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Wave Catchers Barges© use high vertical drag coefficient large flat bottom barge hulls to ride the water's surface. The pressure on these very large flat surface areas lifts the barges almost the height of the swell waves, which typically pass every 5 to 10 seconds. The barge's mooring lines turn generators located on top of the barges and inside water tight barge enclosures. The top sections of the mooring lines are made of a material that can resist the numerous cycles of varying wave loading and the corrosion as they pass repeatedly through the splash zone. A likely material to use in the upper mooring lines will be steel wire rope reinforced rubber belts. When the generators are a rotating type, the steel wire rope reinforced rubber belts first go over large (~6 meter) diameter articulated pulleys, then go over large (~12 meter) diameter uni-directional pulleys, then turn a large (~12 meter) diameter flywheels that finally turn the rotating generators. The forces in the mooring belts are large enough to turn large (~6 meter) diameter direct drive wind turbine generators. Almost all equipment is located inside water tight enclosures on top of the barge proving a dry safe working area for personnel maintaining the equipment and a dry area for equipment preservation. The use of large diameter low friction pulleys in the wave catcher barges provides minimum mechanical losses on the way to the generators and maximum belt life. Mooring lines are redundant and can be locked off for belt replacement.
1 June 10, 2015
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge (Double The Torque and Power Output Of The Original Wave Catcher Barge)
US Patent Number 8823196-Apparatus of Wave Generators and a Mooring System to Generate Electricity
Introduction:
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Presentation Contents
2 June 10, 2015
1. Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Component Names and Functions a) Barge b) Mooring system c) Articulated Pulleys d) Uni-Direction Pulleys With Recoil Springs e) Flywheels f) Generators
2. Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Principles of Operation 3. Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Mooring System Options
a) Fixed Types ( Direct, Clump Weight, Horizontal, Taunt ) b) Weathervaning Types (Turret, Single Point Mooring )
4. Explanation Of The Various Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Component Functions 5. Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Dimensions 6. Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Features 7. Options For Surviving the 100 Year Return Period or Higher Storm Events 8. Features of the Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge 9. Special Features of the Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
1. Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Component Names and Functions
June 10, 2015 3
Rubber steel wire reinforced mooring belts turns generators onboard
Maintenance crews by helicopter or crew boat & work in dry enclosure
Large flat barge bottom collects very large vertical wave force and provides the lowest cost/ton steel fabrication
Equipment in watertight enclosure
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge (Called the Super Watt because of the high torque it places on the generators)
A conventional tug can install or remove the barge in less than a day
Articulated pulleys in each corner wet room
Four Uni-Direction Pulleys With Recoil Springs
Flywheels store momentum and keep the generators turning
Four large wind turbine type generators
June 10, 2015 4
2. Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Principles of Operation
June 10, 2015 5
June 10, 2015 6
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Principles of Operation
6m
rad
ius
/ le
ver
arm
During wave crest loading the belts repeatedly pull on the unidirectional pulley with over 500 tonnes of force which places
3000 tonne-meters of torque on the flywheel and generator
Unidirectional Pulley
The belts wrap completely around the unidirectional pulleys allowing them to unwind and re-wind as the barge rises and falls during 100 year + storms
June 10, 2015 7
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Principles of Operation
6m
rad
ius
/ le
ver
arm
During wave trough unloading the recoil springs rewind the belts back on the unidirectional pulleys in
preparation for the next wave crest loading
Unidirectional Pulley
The belts wrap completely around the unidirectional pulleys allowing them to unwind and re-wind as the barge rises and falls during 100 year + storms
June 10, 2015 8
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Principles of Operation
The flywheels store the wave energy in the form of momentum until the generators convert the momentum into electricity
The generators convert the momentum into electricity
Direction of Rotation
The belts wrap completely around the unidirectional pulleys allowing them to unwind and re-wind as the barge rises and falls during 100 year + storms
3. Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Mooring System Options
(Many other options are possible)
June 10, 2015 9
June 10, 2015
Super Watt Wave
Catcher
Direct
Turret
Single Point Bow Mooring Clump Weight 10
June 10, 2015 11
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Direct Piled Mooring
The Simplest Mooring System Is A Shallow Water Direct Vertical Mooring System To Anchor Piles Or Gravity Anchors
Direct Vertical Mooring System
June 10, 2015 12
Piled anchors used directly below the barge. The addition of spring buoys minimizes vessel offset under both normal and extreme sea conditions and adds minimum vertical load to the barge. Minimum vessel
offset maximizing barge vertical motion and maximizing power generation.
