Research Projects

India's commitment to achieve Net Zero emissions by 2070 has accelerated the shift towards the development and deployment of clean, sustainable, and indigenous energy technologies. In this context, the Indian offshore region with a coastline of ~11,000 kms with an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of 2 million square kilometres presents a largely untapped yet highly promising frontier for marine renewable energy. India’s maritime policy initiatives: National Offshore Wind Energy Policy, Blue Economy Vision, and the Deep Ocean Mission prioritise the efficient utilisation of ocean-based energy to augment national energy security. This proposal seeks to support these goals by advancing a novel hybrid wind-wave energy conversion system, specifically suited for India’s offshore metocean conditions. This is inline with the Indian Government’s goal of generating 30GW of offshore wind energy by 2030. | "Rationale and Scientific Need": Offshore wind energy platforms have gained attention in recent years due to favourable wind resources, reduced land-use conflicts and noise concerns on land-based wind turbines. However, these platforms are capital-intensive, and the standalone deployment of wave energy converters (WECs) further increases infrastructure and maintenance costs. Considering that wind and wave resources co-exist, integrating both systems on a single platform offers a highly efficient and economical solution as the capital cost is reduced and results in higher energy generation from a single platform. By combining wind turbines platform with Oscillating Water Column (OWC), it is possible to significantly reduce the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) due to the cost sharing benefits and optimise power generation from variable offshore conditions. Despite the apparent advantages, the hydrodynamic complexity of such integrated systems remains poorly understood, particularly in the Indian context. The dynamics and the performance of the system under combined wind-wave loading, and power performance under varying sea states are key technical challenges. The study proposes a novel system where the monopile wind turbine is integrated Oscillating Water Column (OWC) type wave energy device. The unique aspect of the proposed system is the OWC system will be integrated within the platform requiring NO additional area for the wave energy device. This helps in eliminating the additional hydrodynamic forces due to provision of such wave energy devices. | "Objectives:" • To design and demonstrate a hybrid wind-wave energy conversion system suitable for India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) • To Investigate the performance of the integrated system involving aero-hydrodynamic loading involving experimental and numerical investigations • Evaluation of Hydrodynamic Efficiency of Oscillating Water Column (OWC) system integrated with Wind Turbine • Conducting Techno-Economic analysis for a Hybrid Wind Farm including the actual energy generation of the system in Identified Location in India’s (EEZ). | "Hypothesis being Investigated:" • First of its kind wind-wave energy system is being proposed with OWC system in-sensitive to wave-direction and NO increase in projected area (and by the hydrodynamic forces) of the wind turbine platform due to integration of OWC system. • Integration of wave energy converters with offshore wind platforms and its influence in reductions in Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) due to cost sharing benefits and increased energy generation • Performance of the system against the design aero-hydrodynamic conditions • Experimental Investigation in Wave-Current Flume involving measurement of the aero-hydrodynamic loading on the system, hydrodynamic efficiency of OWC, response of the system • Performing numerical modelling to study the wind-wave misalignment and the annual energy generation by the system. • Evaluating the performance and energy generation of the integrated system considered as Wind-Wave Farm for the proposed location.