Triton-C Wave Energy Converter Design Development

Client:

Oscilla Power, Inc
Completion Date:

Summer 2021
Project Type:

Offshore Structures
Service Categories:

Shipyard Production Support

Naval Architecture

Marine Engineering
Vessel Overview:

Community-scale wave energy converter
Challenge:

Development of wave energy converter design concept.

FROM CONCEPT TO REALITY.

The forces of wind, wave, and tide carry immense power which can be captured and delivered on a commercial scale. Energy technology company Oscilla Power, Inc (OPI) came up with a concept for a wave energy converter (WEC) called the Triton which would utilize the ocean’s kinetic wave energy to generate power. After receiving a grant to evolve their design to the community-scale level for installation and testing in Hawaii, OPI turned to Glosten to support development of the Triton-C from concept through construction.

Our team was tasked with integrating OPI’s proprietary design through a FEED (Front End Engineering Design) cycle. We borrowed from our experience with offshore structures, developing a float design, equipment arrangement, and installation procedures that considered the complicated interactions between competing design requirements and would make the Triton more efficient to operate and maintain.

OPTIMIZATION THROUGH ITERATION.

At the community scale, space on the Triton-C comes at a premium. Our engineers custom designed an autonomous cooling system to fit inside the WEC and maintain operational temperatures for its mechanical systems in a wide range of environmental conditions. Glosten also optimized the Triton-C’s steel structure around system accessibility and weight constraints.

From the FEED cycle, Glosten developed a full design package for the construction of the WEC. The Triton-C was shipped to Hawaii the fall of 2021 and is expected to be deployed at a test site off Kaneohe Bay the summer of 2022. OPI plans to improve the design based on lessons learned during testing and eventually bring it to market around the world. The company is already looking ahead to their next WEC project, and have enlisted Glosten to support the development and testing of a utility-scale device three times the size of the Triton-C.