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Direct Piled Mooring And Spring Buoys
A Spring Buoy Mooring System Can Be Added To Most Mooring Systems Horizontal Mooring System
Polyester Vertical Mooring System
Anchor Piles
Spring Buoys
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
June 10, 2015 13
Piled anchors directly below the barge. Spring buoys minimize vessel offset in normal and extreme sea conditions.
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Direct Piled Mooring And Spring Buoys
Four 6 Megawatt+ Direct Drive Generators Spring Buoy Horizontal Mooring System And Direct Piled Mooring System
Anchor Piles
Polyester Horizontal
Mooring System
Spring Buoys
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
Polyester Vertical Mooring System
Polyester Vertical Mooring System
June 10, 2015
14
Piled anchors directly below the barge. Spring buoys minimize vessel offset in normal and extreme sea conditions.
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Direct Piled Mooring And Spring Buoys
Spring Buoy Horizontal Mooring System And Direct Piled Mooring System Combination Polyester Horizontal
Mooring System
Anchor Piles
Spring Buoys
Polyester Vertical Mooring System
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
15 June 10, 2015
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Direct Clump Weight Mooring
Clump Weights On Seabed During Normal Waves
Polyester Vertical Mooring Rope
Anchor Piles
Chain Mooring Leg Seabed Section
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
16
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Direct Clump Weight and Spring Buoy Mooring
June 10, 2015
Clump weight anchors directly below the barge are sized to not leave the seabed during normal wave conditions, but lift off the seabed to become a clump weights in a catenary mooring system during an extreme cyclonic event. Spring buoys minimize vessel offset in normal and extreme sea conditions and impose minimum vertical load on the barge allowing maximum barge vertical motion and maximum
power generation.
Clump Weights
Polyester Vertical Mooring Rope
Anchor Piles
Polyester Horizontal Mooring Rope
Spring Buoys
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
Steel Reinforced Rubber Belts
June 10, 2015 17
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Direct Clump Weight and Spring Buoy Mooring
Spring Buoys Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
Steel Wire Rope Reinforced Rubber Belts
Steel Wire Rope Reinforced Rubber Belts Steel wire reinforced belts are likely to be used since they have proven to have long lives in all sorts of applications including car and truck engines. Rubber is also resistant to sea water corrosion. Offshore platforms have successfully used reinforced rubber coatings in the splash zone areas for decades. Rubber's long term resistance to seawater is best indicated by airplanes on the decks of sunken World War II aircraft carriers that still have air in their tires.
4. Explanation Of The Various Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Component Functions
June 10, 2015 18
June 10, 2015 19
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Spring Buoy Horizontal Moorings (Note Large Flat Bottom Of A Standard Barge)
The forces in the mooring legs will be very high unless the force is limited. The torque imposed by the generator imposes a drag on the mooring legs like a fishing reel does on a fishing line. The fishing reel's drag limiter releases the fishing line well before its breaking line load, which is the plan for this system. In addition, this system uses recoil springs to rewind the mooring lines back on the pulleys, in preparation for the next wave crest, when tension in the mooring line drops below a preset load.
June 10, 2015 20
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Spring Buoy Horizontal Moorings (Note Articulated Pulleys Housed In Corner Wet Rooms)
Flexible curtain seals inside the incline pipe excludes water from the dry enclosure
June 10, 2015 21
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Spring Buoy Horizontal Moorings
The Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge uses an inclined pipe to support the articulated pulley. The center of the inclined pipe is the center of rotation of the articulated pulley and also the conduit for the mooring lines on their way to the unidirectional pulley. Any water on the mooring line belts either runs down the mooring line belts or the incline pipe back into the ocean. Flexible curtain seals inside the incline pipe eliminate water from entering the dry enclosure.
