Comparison of Direct-Drive Power Takeoff Systems for Ocean Wave Energy Applications

This paper presents a comprehensive power takeoff (PTO) analysis program conducted as a collaborative research effort between Columbia Power Technologies, Inc., Oregon State University (OSU), and the U.S. Navy. Eighteen different direct-drive technologies were evaluated analytically and down-selected to five promising designs. Each of the five prototypes was simulated, modeled in SolidWorks, and built at the 200-W peak level and tested on OSU's wave energy linear test bed. The simulations were validated with the 200-W experimental results and then scaled up to 100 kW, with full 100-kW designs including costs, maintenance, operations, etc., to estimate the cost of energy (COE) for each PTO buoy system at utility scale.