boreal winter and summer significant wave heights around Ireland.KEY WORDS EC-Earth global climate model; WAVEWATCH III; wave projections Ireland; RCP4.5; RCP8.5
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