Flexible curtain seals inside the incline pipe excludes water from the dry enclosure
June 10, 2015 22
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Moon Pools
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barges has moon pools at the bow and the stern of the barges around all mooring belts to allow the mooring belts to move freely up and down without touching the barge as the barge moves with the waves. The size of the required moon pool will depend on many factors including: the extreme environmental conditions at the installation site, the type of mooring system used, the top elevation of the articulated pulley, etc. Mooring systems that keep the mooring belts as vertical as possible reduce the moon pool size.
Moon Pool
23 June 10, 2015
Clump weight anchors directly below the barge are sized to not leave the seabed during normal wave conditions, but lift off the seabed to become a clump weights in a catenary mooring system during an extreme cyclonic event. Spring buoys minimize vessel offset in normal and extreme sea conditions and impose minimum vertical load on the barge allowing maximum barge vertical motion, maximum power
generation and minimum moon pool size.
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Direct Clump Weight and Spring Buoy Mooring
Clump Weights
Polyester Vertical Mooring Rope
Anchor Piles
Polyester Horizontal Mooring Rope
Spring Buoys
June 10, 2015 24
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Direct Clump Weight and Spring Buoy Mooring
Clump Weights
Polyester Vertical Mooring Rope Anchor
Piles
Horizontal Mooring Rope Spring Buoys
Clump weight anchors directly below the barge are sized to not leave the seabed during normal wave conditions, but lift off the seabed to become a clump weights in a catenary mooring system during an extreme cyclonic event. Spring buoys minimize vessel offset in normal and extreme sea conditions and impose minimum vertical load on the barge allowing maximum barge vertical motion, maximum power
generation and minimum moon pool size.
25
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Turret Moored Sea Anchor
June 10, 2015
Components: Four 12 M OD Unidirectional Pulleys Four 12 M OD Flywheels Four 6+ Megawatt Direct Drive Generators One Sea Anchor With Turret Catenary Mooring System
Turret moored sea anchor mooring systems allow the barges to naturally weathervane into the strongest wave direction maximizing wave power generation at all times. Sea anchors serve as
artificial seabed. Sea anchors moved up to near the barge or locked to the barge prior to a cyclonic event minimize cyclonic loads in the vertical belts.
June 10, 2015 26
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Turret Moored Sea Anchor
Turret moored sea anchor mooring systems allow the barges to naturally weathervane into the strongest wave direction maximizing wave power generation at all times. Sea anchors serve as
artificial seabed. Sea anchors moved up to near the barge or locked to the barge prior to a cyclonic event minimize cyclonic loads in the vertical belts.
27
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Turret Moored Sea Anchor
June 10, 2015
Turret moored sea anchor mooring systems allow the barges to naturally weathervane into the strongest wave direction maximizing wave power generation at all times. Sea anchors serve as
artificial seabed. Sea anchors moved up to near the barge or locked to the barge prior to a cyclonic event minimize cyclonic loads in the vertical belts.
June 10, 2015 28
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Farm With Turret Moored Sea Anchors
ISO View
Plan View
29
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Turret Moored Sea Anchor
June 10, 2015
Turret moored sea anchor mooring system allows barge to naturally weathervane into the strongest wave direction maximizing wave power generation at all times. Sea anchor serves as
artificial seabed. Sea anchor moves with barge during cyclonic events.
30
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Turret Moored Sea Anchor
June 10, 2015
The turret moored sea anchor allows the barge to naturally weathervane into the strongest wave maximizing wave power generation at all times. Sea anchor serves as artificial seabed. The Sea anchor is slightly negatively buoyant maintaining tension in the mooring belts at all
times. System uses two 100% redundant mooring belts at each corner.
Sea Anchor
Turret
two 100% redundant mooring belts at each corner
31
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Turret Moored Sea Anchor
June 10, 2015
Turret moored sea anchor mooring system allows barge to naturally weathervane into the strongest wave direction maximizing wave power generation at all times. Sea anchor serves as
artificial seabed. Sea anchor moves with barge during cyclonic events.
32
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Turret Moored Sea Anchor
June 10, 2015
Turret moored sea anchor mooring system allows barge to naturally weathervane into the strongest wave direction maximizing wave power generation at all times. Sea anchor serves as
artificial seabed. Sea anchor moves with barge during cyclonic events.
