Research Projects

India has 13 major ports and over 200 minor ports along its 7500+ km coastline. New ports are proposed each year to increase maritime trade, and breakwaters are constructed to create tranquil zones for smooth passage of ships. The Wave Energy Converter (WEC) is proposed to transform wave power into usable renewable energy through an oscillating mechanism, thereby creating a blue economy. The WEC could be surface-piercing or submerged and tap power via Power Take-Off (PTO). One major obstacle to real-field implementation is the Return on Investment (ROI). To reduce investment, the proposal proposes integrating the oscillating buoy-WEC with existing or new breakwaters, eliminating the need for mounting and grid connectivity. This proposal does not require special EIA clearances and is hypothesized to improve WEC performance and reduce wave forces on the breakwater. The research aims to develop a mathematical model within the potential flow theory framework to finalize the floater's optimal configuration, followed by an experimental setup to validate numerical work. The proposal focuses on quantifying energy extraction, increasing power capture width and scattering coefficients due to the structure's presence, and deducing guidelines for executing the technology. The direct beneficiaries are the local community and nearby desalination plants requiring continuous power supply.