Wave and Wind Renewable

The Pneumatically Stabilized Platform (PSP) forms an essential offshore floating support base for the Rho-Cee Wave Energy Converter (ρC) and can simultaneously provide a stable supporting platform for as well as ready maintenance access to, both large offshore Wind Turbines and submerged Ocean Current Turbines.

 

Why Wave and Wind Together?

The power potential of the offshore wind is matched, or even exceeded by the ocean wave power generated by that same wind. Further, wave energy often arrives from remote locations independently of local wind. Therefore it is clear that offshore energy concepts combining wind and wave harvesting facilities will be economically advantageous, particularly if sharing capital-intensive support structures and labor-intensive infra-structures.

The Rho-Cee WEC is integrated with Float Inc.’s Pneumatically Stabilized Platform (PSP) to take advantage of controllable stability, load capacity and the deck area that it provides.

Our Wave Energy System is an Impedance-Matched Oscillation Water Column (IM-OWC) system that is constructed using reinforced concrete and moored in deep water.

It is the base principle of the WEC design that its input impedance matches the characteristic impedance of the targeted waves.

Economy of Power Production is achieved by:

- Maximum wave-to-wire efficiency

- Reduced O&M costs due to ease of maintenance and relatively benign equipment environment

- Small annual amortization cost due to very long useful life: > 50 years

 

Ancillary uses of the associated floating real estate:

We are now examining a potentially more efficient and economical process involving long-stroke hydraulic cylinders with accumulators, hydraulic motors and controls (all COTS equipment). More direct, electro-mechanical power take-offs are also envisaged.