33 June 10, 2015
Turret moored sea anchor mooring system allows barge to naturally weathervane into the strongest wave direction maximizing wave power generation at all times. Sea anchor serves as
artificial seabed. Sea anchor moves with barge during cyclonic events.
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Turret Moored Sea Anchor With Four 12 M OD Unidirectional Pulleys, Four 12 M OD Flywheels and
Four 6 M OD 6 Megawatt Direct Drive Generators
June 10, 2015 34
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Sea Anchor And Single Point Mooring
Spring Buoy
The sea anchors can be locked to the barge in transit to location and prior to a cyclonic event. Once on location or after a cyclonic event the sea anchors can be ballasted until they are slightly negatively buoyant and at the optimum elevation below the barge and below the influence of normal daily swell waves. The sea anchors will reach a point of equilibrium with the recoil spring tension. The point of equilibrium can be adjusted by readjusting the sea anchor’s ballast. The spring buoy’s horizontal attachment arms will be horizontal under most prevailing normal swell wave conditions and impose minimum vertical load on the barge.
Sea Anchor
Spring buoy horizontal attachment arms
June 10, 2015 35
Spring Buoys
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Sea Anchor And Single Point Mooring
June 10, 2015 36
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Sea Anchor And Single Point Mooring
Spring Buoys
June 10, 2015 37
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Sea Anchor And Single Point Mooring
Spring Buoys
The sea anchors can be locked to the barge in transit to location and prior to a cyclonic event. Once on location or after a cyclonic event the sea anchors can be ballasted until they are slightly negatively buoyant and at the optimum elevation below the barge and below the influence of normal daily swell waves. The sea anchors will reach a point of equilibrium with the recoil spring tension. The point of equilibrium can be adjusted by readjusting the sea anchor’s ballast. The spring buoy’s horizontal attachment arms will be horizontal under most prevailing normal swell wave conditions and impose minimum vertical load on the barge.
June 10, 2015 38
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge – Single Point Moored Sea Anchor
Spring Buoys
The sea anchors will reach a point of equilibrium with the recoil spring tension. The point of equilibrium can be adjusted by readjusting the sea anchor’s ballast. The spring buoy’s horizontal attachment arms should be slightly downward toward the buoy under most prevailing normal swell wave conditions and thus impose a small downward vertical load on the sea anchor. This downward load will eliminating future sea anchor ballast adjustments and eliminating horizontal attachment arm vertical load on the barge.
June 10, 2015 39
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge – Single Point Moored Sea Anchor
Inclined stern mooring lines
The use of slightly inclined stern mooring lines helps: 1) minimizing the horizontal offset between the sea anchor and the barge; 2) helps maintain the upper mooring
lines as near vertical as possible; 3) minimizes the moon pool sizes; 4) helps maximize the vertical loads in the upper mooring belts; 5) helps maximize the power
output of the Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge; etc.
Spring Buoys
June 10, 2015 40
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge – Single Point Moored Sea Anchor
Spring Buoys
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Taunt Moored Buoyant Pontoons
Dry Enclosure
Barge Hull
Steel Reinforced Rubber Belts Are Lowered For ROV Connection
Taunt Mooring Legs
Buoyant Submerged
Frame
June 10, 2015 41
Pre
-in
stal
led
ROV Connection
ROV Connection
June 10, 2015 42
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Taunt Moored Buoyant Pontoons
June 10, 2015 43
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Sea Anchor and Horizontal Lines To Spring Buoys
Spring Buoys
June 10, 2015 44
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Sea Anchor and Horizontal Lines To Spring Buoys
Spring Buoys
June 10, 2015 45
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge With Sea Anchor and Horizontal Lines To Spring Buoys
Spring Buoys
5. Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Dimensions
June 10, 2015 46
47
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Has Convention Barge Dimensions
June 10, 2015
Conventional Barge Dimensions Allow Convention Barge Fabrication Anywhere In The World
6.5m
8.0m
4.0m
20m
53.5m
69.5m
48
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Length Dimensions
June 10, 2015
Conventional Barge Dimensions Allow Convention Barge Fabrication Anywhere In The World
37.5m
49
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Width Dimension
June 10, 2015
2 - 100% Capacity Mooring Belts At Each Corner Provide Redundancy And Allow Routine Belt Replacement
Conventional Barge Dimensions Allow Convention Barge Fabrication Anywhere In The World
6. Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Features
June 10, 2015 50
June 10, 2015 51
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
The Corner Wet Rooms. Many Options For Minimum Wet Room Splash Without Belt Contact.
