Two projects will test and validate wave energy converter (WEC) prototypes in open water. The tests will demonstrate wave energy’s potential to compete with other forms of energy in the longer term. Two other projects will address important early-stage MHK technology development challenges.

The funded projects are:

• AquaHarmonics, grand-prize winner of the Wave Energy Priz—an Energy Department-funded public competition to increase the energy capture potential of wave energy devices—will build a larger version of its winning device for open-ocean testing. Oregon City, Oregon-based AquaHarmonics won the Wave Energy Prize competition by demonstrating a five-fold improvement in energy capture per unit structural cost. The company will seek to upscale its device while maintaining low costs.

• California Wave Power Technologies (CWPT), runner-up in the Wave Energy Prize, will upscale its WEC technology for open-ocean testing. In the Wave Energy prize, CWPT’s device demonstrated more than a three-fold improvement in energy capture per unit structural cost. Through testing, the Berkeley, California-based company will validate and update estimated costs for a full-scale version of its technology.

• Portland State University of Portland, Oregon, will develop a multistage, magnetically geared generator with airtight casing to improve the cost, reliability, and efficiency of MHK devices. Increasing the gear ratio through the multistage design reduces the generator size, which in turn reduces the structural support required, thereby lowering costs. The magnetic gearbox, which creates speed change without physical contact, minimizes operations and maintenance costs and provides protection from overloading during extreme events.

• ReVision Consulting of Sacramento, California, will integrate wave measurements from radar and buoys to better predict ocean waves and provide data to WEC device controllers. Accurate wave-prediction technology can help WECs more efficiently convert energy from waves into electricity.