Development of the Anaconda all-rubber WEC

Chaplin, J.R., Farley, F.J.M, Prentice, M.E, Rainey, R.C.T, Rimmer, S.J and Roach, A.T (2007) Development of the Anaconda all-rubber WEC. 7th European Wave and Tidal energy Conference, Porto, Portugal. 11 - 14 Sep 2007.

Abstract

The ANACONDA all-rubber WEC operates in a completely new way, capturing water waves as “bulge waves” in a giant water-filled rubber tube, aligned head-to-sea. It offers new possibilities for low capital and operational costs, based on the unique durability of rubber, and the single moving part (a conventional medium-head unidirectional water turbine). See www.bulgewave.com. Avon Fabrications LLP have recently taken an exclusive license to manufacture the device, which has been selected by the Carbon Trust for the Marine Energy Accelerator programme. Initial model tests show good capture width and wide bandwidth. The economics of the device depend on the price of the rubber, per unit of elastic energy stored in it over its lifetime, in p/kW-hr. This must be less than the selling price of the electricity produced over the device lifetime, again measured in p/kW-hr. On this basis the economics of ANACONDA are very promising.

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Contributors

Author: J.R. Chaplin

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