2 - 100% Capacity Mooring Belts At Each Corner Provide Redundancy And Allow
Routine Belt Replacement
52
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Corner Wet Rooms House Articulated Pulleys
Articulated pulleys, like those used in gym equipment, are fairleads located above water for easy inspection and maintenance, minimum corrosion and minimum marine life buildup. The articulated pulleys are made large diameter for long mooring belt fatigue life and low energy losses. The articulated pulleys are cantilevered to maximize the flat bottom area of the barge
and thus maximize vertical wave forces on the barge. The articulated pulleys are located in corner wet rooms isolating them from the dry barge enclosure. The articulated pulleys are
designed to swivel freely under all wave conditions and the moon pool is sized to insure the mooring belts do not touch the hull at anytime.
Articulated Pulley / Corner
Moon Pool 2 - 100% Mooring Belts Per Corner For Redundancy
Wet Room / Corner
June 10, 2015
53
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Mooring Belts
June 10, 2015
2 - 100% Capacity Mooring Belts At Each Corner Provide Redundancy And Allow Routine Belt Replacement
two 100% redundant mooring belts at each corner
54 June 10, 2015
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Mooring Belts
2 - 100% Capacity Mooring Belts At Each Corner Provide Redundancy And Allow Routine Belt Replacement
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Corner Wet Rooms House Cantilevered Articulated Pulleys
Articulated pulleys, like those used in gym equipment, are fairleads located above water for easy inspection and maintenance, minimum corrosion and minimum marine life buildup. The articulated pulleys are made large diameter for long mooring belt fatigue life and low energy losses. The articulated pulleys are cantilevered to maximize the flat bottom area of the barge
and thus maximize vertical wave forces on the barge. The articulated pulleys are located in corner wet rooms isolating them from the dry barge enclosure. The articulated pulleys are
designed to swivel freely under all wave conditions and the moon pool is sized to insure the mooring belts do not touch the hull at anytime. 55 June 10, 2015
Articulated Pulley
56
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Enclosure Components
June 10, 2015
Sloped Large Diameter Pipe With Multiple Seals Keeps
Enclosure Dry
Belt Passes Through The Center of the Large
Diameter Pipe Which Is The Center of Rotation
Articulated Pulley Rotates On Large Diameter Pipe
Steel Reinforced Rubber Belt Mooring Legs
Corner Wet Rooms At Each Corner
57 June 10, 2015
Direct Drive Wind Turbine Generators
12 meter OD Flywheels
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Enclosure Components
Unidirectional Pulleys With Recoil Springs
Wave Catcher Barges are likely to initially use proven high capacity direct drive wind turbine generators. However, later specific Wave Catcher Barge generators may be used. Direct drive generators required less torque and provide a lower system costs. The illustration above shows one of several possible ways to supply the direct drive generator’s RPM requirements.
58 June 10, 2015
6 M OD Direct Drive Generators
Corner Wet Room Many Opening Closure Options Are Available
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Enclosure Components
12 M OD Unidirectional Pulleys 12 M OD Flywheels
June 10, 2015 59
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Components
Corner Wet Room
Many Opening Closure Options Available
Two redundant steel rope reinforced rubber mooring
belts per corner
Articulated Pulley
Mooring Belts Go Over Cantilevered Pulleys Housed In Wet Rooms
60
Dry Enclosure
June 10, 2015
Corner Wet Room
Belt Drying Pipe
Dry Enclosure Houses Transformers, Control Rooms, Switch Gear, Etc.
Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge Enclosure Components
Flywheels Unidirectional Pulleys Articulated Pulley
Direct Drive Generators
7. Options For Surviving the 100 Year Return Period or Higher Storm Events
June 10, 2015 61
June 10, 2015 62
The following are a few of the many options for limiting mooring leg tensions during 100 year storm events and allowing the Wave Catcher Barges to survive such an event: Passive Options: 1. Use of clump weights at the bottom of near vertical mooring legs that stay on the seabed during
normal waves but lift off the seabed during storm loading. 2. Use of line load limiters, like those used on fishing reels. 3. Recoil spring stiffness increase with unidirectional pulley exceeds a preset angle of rotation.
Active Options: 1. De-ballast and lock the sea anchor to bottom of barge. 2. Disengage the flywheel and generation reducing mooring leg tension. 3. Increase tension in the horizontal mooring system to serve more as a taunt leg system.
7. Options For Surviving the 100 Year Return Period or Higher Storm Events
Unidirectional Pulley / Recoil Spring Angle of Rotation
Re
coil
Spri
ng
Torq
ue
No
rmal
Wav
es
Higher Than Normal Waves
8. Summary of Features of the Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
June 10, 2015 63
64 June 10, 2015
8. Summary of Features of the Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
1. Have large high drag coefficient flat bottoms that attract significant vertical wave force. 2. These light weight barges are very responsive to wave loading and ride the waves. 3. The barges are towed to site by conventional which anchor them in less than a day. 4. The barge’s mooring legs turns 4 large wind turbine type generators located onboard. 5. Most equipment is located in a watertight enclosure on top of the barge. 6. Barge sizes are matched to environmental conditions. 7. One barge may be able to generate over 30 megawatts in normal high swell waves locations. 8. Barge mooring legs hold it on location during extreme storm events. 9. Maintenance crew access by boat or helicopter and crews work in safe above water dry top of barge enclosures. 10. The barge can be disconnected in less than a day and towed to shore for low cost safe onshore major maintenance. 11. Barge components are designed for long life and low cost replacement. 12. CAPEX and OPEX estimated similar to onshore wind power. 13. Uses reliable swell wave power 24 hours per day. 14. Barge are low profile, difficult to see from shore and painted for minimum visual pollution. 15. Cause no environmental harm since they have no discharges and have no fast moving components in the water. 16. Their hulls support new marine growth and increased the fish population 17. They use proven offshore industry barge technology and can be design to last over 25 years. 18. Use proven existing high output wind turbine generators. 19. Use proven existing offshore industry export power cables and their support technology. 20. This presentation will illustrate: various mooring systems that can be used in varying water depths; major system
components and their function; etc.
9. Special Features of the Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge
June 10, 2015 65
June 10, 2015 66
1. The more vertical mooring legs the more efficient the wave energy is transferred to the generators; therefore, maintaining the mooring legs as close to vertical as possible is an advantage, which also reduces possible hull interference.
2. The forces in the mooring legs will be very high unless the force is limited. The torque imposed by the generator imposes a drag on the mooring legs like a fishing reel does on a fishing line. The fishing reel's drag limiter releases the fishing line well before its breaking line load, which is the plan for this system. In addition, this system uses recoil springs to rewind the mooring lines back on the pulleys, in preparation for the next wave crest, when tension in the mooring line drops below a preset load.
3. The Super Watt version of the Wave Catcher barge uses an inclined pipe to support the articulated pulley. The center of the inclined pipe is the center of rotation of the articulated pulley and also the conduit for the mooring lines on their way to the unidirectional pulley. Any water on the mooring line belts either runs down the mooring line belts or the incline pipe back into the ocean. Flexible curtain seals inside the incline pipe eliminate water from entering the dry enclosure.
4. Two steel wire rope reinforced rubber belts are planned in separate grooves on the articulated pulleys and the unidirectional pulleys. The length of the rubber belts in upper portion of the mooring legs is set by the stroke needs of the belts in the 100 year return period storm events. Polyester mooring ropes are proposed below the rubber belts. Two 100 % capacity rubber belt and polyester ropes mooring legs are needed at each corner to allow for routine rubber belt and polyester mooring rope replacement, long fatigue life and redundancy. Polyester mooring rope spacers are planned, below the belt attachment points, to prevent mooring rope wear, rope ringing and rope-to-rope contact.
9. Special Features of the Super Watt Wave Catcher Barge