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There are three main types of wave power machine:
- Oscillating Water Column
- Buoyant Moored Device
- Hinged Contour Device
Some of these devices sit on the shoreline and some are free floating.
Oscillating Water Column
An Oscillating Water Column is a partially submerged, hollow structure which is installed in the ocean. It is open to the sea below the water line, enclosing a column of air on top of a column of water.
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Waves cause the water column to rise and fall, which alternatively compresses and depresses the air column. This trapped air is allowed to flow to and from the atmosphere via a Wells turbine, which has the ability to rotate in the same direction regardless of the direction of the airflow. The rotation of the turbine is used to generate electricity.
Buoyant Moored Device
A buoyant moored device floats on or just below the surface of the water and is moored to the sea floor. This type of device uses the mooring as a fulcrum, or a point against which to move. A wave power machine needs to resist the motion of the wave in order to generate power: some of the machine needs to move whilst some of the machine remains still. In this type of device the mooring is static and is arranged in such a way that the waves' motion will only move one part of the machine.
Hinged Contour Device
A hinged contour device is able to operate at greater depths than the buoyant moored device because it does not require mooring but finds resistance to the waves as the alternate motion of the waves raises and lowers different sections of the machine, pushing hydraulic fluid through hydraulic pumps to generate electricity.
The main problem with wave power is that the sea is a very harsh, unforgiving environment. An economically-viable wave power machine will need to generate power over a wide range of wave sizes as well as being able to withstand the largest and most severe storms and survive the other ravages of sea life - such as algae, barnacles and corrosion.
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